intelligence

According to Jinshi reports, the Hang Seng Index Company launched the Hang Seng Hong Kong Stock Connect Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Index on July 31. This index reflects the performance of Hong Kong-listed companies that can be traded through the Hong Kong Stock Connect, which provide foundational technologies for the development and deployment of artificial intelligence, covering fields such as semiconductors, electronic devices, infrastructure and hardware resource suppliers, and related components.

Jiang Yi, Director of the Policy Research Office of the National Development and Reform Commission, stated at a press conference on July 31 that in the first half of the year, China's pace of independent innovation in artificial intelligence has accelerated. Domestic companies such as Deep Exploration and Dark Side of the Moon have successively released open-source large models with parameter scales reaching "trillion" levels, and the global download volume of domestic large models has surpassed 10 billion times. The next step will focus on strengthening research and development in cutting-edge areas such as the basic theory of large models, training and inference efficiency, multimodality, and intelligent agents, and accelerating the layout and construction of national artificial intelligence application pilot bases, while vigorously cultivating intelligent derivative enterprises.Jiang Yi pointed out that there will be a coordinated approach to high-quality development and high-level security, accelerating the legislative process of the "Artificial Intelligence Law", constructing a "development---regulation---security" closed-loop system, establishing and improving technical monitoring, risk warning, and emergency response mechanisms, and adhering to the development concept of "human-led, for human use, and benevolent to humanity," actively responding to the impact of artificial intelligence on economic operation and employment distribution.

According to Jinshi reports, the Amazon CEO stated that there is a clear and strong financial return outlook in terms of artificial intelligence and AWS spending.

According to Jinshi reports, Goldman Sachs Asset Management has launched the artificial intelligence investment platform AlphaAI.

According to Jinshi reports, the headquarters of the Iranian intelligence department in Ahvaz was bombed.

According to Business Insider, Alexandr Wang, founder of Scale AI and current head of Meta's Superintelligence Lab, stated at a Y Combinator event that AI has significantly narrowed the power gap between startups and giants. He recalled that when he founded Scale AI in 2016, "startups faced giants like David against Goliath, needing to find market entry points more intelligently"; however, with the development of AI agent technology, "it now feels more like Goliath against Goliath," and as long as startups apply AI agents in "the most ambitious way," it is not difficult to defeat large companies that already have an advantage.Scale AI, founded by Wang, is one of the earliest data annotation companies, employing thousands of contractors worldwide to train models for large AI labs. Last June, Meta reached a $14.3 billion deal with Scale AI, and Wang subsequently joined Meta. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also stated at the same event that "there has never been a better time to start a business."

According to Jinshi reports, the CEO of Meta Platforms stated that thanks to artificial intelligence, the company is creating a brand new experience, and the speed of product delivery has increased.

According to TechCrunch, bot detection startup Spur Intelligence has completed a $200 million financing round led by Insight Partners. Founded in 2017, the company's technology helps businesses distinguish between real users and hidden bot traffic, identifying fake users and threats.Cloudflare reported last month that by mid-2026, internet bot activity has surpassed human activity for the first time. Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince stated that the growth of proxy traffic has exceeded expectations. Spur pointed out that with the surge of anonymizing infrastructures such as criminal VPNs and residential proxy networks, businesses face a blind spot where they can see activity but not the underlying infrastructure.

UK real estate technology startup Dwelly announced the completion of a $170 million financing round to acquire more real estate companies and integrate artificial intelligence into its operations.This round of financing was led by EQT Growth and General Catalyst, including $95 million in equity financing and a $75 million debt financing facility provided by Trinity Capital. The company did not disclose its valuation.

A spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Commerce responded to the U.S. claim that it would investigate Chinese AI companies for "distilling" U.S. cutting-edge models and may impose sanctions, stating that this move lacks factual and legal basis and is a typical act of artificial intelligence hegemony.China pointed out that some of its model capabilities are already at the leading level, and nearly 200 U.S. startups urged the government not to cut off access to Chinese open-source models. China urged the U.S. to stop the smear campaign and threats of sanctions; otherwise, it will take all necessary measures to safeguard its own rights and interests.

According to Business Insider, Musk reiterated and refined the timeline: within about 5 years, overall AI intelligence may surpass the total human intelligence; within about 10 years, humans are likely to no longer dominate (the intelligence gap is far greater than that between chimpanzees and humans). He stated that AI can do better in almost all aspects except "being human" itself.Musk believes the most likely outcome of AI development is an "era of astonishing abundance," where robots + AI can produce goods and services far exceeding human consumption capacity, allowing anyone to have whatever they want. By around 2036, "money may no longer matter."He believes that the government could directly issue checks to the public (similar to universal basic income), as output surges, and deflation is more likely to occur rather than inflation; the traditional logic of taxation/re-distribution may fail under the new paradigm. He accepts that there is about a 10-20% risk of human extinction from AI, but believes that the momentum of development is unstoppable, having reached a "philosophical conclusion": if it cannot be stopped, then join in and "enjoy the journey."

The Singapore Police Force and the Federal Bureau of Investigation signed a memorandum of understanding to strengthen joint actions, intelligence sharing, training, and law enforcement assistance in online scams, cyber fraud, and money laundering cases.The two parties completed a joint operation targeting cross-border cryptocurrency fraud in Singapore and the United States, identifying 54 victims and potential victims through information sharing and blockchain intelligence, and preventing potential losses of approximately 2.7 million USD in the United States and about 388,000 SGD in Singapore.

In a 90-minute interview with The Economist, Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and SpaceX, stated that artificial intelligence could surpass human intelligence levels within the next five years and predicted that in about ten years, AI and robotics might drive the world into a "highly affluent era." Musk believes that once AI systems and robots possess sufficiently powerful digital intelligence and production capabilities, the global economy could approach a state of "infinite supply," making human labor no longer a necessary condition for survival, and the importance of currency may gradually decline.He stated that in the future, if the number of robots is sufficient, society will have a "quasi-infinite economy," where artificial intelligence can produce goods and services that exceed human consumption capacity. He even predicted that by around 2036, the importance of the traditional currency system might significantly decrease. Regarding future economic operating models, Musk mentioned that governments might maintain social operations by directly distributing funds to the public and believes that the productivity improvements brought by AI could lead to deflation rather than inflation.However, regarding issues such as corporate profit models, government fiscal sources, and social transformation, Musk acknowledged that the economic structure in the age of artificial intelligence might differ greatly from traditional economic laws. Additionally, Musk discussed the integration of AI with space development. He indicated that in the future, data centers deployed in space might be used to support AI computing and reiterated the long-term plan for human exploration of Mars. In the interview, Musk also reflected on his previous involvement in the Trump administration's "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE). He admitted that he had invested too much energy in the political arena, "got a bit sidetracked," and stated that if he could choose again, he might spend more time on his own companies.

According to Xinhua News Agency, the 2026 World Artificial Intelligence Conference released the "Global Artificial Intelligence Innovation Index Report 2026," which quantitatively evaluates the AI innovation development of 46 countries from five dimensions: foundational support, resources and environment, scientific and technological research and development, industry and applications, and international cooperation and exchange.The report points out that AI infrastructure continues to expand, and energy supply has become a new variable for future development; the focus of large model industrialization is shifting from general-purpose to vertical, from training to inference, driving the complete business process reshaping, with enterprises showing characteristics of heavy asset investment; at the same time, the global demand for AI governance is accelerating, and China is promoting global governance and inclusive cooperation from multiple dimensions.

The National Development and Reform Commission officially released the "Action Plan for the Cooperative Development of Artificial Intelligence," aimed at building an open, shared, secure, orderly, and collaboratively governed global artificial intelligence ecosystem. The plan clearly outlines eight core actions, comprehensively promoting deep international cooperation in the AI field from multiple dimensions, including data, computing power, algorithms, talent, and governance. At the foundational level of data and computing power, the action plan emphasizes the need to promote cross-border data flow and build a trustworthy cross-border data space, collaboratively constructing a high-quality corpus; at the same time, it promotes the interconnection of intelligent computing facilities, providing inclusive intelligent computing services to developing countries, and creating low-carbon intelligent computing infrastructure driven by green energy.In terms of industrial empowerment and ecological sharing, the plan encourages the co-construction of an international open-source community for artificial intelligence, promoting the sharing of general large models, basic algorithms, and tool components, and supporting countries in conducting localized innovation based on open-source models. By deepening "Artificial Intelligence +" cooperation, it aims to build a cross-national industrial cooperation platform, promoting the deep application and empowerment of AI technology in fields such as science, manufacturing, healthcare, education, agriculture, and governance. In addition, the plan also proposes the establishment of a joint training mechanism for top digital talent, collaboratively formulating occupational standards and skill certification systems, comprehensively enhancing public literacy, and jointly addressing the structural impacts of AI on employment.Regarding industry rules and technical security, the action plan advocates for the co-construction of rules and standards and collaborative governance for security. All parties will strengthen information sharing on cybersecurity threats and emergency response cooperation, researching ways to enhance the explainability, transparency, and safety of artificial intelligence. Finally, the plan emphasizes adherence to the technological ethics principle of "AI for Good," collaboratively constructing an ethical guideline system dedicated to eliminating algorithmic biases in the forms of racism, discrimination, and others. By promoting international governance cooperation in AI research, it aims to contribute public scientific products to the Global South, effectively serving the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

DeepSeek's first round of financing has officially landed. Business registration information shows that DeepSeek's affiliated company, Hangzhou DeepSeek Artificial Intelligence Basic Technology Research Co., Ltd., recently underwent a business change, adding Hangzhou Chengli Enterprise Management Consulting Partnership (Limited Partnership) and National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund Partnership (Limited Partnership) as shareholders, with registered capital increased to 16.4475 million yuan.

According to a report by Reuters, the Cyberspace Administration of China announced on Wednesday (July 15) that Apple's edge-generative AI service "Apple Intelligence" has successfully completed filing in China and is approved for use on iPhone devices in the Chinese market. The official announcement has not yet specified a concrete launch date.According to informed sources, Apple's AI service will integrate the AI model capabilities of Baidu and Alibaba. Alibaba subsequently confirmed in a statement that its "Tongyi Qianwen" (Qwen) large model will be integrated into the Apple Intelligence experience for users in China on iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS. Apple has not yet responded to this.

According to Jinshi reports, Goldman Sachs stated that the combined effect of rising prices for memory, software, and electricity brought about by artificial intelligence is contributing more than 0.2 percentage points to the year-on-year inflation of the U.S. core PCE, and this contribution is expected to rise to 0.5 percentage points by the end of the year.