· ai-devtools
China allows DeepSeek, MiniMax to keep selling AI tech despite export threats
Two firms, DeepSeek and MiniMax, received authorization last Friday to maintain exports, even as China proposed restrictions on certain AI technologies.
Beijing's Ministry of Commerce announced these limitations in mid-October by amending its Catalogue of Technologies Prohibited and Restricted from Export in China, requiring companies to secure a license for tech exports.
New additions to this list include “23 technologies related to large-scale models, intelligent agents, computing clusters, and information processing.” Open source licensed technology remains exempt from these new rules.
The expanded Catalogue also grants Beijing the authority to halt exports of any AI deemed crucial to sovereign capacity, such as tools with military applications or potent bug-finding capabilities.
In Australia, the AI datacenter building boom faces turbulence, evidenced by two recent incidents. Firmus called off its initial public offering after investor sentiment soured, with potential buyers reportedly requesting a quarter reduction in the share price due to overly optimistic revenue projections.
Another setback occurred when NEXTDC announced reduced revenue forecasts because its power supplier paused work amid community opposition to necessary utility pole and wire installations for an expansion.
Grab, a Singapore-based company, suggested its collected shopping data might aid in detecting disease outbreaks. The company noted that “Retail purchases can supplement clinical surveillance because changes in demand for some over-the-counter products may appear before confirmed case reports.”
Grab stressed that its data should not drive personalized medical advice or insurance decisions, advising that “The analysis should use only eligible product categories, coarse geographic areas, and aggregate time windows approved for the stated public health purpose.”
Regarding regulatory shifts, South Korea’s science minister Bae Kyung-hoon pledged to speed up the creation of rules governing smart glasses to prevent unauthorized filming, an effort President Lee Jae Myung recently endorsed.
Meanwhile, India’s leading telecommunications provider, Jio Platforms, is preparing for an IPO this week, with institutional investors showing significant appetite, as the offering is valued at just over $100 billion.
