9:1 36Kr｜The winning rate of Unitree Technology is less than one fifteenth of that of Changxin; China Eastern Airlines announces that free ticket refund and modification services are available 14 days in advance; Chevrolet will stop vehicle sales in the Chinese market

Today's Hotspot Guide

• OpenAI updates ChatGPT experience, allowing free users to use GPT-5.6 Luna and enjoy unlimited text chat
• U.S. scientists have successfully designed a new type of virus with AI for the first time
• Fenbi Education responds to the exodus of its renowned teachers
• "Lanzhou Hand-pulled Noodles" has been renamed "Qinghai Hand-pulled Noodles" in many regions
• Wang Xingxing: Focus on embodied intelligence, accelerate the pace of robots benefiting the whole society
• Transaction volume of second-hand luxury residences in Shenzhen rebounds

Top 3 Major News

Unitree Technology plans to issue 40,446,434 shares, with the lot winning rate less than one-fifteenth of that of Changxin Technology

Unitree Technology will launch the subscription process next Monday, August 10, where ordinary investors can mainly participate in the online public offering. The total number of shares planned to be issued this time is 40,446,434, including 6,471,000 shares for initial online issuance. The new share subscription code is "787836", and the trading code after listing will be "688836".

Unitree Technology is listed on the Sci-Tech Innovation Board (STAR Market) at an issue price of 150.8 yuan per share with a price-to-earnings ratio of 219. However, the estimated online lot winning rate is only 0.02% to 0.03%, which is less than one fifteenth of the 0.47% lot winning rate of Changxin Technology in the previous issuance. Behind this extremely unequal share allocation, there is not only the pricing logic based on the scarcity of the humanoid robot track, but also the structural disputes over benefit distribution between retail investors and institutional investors. (Sina Finance)

China Eastern releases new regulation: Free refund and reschedule available 14 days in advance

China Eastern Airlines has issued the new version of the Implementation Rules for Voluntary Refund and Voluntary Change of Domestic Air Tickets. For domestic air tickets sold on and after August 6, 2026 for travel starting on and after August 6, 2026, it is stipulated that voluntary change or voluntary refund made 14 days in advance is free of charge. The new version of the rules is divided into five time periods: the closer to the departure time, the higher the fees charged for changes and refunds. (Jiemian News)

Chevrolet will stop sales in China and shift its production capacity to exports

Recently, SAIC Motor and General Motors officially signed a joint venture renewal agreement, extending the joint venture term of SAIC-GM by 20 years to 2047. The new agreement clarifies that General Motors will focus its Chinese business on the Cadillac and Buick brands, and the new agreement also allows General Motors to take China as an export hub to export Buick and Chevrolet models to overseas markets outside the United States.

General Motors responded that it will not stop production. The Chevrolet product line under the joint venture best fits the needs of export markets. The joint venture will continue to produce Chevrolet products in China and actively explore overseas market opportunities outside the United States. In addition, comprehensive after-sales service support will still be provided for existing Chevrolet car owners in China. (IT Home)

Latest AI Frontiers

OpenAI updates ChatGPT experience, free users can access GPT-5.6 Luna and enjoy unlimited text chat

On August 6 local time, OpenAI announced an update to the ChatGPT model experience, which improves the performance of GPT-5.6 Sol in factual accuracy, response focus and multi-scenario consistency, while expanding free users' access to GPT-5.6 Luna. OpenAI said that Plus and Pro users will get the updated GPT-5.6 Sol, which can adjust the depth of responses according to the complexity of questions and reduce unnecessary formatted content. For free users, OpenAI updates the default model to GPT-5.6 Luna, expands the access scope, and provides unlimited text chat function. For questions requiring more in-depth reasoning, free users can invoke higher reasoning capabilities through the newly added "Think" button. (Jiemian News)

"Godfather of AI" Geoffrey Hinton: More "out-of-control" AIs may emerge in the future

On August 5 local time, Geoffrey Hinton, the Nobel Prize laureate and computer scientist known as the "Godfather of Artificial Intelligence", warned that as the capabilities of artificial intelligence models continue to improve, it will become increasingly difficult for humans to control them, and more "out-of-control AIs" may appear in the future. Hinton said that the recent incidents in which some advanced AI agents broke through the artificially set test environments and caused impacts on real systems are "worrying". He stated that as AI becomes more intelligent, it may generate more complex goals and have stronger capabilities to evade control, and humans cannot simply rely on being "smarter than AI" to maintain control. (Jiemian News)

US Scientists Design a New Type of Virus with AI for the First Time

Researchers from Stanford University are reported to have developed a generative AI program named "Evo 2", which is capable of writing new genomes — the genetic instructions for life encoded in DNA. They used the program to design and produce 16 synthetic bacteriophages, a type of small virus that can infect bacteria and can sometimes replace antibiotics to kill pathogenic bacteria. The research results were published in the journal Science on Thursday. (CLS)

Major Companies / Key Events

Fenbi Education Responds to the Exodus of Renowned Teachers

On August 7, Fenbi Education released a statement on the exodus of its renowned teachers, responding to the public concerns over the resignation of well-known teachers. Fenbi stated that it is an objective fact that some star teachers have left the company, and the company respects the personal choices of these teachers. Fenbi noted that the enterprise has learned relevant lessons and will effectively improve the remuneration and welfare of teachers; meanwhile, it does not rule out the possibility that more teachers may resign in the subsequent period, but the overall teaching team of the institution has tended to be stable at present. (Jiemian News)

Luxihe: Ruled out the possibility of metal dental crown foreign matter being mixed into the nut peach crisp products

On August 7, Luxihe released a statement on the investigation conclusion of the online circulated incident "Metal dental crown found in Luxihe peach crisp":

Through self-inspection, the possibility of metal dental crown foreign matter being mixed into the nut crisp products is ruled out. The government regulatory authority inspected the factory and found no possibility of metal dental crown foreign matter being mixed into the nut peach crisp products. SGS, a third-party authoritative testing organization, conducted a comprehensive audit of the factory. The risk investigation of metal dental crown foreign matter for the peach crisp products of the customer complaint batch can rule out the possibility that the metal dental crown foreign matter was brought in during the production process. Consumer Ms. Zhang has clarified that the content of the video she posted is untrue, she has voluntarily deleted the relevant video, and sincerely apologized for the adverse impact caused to our company. As the incident involves an elderly person of advanced age, our company has extended understanding and forgiveness. (China.org.cn)

NVIDIA responds to the "cooperation with Jiaxian Communication" rumor: it is not true

Recently, there were reports claiming that NVIDIA is seeking base station manufacturer partners in China to develop 6G base stations that meet the requirements of overseas markets, targeting access to trial networks in 2027 or 2028. The reports also claimed that Jiaxian Communication cooperates with NVIDIA to develop 6G AI-RAN base stations and expects to launch relevant prototypes by the end of the year. Tongyu Communication, which plans to acquire a 25% equity stake in Jiaxian Communication, has issued a clarification announcement on the evening of August 6, stating that there is no R&D cooperation relationship between Jiaxian Communication and NVIDIA. On August 7, NVIDIA also responded to a Yicai reporter that the relevant news is completely unsubstantiated, and the description of NVIDIA's activities in this region is not true. The reporter called Jiaxian Communication for verification for many times, but the call was not connected. (Yicai)

SK Hynix plans to pay dividends of over 270 billion won, and the additional return scheme will be finalized in the third quarter

On August 7, SK Hynix stated in a regulatory document disclosed on the Korea Exchange that it will distribute a cash dividend of 375 won per common share to common shareholders, with a dividend rate of 0.02% for common shares, and the total dividend amount reaching 273.3 billion won. The dividend record date is set on August 31, and the dividends are planned to be paid within one month from the distribution date. At the same time, SK Hynix noted that it is actively studying additional shareholder return measures, and the specific plan will be finalized and released to the public within the third quarter. While giving back to shareholders, SK Hynix has also finalized the implementation plan for a new round of production capacity expansion. According to the announcement, the company's board of directors has approved a total domestic investment plan of about 54.3 trillion won, of which 35.2 trillion won will be used for the construction of the second-phase wafer fab (Y2) of the Yongin Semiconductor Industrial Park, with the investment period ending in 2031; 19.1 trillion won will be invested in the Cheongju M17 chip fab, with the investment period ending in 2031. Both investments are part of the medium and long-term investment strategy announced by the company in June this year. (Jiemian News)

Pangdonglai Life Plaza Store will be closed in December, which is an old store that has been operating for more than 20 years

On August 7, Yu Donglai announced during a live broadcast that the Pangdonglai Life Plaza Store will be closed in December 2026. He said the store is being closed as it fails to meet the quality standards. It is reported that Pangdonglai Life Plaza opened on January 1, 2002, with a business area of 23,000 square meters. Its business formats cover supermarkets, clothing, catering, pharmaceuticals and other sectors, and it is one of the oldest stores in Pangdonglai's history. As of June 2025, the sales revenue of the Life Plaza Store has exceeded 800 million yuan, ranking fifth among the 13 stores of the group at that time. (Henan Daily, Kuai Technology)

Xibei Releases Safety Commitments for Children's Meals, Multiple Outlets Claim That They No Longer Use Frozen Broccoli

On August 7, Xibei's official WeChat public account released an article, rolling out the "Five Major Safety Commitments" for children's meals. The article shows that the specific rules include: all children's meals are freshly made in the store on the same day, served hot for every meal, cooked on site the same day, and pre-made finished products that are only reheated before serving are rejected; no chicken essence, monosodium glutamate, flavor essence, artificial pigments or preservatives are added, all kinds of artificial additives are avoided to adapt to children's fragile gastrointestinal tracts, and relevant standards are acceptable for third-party testing and verification; there are dedicated counters and dedicated utensils for children's meals, and an independent operation area for children's meals is designated in the back kitchen; 8 types of organic ingredients are upgraded, including organic green vegetables, organic carrots, organic oat flour, organic dried noodles, organic linseed oil, etc.; higher standards are adopted for children's food ingredients, only the tender parts of beef, mutton and fish are selected, and side dishes such as baby pumpkins are given priority. According to Jimu News, a staff member of a Xibei outlet in Chengdu told the reporter that the outlet has not used broccoli for a period of time, and now it uses freshly purchased organic vegetables that are delivered every morning and cut and cooked on site. Another staff member of a Xibei outlet in Guiyang also said that broccoli is no longer used now, the vegetables used in the store are organic greens and carrots, which are delivered and processed in the morning, and even the beef sauce is freshly stir-fried on the same day. (Jimu News)

State Taxation Administration: Taxation on overseas insurance proceeds is not a new policy

Recently, reports claiming that the gains obtained by Chinese mainland tax residents from purchasing Hong Kong insurance products have been included in the scope of taxation have drawn widespread public attention. In response to this, Yicai reporter contacted the State Taxation Administration for an interview. The person in charge of the relevant department of the State Taxation Administration pointed out that in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Individual Income Tax Law of the People's Republic of China, Chinese tax residents are obligated to fulfill tax payment obligations for their global income, and overseas insurance proceeds also fall into the category of taxable income. This is not a new policy, nor is it specifically targeted at the Hong Kong insurance market, so there is no need for overinterpretation. (Yicai)

Beijing: The required duration of social security or individual income tax payment for non-local households to purchase housing in Beijing is reduced to one year

On the evening of August 7, Beijing Municipal Commission of Housing and Urban-Rural Development, Beijing Municipal Planning and Natural Resources Commission, and Beijing Housing Provident Fund Management Center jointly issued the Notice on Further Optimizing and Adjusting the Municipality's Real Estate Policies, making it clear that the required social security or individual income tax payment duration for non-local households to purchase commercial housing within the Fifth Ring Road is adjusted down from "2 years" to "1 year". After the adjustment, the required social security or individual income tax payment duration for non-local households to purchase commercial housing across the whole city is uniformly set as "1 year", and the number of commercial housing units they are eligible to purchase remains unchanged. Specifically: non-local households that have paid social security or individual income tax for a full year can purchase 1 unit of commercial housing within the Fifth Ring Road, and multi-child households can purchase 1 more unit; there is no limit on the number of purchasable housing units outside the Fifth Ring Road. The Notice shall come into effect as of August 8. (CCTV News)

Multiple regions rename "Lanzhou Lamian" to "Qinghai Lamian"

Recently, the pilot renaming of "Lanzhou Lamian" to "Qinghai Lamian" in a number of regions has sparked heated public debate. The overwhelming majority of "Lanzhou Lamian" restaurants scattered across streets and alleys all over the country are actually run by people from Qinghai. Local residents in Lanzhou call the local hand-pulled noodles "Lanzhou beef noodles". In the 1980s, people from Hualong and Jianzha of Qinghai left their hometowns to make a living, and opened stores under the brand of "Lanzhou Lamian" by taking advantage of the reputation of Lanzhou beef noodles. But after all, they adopted a name that did not belong to them, so there were always some embarrassing and confusing situations when the brand grew larger, and this identity conflict cannot be ignored. In addition, the trademark of "Lanzhou Lamian" is currently invalid, so it is impossible to further expand and strengthen it as a formal brand. Staff members of the Local Brand Industry Cultivation and Promotion Bureau of Hualong County, Qinghai Province disclosed that the renaming is part of the "three-store integration" initiative, and merchants participate on a voluntary basis, with no mandatory power from the government. (Southern Metropolis Daily)

Charles Zhang: AI Has Given Content a Plastic-like Feel

Charles Zhang, founder, Chairman of the Board and CEO of Sohu, stated in an interview with media including Jiemian News that real-person interaction and authentic content can never be replaced by AI. Information acquisition and communication between real people are two separate matters, and AI cannot replace human communication at the current stage. In the vast ocean of information, people have a stronger need to step out and engage in communication. In the AI era, an environment for genuine real-person interactions is even more valuable. When talking about the AI anxiety among content industry practitioners, he responded with a metaphor: "The output generated by AI nowadays gives media and all types of content a plastic-like feel. It is just like tomatoes ripened with chemical fertilizers: they look bright and appealing, but have no real flavor at all. Carrots with a little mud on their surface do not look that pretty, but taste great and have distinct, authentic flavor." (Jiemian News)

NVIDIA is reportedly adjusting the memory solution of Rubin Ultra as the supply of advanced storage faces pressure

On August 7, according to reports, NVIDIA is considering reducing the memory configuration of its next-generation GPU product Rubin Ultra. NVIDIA has tested at least three versions of Rubin Ultra, and some versions are equipped with a lower memory capacity than the design plan previously announced by the company. According to reports, one of the reasons why NVIDIA considers adopting the lower-memory version is that the company may not be able to obtain sufficient advanced storage chips to meet the requirements of the original design. At present, the final specifications of Rubin Ultra have not been determined, and NVIDIA plans to launch this GPU product around the end of next year. (Jiemian News)

Henan Responds to Paid Staggered Leave Notice: Non-standard Examination and Approval Procedures

According to the Human Resources and Social Security Department of Henan Province, after the "Notice on Further Promoting the Implementation of Paid Staggered Leave for Employees" (Yu Ren She Ban [2026] No. 53) was issued, it has attracted public attention and received comments and suggestions. In view of the fact that the relevant expressions in this document are not accurate enough and the examination and approval procedures are non-standard, the document will be printed and distributed after revision. (Jiemian News)

Wang Xingxing: Deeply Cultivate Embodied Intelligence to Accelerate Robots' Benefit to Society

On August 7, the online investor exchange meeting for Unitree Robotics' Sci-Tech Innovation Board listing was held. Wang Xingxing, Chairman, General Manager and Chief Technology Officer of Unitree Robotics, stated on the spot that this entry into the capital market marks a brand new starting point for Unitree Robotics. "In the future, we will stay true to our original aspiration, steadily polish key technologies, continue to deeply engage in the R&D and industrial implementation of core technologies for general embodied intelligent robots, so that intelligent robots can serve the whole society earlier and better."

Wang Xingxing also stated that Unitree Robotics will continue to tackle key software and hardware technologies including embodied large models, scenario data collection and analysis, reinforcement learning, embodied ontology models, independent R&D of core components and high-performance actuators, and actively explore more product forms and models such as humanoid robots, quadruped robots and mecha, promote robots to undertake high-intensity and high-risk physical labor, unleash human creativity, and advance robot technology to benefit the society. (Shanghai Securities News)

LG Chairman will travel to the United States next week to meet Jensen Huang to advance cooperation in AI and robotics

According to sources disclosed on August 7, Koo Kwang-mo, Chairman of LG Group, will meet Jensen Huang, CEO of NVIDIA, in the United States next week to promote cooperation between the two parties in the fields of artificial intelligence infrastructure and robotics. This meeting is planned to be held in Silicon Valley, about two months after the two executives met in Seoul in early June. Back when the two sides met on June 8, Jensen Huang already stated that this U.S. chip enterprise will carry out cooperation with LG Group in the fields of humanoid robots and next-generation data centers. (Sina Finance)

SK Hynix to Expand Chip Business with Investment of Over 54 Trillion Won

SK Hynix disclosed on the Korea Exchange on August 7 that it plans to invest 19.1 trillion won in the M17 chip plant in Cheongju, South Korea by April 30, 2031, to secure medium and long-term production capacity to meet the demand of the memory market. It also plans to invest 35.2 trillion won in the construction of the second-phase wafer fab at the Yongin Semiconductor Industrial Park by October 31, 2031. (Jiemian News)

Some banks have cut their mortgage rates to the 2% range, but multiple access thresholds are set

Recently, multiple home buyers on social platforms have shared screenshots of their "2% range" mortgage rates, which has aroused widespread public discussion. Reporters' investigation shows that most of such housing loans are existing five-year loans. On August 6, reporters visited or contacted multiple banks in Beijing, Guangzhou, Hangzhou and other regions for research, and found that the mortgage rates of most banks still remain at 3% and above. Some foreign-funded banks can provide housing loans with interest rates lower than 2.8%, but they have set multiple thresholds for customer qualification and cooperative channels. In addition, some banks said that although they cannot reduce the loan interest rate, they can offer certain house price discounts to home buyers through cooperative real estate projects. (China Securities Journal)

Yum China Completes Acquisition of Pizza Hut Brand Ownership in Mainland China

Yum China announced on August 7 that it has completed the transaction of acquiring the ownership of the Pizza Hut brand in Mainland China from Yum! Brands, Inc. for 1.2 billion US dollars. Yum China stated that after the completion of the transaction, Pizza Hut China will no longer need to pay the previously applicable franchise fees to Yum! Brands, and the resulting cost savings are expected to increase Pizza Hut's restaurant profit margin and operating profit margin after value-added tax deduction by 2.8%. (Jiemian News)

MiniMax was favored by domestic capital on its first day of inclusion in the Hong Kong Stock Connect, with net purchases of nearly HK$2.7 billion ranking first among active stocks

Data shows that on the first trading day after being included in the Hong Kong Stock Connect, MiniMax recorded a net purchase of nearly HK$2.7 billion from southbound capital, ranking first in net buying among actively traded stocks. MiniMax closed up more than 17% on Thursday. Southbound capital also bought Kingboard Laminates, Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable and other stocks on Thursday. Overall, southbound capital posted a net sell-off of HK$1.46 billion in Hong Kong stocks on Thursday, with Tencent Holdings, Alibaba, SMIC and others taking the top spots in net selling amount. (Sina Finance)

U.S. stocks closed higher, S&P 500 hit a new record high, optical communications sector rallied, memory chips remained sluggish, SpaceX surged 15% despite the share unlock pressure, gold and silver prices skyrocketed

U.S. stocks rose across the board on August 7. The July non-farm payrolls data declined, and the market lowered its expectation of the Federal Reserve raising interest rates in September. By the close, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 151.83 points, up 0.28%, to 54036.93 points, the Nasdaq Composite Index rose 1.30% to 26690.62 points, and the S&P 500 Index climbed 0.62% to 7757.64 points, hitting a new all-time high.

The Dow Jones Index rose 3.0% this week, the Nasdaq Index rose 5.2%, and the S&P 500 Index rose 3.6%. The three major U.S. stock indexes posted their largest weekly gains since mid-April; the Dow Jones and S&P 500 hit record highs earlier this week. (Yicai)

Shanghai "Evergrande Hongqiao International" will be auctioned with a starting price as high as 7.84 billion yuan

According to Ali Assets Platform, the land use right and under-construction works of the "Evergrande Hongqiao International" project will be auctioned at 10:00 on August 31, with a starting price of about 7.843 billion yuan, a deposit of 400 million yuan, a price increment of 5 million yuan, and a bidding period of 1 day. The subject's affiliated entity Shanghai Hongyuan Shengshi Investment and Development Co., Ltd. was founded on December 28, 2011, and was originally jointly funded and established by Shanghai Red Star Macalline, Shenzhen Shengshi Wanxiang Investment Management Co., Ltd. and Shenyang Shouyuan Investment Management Co., Ltd., with a registered capital of 200 million yuan. In 2018, the shareholder was changed to Evergrande Real Estate. (NBD)

Resales of second-hand luxury properties in Shenzhen pick up

Since the beginning of this year, the popularity of Shenzhen's luxury property market has continued to rise. In addition to the sustained strong sales of multiple new luxury residential projects, the transaction volume of luxury properties in the second-hand housing market has also rebounded significantly. According to the monitoring data from Shell Research Institute Shenzhen, the number of signed contracts for second-hand luxury properties with a total price of over 15 million yuan in July increased by 11% year on year, hitting the peak in nearly 6 years. Meanwhile, the average transaction price of second-hand properties priced at 10 million yuan level reached 101504 yuan per square meter, up 5.7% month on month and 8.4% year on year. Xiao Xiaoping, Dean of Shell Research Institute Shenzhen, pointed out that after the "April 29 New Deal" of Shenzhen's property market lowered the home purchase threshold in core areas, the home replacement demand of local high-net-worth families and the number of non-local customers for asset allocation entering the market have both increased, which has driven the continuous warming of high-end property transactions in the core areas of Nanshan and Futian, with prices rising steadily. (Securities Times)

Large Corporations' Financial Reports

Cambricon: Net profit of 2.311 billion yuan in the first half of the year, up 122.61% year on year

36Kr learned that Cambricon released its 2026 semi-annual report. In the first half of 2026, its operating revenue reached 5.996 billion yuan, with a year-on-year increase of 108.13%; the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company was 2.311 billion yuan, up 122.61% year on year.

Investment and Financing

Australian AI Infrastructure Company Firmus Completes $2 Billion Financing with Participation from NVIDIA, Blackstone and Other Investors

On August 7, Australian artificial intelligence infrastructure company Firmus announced that it has closed a $2 billion strategic equity financing round. The investors include NVIDIA, Coatue, funds managed by Blackstone Group and other Blackstone investment vehicles. Global trading and technology company Jane Street also participated in the investment. Firmus noted that the funds raised in this round will be used to accelerate the deployment of its "Southgate AI Factory" project in Australia and prepare for future expansion into other markets in the Asia-Pacific region. (Jiemian News)

Cool Products

OpenAI's first consumer-facing device features a donut-like appearance, with a price tag likely exceeding 300 US dollars

People familiar with the matter disclosed that OpenAI's highly anticipated new device will adopt a unique shape and be fitted with movable components that give it more distinct personality traits, and its price may exceed 300 US dollars. The people familiar with the matter, who requested anonymity as the relevant work is under confidentiality, stated that this product is essentially a display-less smart speaker, shaped like a donut and roughly the size of a hockey puck. It is designed to allow users to hold the device with one hand and move around at home. OpenAI aims to open up a brand new market segment with this product scheduled for release in 2027. (Sina Finance)

Rendering created by @PatentlyApple

Edited｜Wang Yixuan