☕️ Good morning, friends,

We’re incredibly proud of the community we’ve built in just a few weeks.

A huge thanks to Muhamet, who brought in dozens of new subscribers for asiabits in just two days. Your Labubu is on its way to you.

We appreciate every referral. You can find your personal link below! 👇🏻

P.S. Congratulations to the wedding couple in the Philippines who got married in a flooded church. You’ve definitely never seen wedding photos like these…

🤝 P.P.S. Partner of the week: Tencent.

BENCHMARKS

NUMBERS

10%

That’s how much the Chinese tax authority additionally charges for luxury cars worth over 126,000 USD. The luxury tax especially hits German makers like Mercedes and Porsche.

153 billion USD

That’s how large China’s AI hardware market will be this year, up 13% from the previous year.

116 million USD

This is the capital invested by the National University of Singapore in deep tech startups to foster breakthroughs from research to market-ready companies.

TOP BIT

📦 How Trump’s Tariff Club Is Wearing Down Asia

Within 24 hours, US President Donald Trump announced three “deals”: a 15 percent tariff pact with Japan, a 19 percent agreement with the Philippines, and specific terms for an identical rate with Indonesia. At the same time, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent hinted that China is next. The deadline for steep punitive duties expires on August 1.

The Details

💴 Japan: 15 percent import duty on all Japanese goods, in exchange for Tokyo’s promise of $550 billion in US investments; market access for US cars, rice, and agricultural products—but (so far) no relief for Japanese auto exports.

🇵🇭 Philippines: 19 percent tariff barrier on shipments to the US, paired with zero tariffs on US exports; especially affected: electronics, machinery, and textiles worth $14 billion.

🇮🇩 Indonesia: Also a 19 percent US tariff, plus cuts to digital taxes, recognition of US vehicle-safety standards, and export clearance for critical minerals.

🔜 China Countdown: Washington and Beijing will negotiate next week in Stockholm on extending the 90-day tariff pause; without a breakthrough, duties above 100 percent could resume on August 12.

Why It Matters

• Supply-chain stress: Rising tariffs increase costs of Asian inputs for US firms and could trigger new bottlenecks.
  

• Geopolitical leverage: Trump is using trade pressure to tie in security issues (China-Russia oil, Philippines military bases).
  

• Economic burden: US importers pay the duties—higher prices for cars, electronics, and clothing are inevitable.

Background

Since April, Trump’s approach has slapped nearly all trading partners with blanket “reciprocity tariffs” (initially up to 145 percent). Those willing to strike bilateral deals can reduce their rate to 10–19 percent but must offer concessions—investments, market access, or political pledges.

China has held out so far but, amid its own growth worries, is keen to buy more time.

📊 All Data & Details: CNBC, CNN, Reuters

OUR PARTNER

🎯 Ready for the toughest AI challenge of the year?

You’ve got the skills. Tencent brings the stage.

The Tencent Advertising Algorithm Competition (TAAC) is back – and looking for the brightest minds in the game. This year’s theme, “Generative AI, Future RecSys”, isn’t about tweaking old models. It’s about reimagining the future of recommendation systems.

🧠 Your mission:

• Build a generative recommendation model based on users’ multimodal behavior – text, image, and interaction.

• Go beyond traditional frameworks and show what GenAI is really capable of.

🏆 What’s in it for you:

• RMB 3.6 million prize pool

• Guaranteed Tencent job offers for all Top 10 teams

• Internships & iPads for strong performers

📅 Register now – deadline: July 31
👉 Questions? Email [email protected]

HEAD OF THE DAY

🇨🇳 Yang Zhilin

🤖 From LLM researcher to a $3.3B AI unicorn: Yang Zhilin founded Moonshot AI, brought Alibaba and Tencent on board, and at the age of 31 he is seen as one of China’s hottest founders. PhD from Carnegie Mellon, stints at Meta and Google Brain, co-authored papers with LeCun and Bengio. His first startup, Recurrent AI, analyzes sales calls for a wide range of companies.

👉 Lesson learned: Deep tech expertise is your lever, but you need a clear business playbook to scale it. Combine research chops with rapid product iteration and strong investors, and you’ll build markets—not just models.

MARKET BIT

🌴 Mitsubishi Pumps $100 Million into Record Plant for Green Aviation Fuel in Hawaii

Details

🌱 Green fueling station in the Pacific: Par Pacific, Mitsubishi & Nippon Oil are investing $100 million in the “Hawaii Renewables” joint venture to produce renewable diesel and Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in Kapolei, Hawaii.

🔧 Retrofit, not new build: The partners are cost-effectively converting Hawaii’s only refinery site—production is set to begin in 2025.

✈️ SAF focus: Capacity of 61 million gallons per year, of which up to 60 % can be SAF for the flight-heavy island state.

🌊 Pacific network: Par Pacific provides infrastructure; Mitsubishi contributes global feedstocks and the Long Beach terminal; Nippon Oil offers trading expertise in the Asia-Pacific

Why It Matters

• Climate benefits for islands: Green fuel cuts Hawaii’s transport emissions drastically and boosts energy independence.
  

• Blueprint for other refineries: The capital-efficient retrofit model could be scaled to other US sites quickly.
  

• Stronger trans-Pacific trade: The collaboration links US and Japanese energy supply chains and opens new markets for sustainable fuels.

👉🏻 Full story: Nikkei, Pacific Business News

TOP READS

🚚 Daimler Truck mulls China exit: Diesel truck sales in China are down 75% since 2021. US tariffs, weak Europe, and strong Chinese rivals hurt the global leader. 5,000 German jobs are cut; China will focus on R&D only. Full story.

📈 Indonesia bets on AI for growth: First national AI roadmap aims to attract more foreign investors. Focus on health, agriculture, new infrastructure and chip industry. Industry giants like Nvidia and Microsoft already interested. Full Story.

💻 Chinese hackers attack SharePoint systems worldwide: Microsoft accuses Chinese hacking groups of deliberately exploiting SharePoint vulnerabilities to target companies and government agencies globally. The company expects further attacks while China denies the allegations. Full story.

OPTIONAL READS

Vietnam: The tourist boat accident in Ha Long Bay kills 38 and Tropical Storm Wipha threatens heavy rains along the northern coast. More on this.

South Korea: Seoul negotiates in Washington to avert looming US tariffs and secure exports. More on this.

India: Air India flight from Hong Kong to Delhi catches fire after landing, all passengers remain unharmed. More on this.

FORTUNE COOKIE

🕵️‍♀️ Shanghai Freebie Queen: For two months, a clever conwoman roamed five-star hotels and spas without paying a cent.

Her trick: claim everything back. She brought her own insects to plant in hotel beds. She scratched her skin to feign allergies to beauty products. She complained about taxi drivers. This way, she repeatedly got her money refunded.

The police have put an end to her scam. She’s now moved into her new free accommodation: a prison cell in prime Shanghai location.

FEEDBACK

See you tomorrow in your inbox, 

Thomas, Michael & the Team of asiabits