Energy & Technology

SINGAPORE: ViewQwest has partnered with Lightspeed Technologies, an enterprise solution provider and leading email security expert, to unveil the ViewQwest SecurEmail Gateway at GovWare 2024, held from 15 to 17 October. This new solution offers businesses a quick and seamless way to secure their email systems, bolstering protection against email-based threats and vulnerabilities. The cloud-based SecurEmail Gateway aligns with best practices from the Cyber Security Agency of Singapore’s (CSA) Internet Hygiene Portal (IHP) for email and domain security. By adopting the SecurEmail Gateway, businesses can achieve a perfect score of 100 in the IHP’s comprehensive online security assessment. The Need for Email Security While messaging apps and cloud-based tools are on the rise, email remains central to business communications, enabling seamless collaboration and information sharing. However, email protocols were developed long before cybersecurity became a priority, leaving email susceptible to threats such as spoofing and phishing. One critical vulnerability stems from the original email protocol’s lack of verification and encryption features. Just as a letter with a fake return address could deceive, email in its raw form allows bad actors to impersonate trusted contacts and exploit user trust through social engineering. Understanding CSA Best Practices Over time, several email security protocols have emerged to address these vulnerabilities. However, consistently deploying these protocols can be complex and resource-intensive, leaving many organizations without optimal email security. Protocols such as DKIM add digital signatures to verify email integrity during transit. SPF limits the servers authorized to send emails on behalf of a domain, preventing spoofing, while DANE validates server authenticity to prevent man-in-the-middle attacks. Even major providers like Office 365 and Google Workspace may not have the most optimal security settings enabled. The same challenge applies to many telecommunication providers due to the balancing act between user convenience and comprehensive security measures or a lack of awareness by customers. To raise awareness and promote robust email security, the CSA has introduced a comprehensive checklist for best practices and an online assessment tool for businesses to gauge the security status of their email systems. One-Step Solution for Enhanced Email Security ViewQwest’s SecurEmail Gateway offers a streamlined, cost-effective way for businesses to strengthen email security without overhauling their current systems. Available as a SaaS solution, it integrates easily with major platforms like Google Workspace, Office 365, Microsoft Exchange, and custom email servers. Through simply configuring their existing email server to work with the SecurEmail Gateway, businesses can instantly enhance email security to meet and exceed CSA recommendations. This solution ensures adherence to CSA best practices and strengthens the organization’s email security posture. While there is no absolute guarantee against spoofing and attacks, adhering to CSA guidelines can significantly mitigate risks and strengthen an organisation’s overall email security posture. With ViewQwest SecurEmail Gateway, organizations can achieve full compliance with CSA guidelines in just one-step.

ISTANBUL: The Global Mobile Broadband Forum 2024 (MBBF 2024) has kicked off in Istanbul, Türkiye with the theme “5.5G Leads Mobile AI Era”. More than 1,000 guests from mobile network carriers, ecosystem players, and leaders from vertical industries have gathered to discuss a wide range of topics, from business model innovation to industry development and key technological directions in the Mobile AI era. This forum was set up to further promote the convergence of 5.5G and intelligent applications to create greater value for the mobile industry. During the forum, Huawei and Türkiye network carriers have jointly provided diverse intelligent 5.5G field experiences. Also, various players in the Mobile AI ecosystem will be displaying their intelligent connectivity applications for people, homes, things, vehicles, and industries. MBBF 2024 began with the opening remarks from Ken Hu, Huawei’s Rotating Chairman. “In the future, AI will change everything. Everyone will be able to use it, anytime and anywhere. Mobile networks and devices will play an important role to make that happen, just like what we have done to enable telephones and mobile Internet as a universal service,” said Hu. 2024 has brought both the commercial launch of 5.5G and the unprecedented expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) into our everyday life and work. Globally, more than 3 million AI-capable applications have been developed, more than the total number of non-AI apps available in the app store. That early commercial 5.5G rollout coincides with the first year of AI adoption in various devices is tremendously significant — it heralds the dawn of the Mobile AI era. Li Peng, Huawei’s Senior Vice President and President of ICT Sales & Service delivered a keynote on how to maximize new growth opportunities in the mobile AI era. “The mobile AI era is here,” said Li. “We will see new forms of interaction with devices, new intelligent services, and structural changes in traffic models. This will bring huge new opportunities for the mobile industry.”Li then detailed how carriers can make the most of these new opportunities and drive new growth by reshaping services, network infrastructure, O&M, and business models. He shared how leading carriers around the world have already verified AI service capabilities on live 5.5G networks across a wide range of scenarios for individuals, homes, travel, and business. “Moving forward, there are two things we can do to capitalize on new opportunities in the mobile AI era,” said Li. “First, we should prepare our networks to support AI. That means boosting network capabilities, especially uplink, latency, and capacity. Second, we can use AI to support our networks. With more complex networks, we can use AI to help automate O&M, optimize network efficiency, and guarantee a solid user experience.” This forum features boutique exhibitions of new intelligent connectivity for people, homes, things, industries, and vehicles. Across the indoor booths and outdoor fields, multimodal AI devices and diverse Mobile AI applications are presented, including AI phones, AI glasses, intelligent cockpits, humanoid intelligence, AI-generated content (AIGC), digital human interaction, and AI-powered real-time call translation, thanks to the joint efforts of Huawei, operators, and industry players. Another highlight is the continuous 5.5G coverage across the indoor and outdoor areas of the venues, showcasing the multidimensional capabilities of 5.5G networks and the cutting-edge products and solutions that power them. The 15th Global Mobile Broadband Forum, with a tagline of ‘5.5G Leads Mobile AI Era’, runs from October 30 to 31 in Istanbul, Türkiye. It will be hosted by Huawei with support from our industry partners GSMA and GTI. Together with operators, vertical industry leaders, and ecosystem partners, we will share the industry’s latest advancements and explore new opportunities. Industry stakeholders will discuss how to achieve 5.5G business success in the Mobile AI era, and leverage the success of 5G to attain even greater achievements with 5.5G. For more information, please visit MBBF2024 at: https://www.huawei.com/en/events/mbbf2024.

SHANGHAI: The China National Data Group Alliance, which aims to foster the high-quality development of the digital economy, was established on Oct. 20 at the 2024 Global Data Ecosystem Conference held in Shanghai. The formation of this alliance aims to break geographical restrictions by sharing resources, technologies and scenarios, to inject new vitality into the reform of China’s market-oriented allocation of data elements and to promote the construction of a unified national market, reports said. The alliance has an initial membership of 21 data industry companies, including Shanghai Data Group and Jiangsu Data Group, which have operations in 21 provincial-level regions. Nearly 300 people, consisting of the heads of data groups and industrial companies as well as representatives from universities, research institutes and digital companies, were present at the conference when the alliance was established.

KUALA LUMPUR: Intel Corporation (INTC) and AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) today announced the creation of an x86 ecosystem advisory group bringing together technology leaders to shape the future of the world’s most widely used computing architecture. x86 is uniquely positioned to meet customers’ emerging needs by delivering superior performance and seamless interoperability across hardware and software platforms. The group will focus on identifying new ways to expand the x86 ecosystem by enabling compatibility across platforms, simplifying software development, and providing developers with a platform to identify architectural needs and features to create innovative and scalable solutions for the future. For over four decades, x86 has served as the bedrock of modern computing, establishing itself as the preferred architecture in data centers and PCs worldwide. In today’s evolving landscape — characterized by dynamic AI workloads, custom chiplets, and advancements in 3D packaging and system architectures — the importance of a robust and expanding x86 ecosystem is more crucial than ever. “We are on the cusp of one of the most significant shifts in the x86 architecture and ecosystem in decades – with new levels of customization, compatibility and scalability needed to meet current and future customer needs,” said Pat Gelsinger, Intel CEO. “We proudly stand together with AMD and the founding members of this advisory group, as we ignite the future of compute, and we deeply appreciate the support of so many industry leaders.” “Establishing the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group will ensure that the x86 architecture continues evolving as the compute platform of choice for both developers and customers,” said Lisa Su, AMD Chair and CEO. “We are excited to bring the industry together to provide direction on future architectural enhancements and extend the incredible success of x86 for decades to come.” The advisory group aims to unite industry leaders to shape the future of x86 and foster developer innovation through a more unified set of instructions and architectural interfaces. This initiative will enhance compatibility, predictability and consistency across x86 product offerings. To achieve this, the group will solicit technical input from the x86 hardware and software communities on essential functions and features. Collaboration will facilitate the creation of consistent and compatible implementations of key x86 architectural features and programming models, extending across all  sectors – including data centers, cloud, client, edge and embedded devices – ultimately delivering downstream benefits to customers. The intended outcomes include: Enhancing customer choice and compatibility across hardware and software, while accelerating their ability to benefit from new, cutting-edge features. Simplifying architectural guidelines to enhance software consistency and interfaces across x86 product offerings from Intel and AMD. Enabling greater and more efficient integration of new capabilities into operating systems, frameworks and applications. As vigorous competitors, Intel and AMD at the same time share a history of industry collaboration focused on platform-level advancements, the introduction of standards, and security vulnerability mitigation within the x86 ecosystem. Their joint efforts have shaped key technologies, including PCI, PCIe, Advanced Configuration and Power Interface (ACPI). Both companies also played a pivotal role in developing USB, a vital connectivity standard for all computers regardless of the processor. This advisory group takes this industry collaboration to the next level for the benefit of the entire computing ecosystem and as a catalyst for product innovation. CEO Quotes from Founding Members Broadcom Inc. President and CEO Hock Tan “We are at a crossroads in the history of computing. The x86 architectural decisions we make today will affect programming models, frameworks and systems for decades to come. Broadcom looks forward to lending its industry perspective to the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group as a pioneer in silicon development and x86 virtualization with VMware.”  Dell Technologies Chairman and CEO Michael Dell “Dell has a long history of working with the x86 platform. We look forward to collaborating with Intel, AMD and fellow x86 Advisory Group members to continue driving innovation for our customers and partners.” Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian “Google is excited to join this x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group to help shape the future of computing. Taking a pan-industry approach ensures consistent implementations, which aligns with Google’s commitment to fostering innovation and providing the best possible experience for our developers and users. By simplifying and standardizing across the x86 ecosystem, we can unlock new levels of performance, efficiency, and ease of use, ultimately accelerating the development and adoption of cutting-edge technologies.” Hewlett Packard Enterprise President and CEO Antonio Neri “HPE is honored to be a founding member of the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group, helping shape a consistent future architecture with innovative new features that meet customers’ evolving computing needs.” HP Inc. President and CEO Enrique Lores “We are honored to join Intel, AMD, and other advisory group members to advance the x86 architecture. At HP, we believe that the future of work will require technology that drives growth and fulfillment for both employees and the companies they work for. Building a more efficient, secure, and customizable x86 ecosystem will help accelerate this evolution.”  Lenovo Chairman and CEO Yuanqing Yang “Lenovo is delighted to be one of the founding members of this important new advisory group, given our role in the industry for the past decade. When we work together as an industry ecosystem, we all benefit, but more importantly, so do our customers. I’m looking forward to sharing our technical expertise as we collectively accelerate the growing x86 market across client, edge and cloud.” Microsoft Chairman and CEO Satya Nadella “x86 has been foundational to modern computing for over four decades, and we want to ensure it continues to evolve and benefit everyone going forward. By bringing together partners across the industry, the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Board will play a critical role in shaping future x86 architectural features and help drive software consistency and standard interfaces.” Oracle CEO Safra Catz “The x86 architecture has had a profound impact on the computing industry, driving innovations through constant evolution. As a long-time partner with both AMD and Intel, Oracle is proud to be a founding member of the x86

KUALA LUMPUR: The Malaysia Productivity Corporation today officially launched the Electric Vehicle and Battery Management (EVBM) Guidelines at the EV and Battery Management Conference 2024, held in conjunction with IGEM 2024.  The development of these guidelines, led by Northport (Malaysia) Bhd in collaboration with businesses and regulators across the EV ecosystem, was facilitated by MPC with support from the Malaysia Automotive Robotics and IoT Institute (MARii) – provide a framework for industry self-regulation, by ensuring the safe and sustainable management of electric vehicles (EVs) and EV batteries.  In support of the guidelines, Dato’ Hairil Yahri Yaacob, Secretary General of MITI said the launch marks a significant step in Malaysia’s push toward sustainability and productivity in the growing EV sector. “MITI fully supports the EVBM Guidelines as they offer businesses a clear framework to manage EVs and their batteries safely and sustainably. Premised on the principles of life-cycle management, the guidelines cover handling, transportation, disposal, and recycling of EVs and EV batteries. As such, this launch is a key step towards strengthening Malaysia’s positioning as a regional manufacturing hub for electric mobility and attracting future green technology investments”, said Dato’ Hairil. “These guidelines empower the industry to self-regulate, making compliance more straightforward and giving businesses the freedom to focus on boosting productivity and enhancing competitiveness. By taking control of their regulatory practices, companies can maintain high safety and environmental standards while driving innovation and growth,” said Zahid Ismail, Director General of Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC). The conference, organised by the Malaysian Green Technology and Climate Change Corporation (MGTC) and the Malaysia Productivity Corporation (MPC) with support from MITI, the Ministry of Natural Resources, Environment, and Sustainability (NRES), MARii, and NanoMalaysia Berhad, brought together over 100 participants, including business associations and regulatory bodies, to discuss best practices in EV and battery management. Dato’ Azman Shah Mohd Yusof, CEO of Northport, highlighted the importance of these guidelines in managing the rise in EV adoption: “These guidelines ensure the EV supply chain operates safely and efficiently as adoption accelerates”. The EVBM Guidelines are expected to become a foundational tool for businesses within the electric vehicle sector, enabling them to meet safety, environmental, and regulatory requirements. By adopting these guidelines, the industry will enhance productivity and competitiveness while maintaining high standards of compliance.

KUALA LUMPUR: Delapan is poised to become a critical hub for cross-border trade and digital infrastructure in northern Malaysia, enhancing connectivity with Southeast Asia. The Malaysian government continues to support the development of the Special Border Economic Zone (SBEZ), aimed at encouraging investment and stimulating economic growth. As part of this initiative, AREA Group (AREA) has commenced the development of the first phase of the AREA Data Centre Campus (ADCC) in Kedah’s Delapan SBEZ. This development follows a sale and purchase agreement for 12.14 hectares of land, with an estimated gross development value (GDV) of USD 2.4 billion. AREA’s special purpose vehicle, Data Gateway Sdn Bhd, signed the agreement with Northern Gateway Sdn Bhd (NGX), Delapan’s master developer, for the initial purchase of land critical for establishing the data centre. The selection of the site was influenced by its access to essential resources, particularly energy and water supply. Datuk Stewart Labrooy, AREA Group Executive Chairman, highlighted these factors as crucial for the successful establishment of the data centre. Delapan also boasts strong submarine cable connectivity, currently linking to Satun and Songkhla across the Thai border, with an Internet exchange scheduled for completion by 2025. This strategic location, at the northern end of the North-South Highway and Federal Route 1—the main border route to Thailand—positions Delapan as a key player in regional logistics. As of June 2022, projects within Delapan’s SBEZ had secured three significant real estate investment agreements, totaling RM7.2 billion. These include a Truck Depot and Internal Release Project by PKT Logistics Sdn Bhd (December 2019), an Integrated Nitrile Glove Manufacturing Complex by Hartalega Bhd (March 2021), and an Internet Exchange (IX) and Data Centre Project (December 2021). The SBEZ covers nearly 11,800 acres and is a high-impact initiative developed in collaboration with the Federal Government and the Kedah State Government. NGX, as the main developer for the DELAPAN projects, manages an area of 4,400 acres, representing 38% of the total SBEZ. Datuk Ammar Shaikh Mahmood Naim, NGX Senior Director, noted that Delapan is uniquely positioned to emerge as a prime destination for core and investment-grade assets, particularly with its Free Commercial and Industrial Zone attracting businesses targeting ASEAN markets. Delapan’s Zone 1 East features a 156-acre freehold site with adequate water supply facilities, exceeding 65 million litres per day—essential for the data centre’s operations. A report by Cushman & Wakefield highlights that hyperscale data centres require significant power capacity (over 50 megawatts) and advanced cooling systems, with costs exceeding USD 10 million per megawatt in Malaysia. “Based on the 50-megawatt benchmark, the total development cost of a data centre at that capacity is around USD 500 million,” the report states. The vision for Delapan is a harmonious blend of Thailand and Malaysia’s economic strengths, facilitated by the Asia Highway Network 2 (AH2). This network, known in Malaysia as the PLUS Highway, connects Singapore, Thailand, Indochina, and extends to India and Iran. The cultural ties between these regions—evident in shared culinary, entertainment, and linguistic elements—further enrich Delapan’s unique positioning. With just a 40-minute drive from Hatyai International Airport, Delapan is at the heart of regional dynamics. Southern Thailand benefits from the maritime access provided by Delapan’s Inland Port, establishing seamless connectivity to Penang Port. Additionally, the robust terrestrial network serving the Indochina digital realm further reinforces Delapan’s reputation, earning it recognition as Malaysia’s Second Best Data Exchange Hub. As Malaysia expands its digital infrastructure and cross-border trade capabilities, initiatives like the ADCC will be pivotal in positioning the country as a leader in Southeast Asia’s economic landscape.

KUALA LUMPUR: A trade mission focusing on digital technology has successfully brought together more than 50 leading Australian tech companies and key Malaysian stakeholders in a two-day immersive program as part of Australia Southeast Business Exchange (SEABX) program. “The Digital Gateway to Southeast Asia” mission is designed to foster dynamic business exchanges and showcase innovative technologies, and was co-led by Daniel Boyer, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) and Tony Lombardo, Australia’s Business Champion for Malaysia. The trade mission highlighted two-way trade and investment opportunities for joint development in Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity and Digital Health between Australia and Malaysia, and was held in partnership with the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and the National Tech Association of Malaysia (PIKOM). Mr Boyer said the mission was a crucial opportunity for businesses and tech leaders to share knowledge and explore opportunities to collaborate on innovations for developing robust solutions in the digital economy “The opportunity to connect with Malaysian businesses and explore mutual growth opportunities has been tremendous. The conversations and partnerships initiated here will contribute to building stronger digital ecosystems for both nations over the coming months and years,” he said. YB Tuan Gobind Singh Deo, Minister of Digital Malaysia, attended the event as the Guest of Honour, highlighting Malaysia’s commitment to digital transformation. “With Malaysia gearing up to be the digital hub in Southeast Asia, Malaysia’s business-friendly policies and the strengthening digital economy make it an attractive market for Australian tech innovators. It is good to see Malaysian companies fostering collaboration with Australian tech pioneers, accelerating the digital transformation that Malaysia is pushing for,” he stated in his opening address. Malaysia’s digital economy has grown significantly in recent years, presenting immense growth opportunities. The country’s AI market is projected to grow from AUD 1.2 billion to AUD 5.5 billion by 2030, with a 28.5% CAGR. The digital health sector is also expanding rapidly at a CAGR of 8.3% from 2023 to 2028, while the cybersecurity market is expected to reach AUD 1.1 billion by 2029. There are more than 30 Australian tech companies who have established presence in Malaysia, have gained MalaysiaDigital status from Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) solidifying their commitment to this market with a similar view of Malaysia’s potential. This exemplifies that Australia’s cutting-edge technological expertise is well-positioned to support the rapid growth, offering advanced solutions that complement Malaysia’s digital ambitions. Key Highlights: ● Business Matching and Showcases: Australian companies showcased cutting-edge technological innovations across AI, cybersecurity, and IoT. The business matching sessions provided a unique opportunity for Malaysian firms to connect with Australian tech providers, exploring collaborations for mutual benefit. ● Panel Discussions: Featured experts from CyberSecurity Malaysia, Invest Selangor, and Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC), offering insights into Malaysia’s regulatory landscape and highlighting opportunities in cybersecurity and digital infrastructure. ● Healthcare Innovation Exchange: Partnering with Malaysia’s Ministry of Health and the Association of Private Hospitals Malaysia (APHM), discussions examined how digital health solutions are reshaping Malaysia’s healthcare ecosystem, offering partnership opportunities for Australian companies. ● Women in Technology Forum: Inspiring female leaders shared their success stories, underscoring the importance of diversity in tech and driving conversations around creating a more inclusive tech ecosystem. Throughout the program, the mission has successfully sparked co-selling opportunities and co-marketing strategies, providing Australian companies market access to the Malaysian market, which is also positioned as the digital gateway to Southeast Asia. These partnerships are expected to yield mutual benefits such as enhanced product offerings, cost efficiencies, and access to new customers and markets, accelerating digital growth in Malaysia. HE Danielle Heinecke, Australian High Commissioner to Malaysia said, “Australia and Malaysia are longstanding partners in trade, yet opportunities remain to increase our two-way trade and investments, including in the growing tech and digital sectors. 2025 will be a landmark year for the Australia-Malaysia bilateral relationship, as we celebrate the 70th anniversary of Australia’s diplomatic presence in Malaysia and support Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship. This trade mission has set the stage for Australia to deepen our engagement and collaboration with Malaysia, and together shape a region that is open, stable and prosperous.” As the mission came to a fruitful end, Melanie Harris, Trade and Investment Commissioner to Malaysia and Brunei of Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) concluded, “There is great synergy between the digital industries of Malaysia and Australia. We look forward to forge lasting connections, explore new opportunities and write the next chapter in the Australia-Malaysia’s story.

JAKARTA: Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) Minister Bahlil Lahadalia and British Minister for International Development, Women and Equalities Minister Anneliese Dodds signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to exchange technologies in the field of critical minerals. “This is part of the follow-up to the agreements between the two countries. Minister (Dodds) and I have signed (the MoU), and we will follow this up,” Lahadalia remarked after the signing session here on Wednesday. Lahadalia noted that the potential for technological cooperation between Indonesia and the United Kingdom is very diverse, starting from nickel, underwater technology, wind energy, and solar energy development. He affirmed that Indonesia will continue to explore opportunities to reduce investment costs in the critical minerals and new renewable energy sectors so Indonesians can access them at affordable prices. “We are facing a large investment cost. As the investment cost is high, the selling price to the community is expensive. We are looking for the middle ground so that everything can run,” he explained. Meanwhile, Dodds stated that the UK and Indonesia have established a strong partnership and recently updated the cooperation through the new MoU. She explained that the agreement aims to ensure green development, job creation, and benefits for the local communities. The UK has committed US$1.15 billion, or around Rp17.65 trillion, in funding to support the Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP) in Indonesia. The UK-Indonesia partnership in low-carbon energy transition is also carried out through the MENTARI program that provides technical assistance for policy reform and energy market regulation. The MENTARI program began in 2020 and is managed by the British Embassy in Jakarta.

HANGZHOU:  Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, today announced it has released over 100 of its newly-launched large language models, Qwen 2.5, to the global open-source community. This significant contribution was revealed at the Apsara Conference, its annual flagship event. In addition, Alibaba Cloud has unveiled a revamped full-stack infrastructure designed to meet the growing demands for robust AI computing. This new infrastructure includes innovative cloud products and services that enhance computing, networking, and data center architecture, all aimed at supporting the thriving development and wide-range applications of AI models. “Alibaba Cloud is investing, with unprecedented intensity, in the research and development of AI technology and the building of its global infrastructure. We aim to establish an AI infrastructure of the future to serve our global customers and unlock their business potential,” said Eddie Wu, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. 100 Open-sourced Models Unveiled The newly released open-source Qwen 2.5 models, ranging from 0.5 to 72 billion parameters in size, feature enhanced knowledge and stronger capabilities in math and coding and are able to support over 29 languages, catering to a wide array of AI applications both at the edge or in the cloud across various sectors from automobile, gaming to science research. The Qwen model series, Alibaba Cloud’s portfolio of proprietary large language models, has achieved remarkable traction since its debut in April 2023. To date, the Qwen models have surpassed 40 million downloads across platforms such as Hugging Face and ModelScope, an open-source community initiative by Alibaba. Furthermore, these models have inspired the creation of over 50,000 models on Hugging Face. The Qwen 2.5 release will see over 100 models being made open-source. This extensive range includes base models, instruct models, and quantized models of various precision levels and methods, spanning different modalities such as language, audio, and vision, along with specialized code and mathematical models. “Today marks a significant milestone as we launch our most expansive open-source initiative to date,” said Jingren Zhou, Chief Technology Officer of Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. “This initiative is set to empower developers and corporations of all sizes, enhancing their ability to leverage AI technologies and further stimulating the growth of the open-source community. We remain committed to investing in advanced AI infrastructure to foster the widespread adoption of generative AI technologies across different industries.” Alibaba Cloud also announced an upgrade to its proprietary flagship model Qwen-Max. The enhanced Qwen-Max model demonstrates performance on par with other state-of-the-art models in areas such as language comprehension and reasoning, math, and coding. Expanding the Frontier in Multimodal In addition to its extensive suite of large language models, Alibaba Cloud also unveiled a new text-to-video model as part of its image generator, Tongyi Wanxiang large model family. The new model is capable of generating high-quality videos in a wide variety of visual styles from realistic scenes to 3D animation. The model can generate videos based on Chinese and English text instruction and transform static images into dynamic videos. The model features advanced diffusion transformer (DiT) architecture to enhance video reconstruction quality. The cloud leader is also deploying a significant update to its vision language model with the introduction of Qwen2-VL, capable of comprehending videos lasting over 20 minutes and support video-based question-answering. Equipped with sophisticated reasoning and decision-making capabilities, Qwen2-VL is designed for integration into mobile phones, automobiles and robots, facilitating the automation of specific operations. For computer programming, Alibaba Cloud has also launched an AI Developer, a Qwen-powered AI assistant designed to support programmers automate tasks such as requirement analysis, code programming and identifying and fixing software bugs. This enables developers to concentrate more on essential duties and further their skills. A Full-Stack AI Infrastructure Upgrade The cloud pioneer has also announced a slew of innovative updates to its full-stack AI infrastructure covering green datacenter architecture, data management, model training and inferencing: Next-Gen Data Center Architecture for Surging AI Development: To meet the increasing and diverse demand for high-performance computing power driven by the global AI boom, Alibaba Cloud has revealed its next-generation data center architecture, CUBE DC 5.0. The new CUBE architecture increases energy and operational efficiency with a set of advanced and proprietary technologies such as wind-liquid hybrid cooling system, all-direct current power distribution architecture and smart management system and reduces deployment times by up to 50% compared to traditional data center builds through prefabricated modular designs. Open Lake Solution to Maximize Data Utility: As organizations face challenges in managing vast amounts of data amidst the growing demand for generative AI, Alibaba Cloud introduces Alibaba Cloud Open Lake which can seamlessly integrate big data engines into a unified solution, maximizing data utility especially for generative AI applications. By integrating workflows, performance optimization, and robust governance in a single platform, it achieves efficient resource usage through compute-storage separation, clear data governance, and significant cost and time savings. AI Scheduler with Integrated Model Training and Inference: Alibaba Cloud has launched PAI AI Scheduler with integrated model training and inference, a proprietary cloud-native scheduling engine designed to enhance computing resource management. Through utilizing intelligent integration of diverse computing resources, flexible resource scheduling, real-time tasks adjustments, and automatic fault recovery, it can achieve over 90% of effective compute utilization rate. DMS for Unified Management of Metadata: To help organizations efficiently manage their data and unleash values, Alibaba Cloud introduced DMS: OneMeta+OneOps, a platform that enables a unified management of over 40 types of data sources in database, data warehouse, and data lake across multiple cloud environments. The platform will boost data utilization rate by 10 times, significantly enhancing the efficiency of transforming data into valuable intelligence. More Powerful Elastic Compute Service: Alibaba Cloud also introduced the 9th Generation Enterprise Elastic Compute Service (ECS) instance during the conference. The latest generation of ECS instances has notable performance enhancements, including a 30% increase in search recommendation speed and a 17% improvement in the effectiveness of reading and writing Queries Per Second (QPS) when applying to database products compared to the previous generation. These updates are designed to provide more comprehensive

SINGAPORE: UnionPay, a global leading payment brand, has partnered with AXS, Singapore’s leading payment solutions provider, to offer convenient and secure bill payment services through the UnionPay App for Mainland China residents living in Singapore. Through this collaboration, over 500 million registered users of the UnionPay App users who are using UnionPay cards issued in Mainland China, can have the option to pay for all primary household and educational bills, along with top-ups and e-Services provided by Singapore organisations using the AXS payment tile in the UnionPay App. Chin Mun Chung, CEO of AXS Services, said: “This partnership with UnionPay reflects our commitment to enhancing financial convenience for users, regardless of their location. By integrating UnionPay’s widely downloaded UnionPay App with AXS’s trusted payment platform, we are empowering Chinese nationals to manage essential bill payments in Singapore, seamlessly and securely. This collaboration is a testament to our ongoing efforts to provide innovative solutions that cater to the needs of a global user base.” Carine Low, Singapore Country Manager of UnionPay International, said: “AXS is the most commonly used fast and secure bill payment platform in Singapore. We are very pleased to collaborate with AXS to offer yet another bill payment option on UnionPay App. This will allow Mainland China residents living in Singapore the timely and effortless payment of their monthly bills. I have no doubt that UnionPay App users will find convenience in paying for bills instantly with AXS.” UnionPay and AXS Partnership: A seamless cross-border bill payment solution This collaboration between UnionPay and AXS brings greater convenience for Mainland China UnionPay cardholders to consolidate their bills and making payment through the AXS tile in the UnionPay App. The new service, accessible through the UnionPay App’s AXS tile, allows UnionPay App users who are using UnionPay cards issued in Mainland China, to securely pay over 10 categories of Singapore bills, including living expenses and student services, directly using their card bound in their UnionPay App. How it works Users can make straight forward payment with upfront service fee including adding up to eight payment items in one transaction (except condominium Management Corporation Strata Title (MCST) payments, which payment could be made as a standalone payment), with a maximum payment of S$2,000 per transaction and a low service fee of 2% charged upfront. Payments take 3-5 business days, and users will receive an e-Receipt via email upon successful transaction completion. The new AXS tiles support payments such as: General living expenses Season parking Town council fees Healthcare Storage Electricity Condo management fees Home services Student services Education The partnership between UnionPay and AXS marks a significant milestone in enhancing the convenience of Mainland China residents living in Singapore. Whether managing household expenses, ensuring timely payment of educational fees, or covering essential services, the UnionPay and AXS collaboration ensures efficient and secure payments, enabling users to focus on what truly matters. Users can download the UnionPay App to access the AXS tile. Welcome to the future of hassle-free, cross-border financial management.