What's in this episode:

• Opener: American singer Brittany Porter claims she accidentally married Malaysian Sultan Muhammad V.
• Highlights: Asia attempts a comeback; strong US job data lifts sentiment.
• Top Bit: XPENG’s Humanoid Robot IRON:
  • Specs: 1.7m tall, 70kg, 82 joints (22 in each hand), bionic spine.
  • Brain: In-house system of three AI models powered by three Turing chips delivering 3,000 TOPS.
  • Innovation: First humanoid robot with a solid-state battery; highly customizable.
  • Future: Robotaxi rollouts and first public flying car (eVTOL) flights planned for 2026.
• Number of the Day: -14%—The slide in Pony.ai’s shares on its first trading day in Hong Kong. WeRide was down 12%.
• Market Bit: Singtel’s $3.9B Data Center Deal:
  • Singtel (with KKR) is in talks to acquire >80% of ST Telemedia Global Data Centres for approx. $3.9 billion USD.
  • STT GDC operates >100 data centers across 20+ markets.
  • The deal aims to shape Asia’s data center champion, riding the AI boom.
• Startup of the Day: Inflync: Shanghai-based eVTOL developer with 1,000+ preorders for its L600 air taxi, aiming for commercial flights by 2028.
• Short News of the Day:
  • India: Finance Minister eyes mergers to create more “large, world-class banks.”
  • Nissan sells its Yokohama HQ for ~$630 million USD in a sale-and-leaseback to fund its EV transition.
  • LVMH executive reaffirms long-term commitment to China, praising market resilience.
  • Hyundai is teaming up with Nvidia to build an AI factory in South Korea.

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