‘Adding fuel to fire’: how Nvidia CEO’s troubles, US midterms may tighten China chip curbs

Najib Razak, who was brought down in the multibillion-dollar 1MDB scandal, was released from prison to serve the rest of his sentence in his mansion.

Formulaic AI-generated microdramas risk stifling human creativity and innovation, a Beijing professor has warned at a forum in Macau. Zhang Lanshan, a professor at the School of Digital Media and Design Arts at the Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications, said that while audiences loved such standardised content, it posed a risk to diversity and artistic endeavour. Experts, including from several Hong Kong institutions, also warned users of artificial intelligence about the cultural...

A U.S. Army unit in Germany is not sure what’s next as the Pentagon considers a major drawdown of forces in Europe.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jnr’s administration has been accused of trying to conceal Manila’s urban poverty by clearing street vendors and homeless people along key routes ahead of next week’s Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit. Antonio Tinio, deputy minority floor leader of the House of Representatives representing the ACT Teachers Party List, claimed on Monday that authorities had launched operations to displace poor communities across the capital to present a...

There is growing momentum to pass a slate of major new export control bills targeting China, in the wake of the Democrats’ takeover of the US Congress and scrutiny over American chip giant Nvidia following CEO Jensen Huang’s admission of an extramarital affair. US intelligence reportedly identified the woman as a Chinese spy, a claim that Beijing has rejected. Leading US politicians have been quick to jump on the news to put pressure on the White House and other lawmakers to approve three bills...

US President Donald Trump has conceded that his mass deportation drive may have been “too tough” after his Republican Party’s heavy losses in the midterm elections, but analysts doubt the remark signals a change of policy. Asian-Americans, who were among the communities heavily targeted in the immigration crackdown, swung sharply towards the Democrats on November 3. Trump made the comment in an interview with CBS’ 60 Minutes programme, recorded after the vote. Democrats won control of both...

Indonesia’s parliament reconvened on Tuesday with lawmakers weighing the possibility of a probe into the eligibility of Vice-President Gibran Rakabuming Raka, amid a widening political rift between his influential father and President Prabowo Subianto. As son of the hugely popular two-term former President Joko Widodo, Gibran helped Prabowo win the ‌2024 election by a huge margin, but some lawmakers are seeking to investigate whether his incomplete education documents disqualify him as...

Nvidia founder and CEO Jensen Huang has admitted to having an extramarital affair as the chipmaker investigates reported allegations that a Chinese businesswoman close to him may have been working for Beijing’s intelligence services. Beijing has rejected the espionage claims as “baseless”, while Nvidia has said it had no reason to believe company secrets or US national security were compromised. The controversy wiped about US$190 billion off the chipmaker’s market value in a single day. US...

In Indonesia, support for President Prabowo Subianto has collapsed as his government has failed to contain raging wildfires, compounding quality-of-life woes.

Four deaths in two helicopter crashes within five days have raised questions about the dangers facing those fighting Indonesia’s massive forest fires, prompting a government review on aerial firefighting efforts. But those dangers extend beyond the skies, with volunteer firefighters on the ground describing inadequate protective equipment, scarce water supplies and peatland fires that can suddenly erupt beneath their feet. On November 4, an Indonesian army Mi-17V5 transport helicopter carrying...

Malaysia’s High Court cleared the way for jailed former prime minister Najib Razak to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest on Tuesday, triggering Transport Minister Anthony Loke’s immediate resignation. Loke, who leads the Democratic Action Party (DAP), a key component of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim’s unity government, announced his resignation after the court decision was made public, following through on a pledge to step down if Najib was allowed to serve his sentence...

Indonesia is turning to China for a major expansion of solar power and energy storage, but a new report warns that a multibillion-dollar funding gap and demands for greater domestic control will complicate the plan as the country’s energy ties deepen. The report, published on Monday by the Jakarta-based Centre of Economic and Law Studies (Celios), found that Chinese investment in Indonesia’s energy sector was expanding beyond nickel processing and electric-vehicle battery production, which had...