8:01 AM | Tonghuashun's subsidiary is ordered to make corrections and suspend the addition of new customers; The chairman of a state-owned enterprise responds to the high school education of the operations director; The American billionaire who tried to rejuvenate by blood transfusion has a botched face job.

Listing in Progress

Yalian Machinery

36Kr learned that the China Securities Regulatory Commission has approved the registration application of Yalian Machinery Co., Ltd. for its initial public offering of stocks and listing on the main board.

TOP3 Big News

Tonghuashun's Subsidiary Ordered to Rectify and Suspend Adding New Customers

Tonghuashun announced that its subsidiary, Yun Software Company, has received the "Administrative Regulatory Measures Decision" from the Zhejiang Regulatory Bureau of the China Securities Regulatory Commission. Yun Software Company has situations where marketers use some customers' successful cases, display screenshots of customers' praises, and past performance of individual stocks for display and publicity, and lack of risk warnings; some marketing and service personnel have situations of exaggeration, misleading publicity, and implicitly promising returns; some personnel providing investment advice have situations where they are not registered as securities investment advisors; in the process of promoting the live broadcast business, the compliance control is not in place and there are situations such as implicitly recommending individual stocks; as the platform operator, Yun Software Company has not fulfilled the compliance management responsibility in the process of cooperating with securities companies to carry out investment consulting services; in the process of cooperating with affiliated companies to carry out securities investment consulting business, the compliance control is not in place. The Zhejiang Regulatory Bureau has decided to take administrative supervision and management measures to order Yun Software Company to make corrections and suspend the addition of new customers. The rectification and suspension period is 3 months. (Sina Finance)

The Chairman of the State-owned Enterprise Responds to the High School Education of the Operations Director: It's Too Difficult to Recruit People in a Small County, and Only He Applied

On November 15, the fact that the live-streaming operations director recruited by a state-owned enterprise in Zuoquan County, Jinzhong City, Shanxi Province, has a high school education has attracted attention. The recruitment announcement of the involved state-owned enterprise shows that Yue Moumou, the enterprise's live-streaming operations director, was born in 1997 and graduated from Zuoquan Middle School. Yue Moumou said, "My family was in a particularly difficult situation at that time, so I didn't go to university and have been doing self-media live-streaming outside." The chairman of the involved company said that Yue Moumou is "relatively excellent" among the people who can be recruited, and he is the only one who applied for the recruitment position. After this matter attracted attention, the authenticity of Yue Moumou's materials will be re-verified. The reporter noticed that the recruitment announcement and result announcement released by Zuoquan Rongmei have now been deleted. (The Beijing News)

The American billionaire who sought to rejuvenate through blood exchange and facial procedures had a botched result, with his face swollen to the point where his eyes were nearly invisible

It is reported that Brian Johnson, a 47-year-old American billionaire known for his extreme attempts to "reverse aging," recently shared on social media an experience of a failed anti-aging facial procedure. The facial fat-filling procedure, which Johnson calls the "Babyface" plan, aims to inject fat cells into the face to stimulate and restore facial volume, making the face appear younger. However, after the fat injection, Johnson experienced a severe allergic reaction.

Seven days after the allergic reaction occurred, Johnson's face returned to normal. "We will re-plan and try again next time." Johnson is extremely persistent in his pursuit of "rejuvenation." His goal is to make the major organs of his body function like those of a young person. For this, he has conducted several "health preservation" experiments: adhering to an extremely strict calorie intake every day, taking dozens of supplements, monitoring his body indicators daily, and undergoing a systematic physical examination every month... Last April, he also tried the controversial "blood exchange for rejuvenation" method to help him maintain his youth and vitality. (Red Star News)

Big Companies / Major Events

Hycan Motors has laid off all employees of its Shanghai branch and owes severance pay to the laid-off employees

According to Yicai, Hycan Motors has laid off all employees of its Shanghai branch and owes severance pay to the laid-off employees. Many former employees of Hycan Motors' Shanghai branch said that the severance pay that was originally negotiated with the company has not been paid yet. Hycan Motors was formerly a joint venture between GAC Group and NIO. In 2021, GAC NIO was restructured. Currently, the top two shareholders of Hycan Motors are Guangdong Zhutou Intelligent Technology Investment Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Guangdong Pearl River Investment Management Co., Ltd., and GAC Aion, a wholly-owned subsidiary of GAC Group. (Yicai)

KFC Stores Respond to the Removal of Prefabricated Products: Received a Unified Removal Notice, Possibly Due to Poor Sales

Recently, KFC stores in many parts of the country have removed the "At Ease Kitchen" frozen prefabricated products, attracting attention. The Tmall "KFC At Ease Kitchen Flagship Store" has been closed, and the Douyin account "KFC At Ease Kitchen Flagship Store" has not been updated for more than 3 months. The KFC APP mall has removed the At Ease Kitchen section. In the mini-program, the "At Ease Kitchen" category is no longer displayed on the ordering pages of multiple stores in Beijing, Shanghai, and Wuhan. An employee at a KFC store in Shenzhen said that only one store in the nearby area is still selling it, and once the inventory is sold out, it may be gone, and other stores have removed it. A staff member at a KFC store in Guangzhou said that the At Ease Kitchen products are no longer produced, possibly due to poor sales, and many customers do not know that the store has frozen fried chicken semi-finished products. The customer service of the KFC official flagship store on Tmall said: "The At Ease Kitchen products have been removed for a long time, and the specific reason has not been notified, nor has it been notified whether they will be put back on the shelves in the future." (Jiupai News)

Gold price drops consecutively, marking the largest weekly decline in three years, while sales of jewelry gold surge

This week, the spot price of gold in London touched a low of $2,536.66 per ounce, with a cumulative decline of over 9% compared to the historical high of $2,790.07 per ounce during the trading session on October 31. The weekly decline was 4.52%, marking the largest single-week drop since mid-June 2021. The international gold price has been falling for several days, and the price of domestic brand gold jewelry has also dropped accordingly. In some stores, the price of gold jewelry per gram has dropped below 700 yuan. In some shopping malls selling gold in Guangzhou, Guangdong, the price drop has led to an increase in sales. A staff member of a shopping mall in Guangzhou said: "Our sales of jewelry gold have increased by 10%. Investment gold, especially the one-gram gold beans, is very popular. Regarding gold bars, after the 10-gram, 20-gram, and 50-gram ones are basically sold out, we restock them continuously." (China News and Jwview)

Yang Zhilin: kimi has a monthly user base of 36 million

On November 16, Yang Zhilin, the founder of Dark Side of the Moon Kimi, said in an interview that the current monthly number of kimi users has reached 36 million, and the data is continuously increasing. (Science and Technology Innovation Board Daily)

Xiaopeng Motors' Qiu Mingquan: The development process of flying cars may take 15 to 20 years

Xiaopeng Huitian has put forward phased development goals for flying cars. Qiu Mingquan explains that in the first stage, they will be primarily used in limited scenarios, avoiding the strict requirements of flying in densely populated cities. Instead, they will be used in relatively remote suburbs, scenic spots, camps, etc., for sightseeing, flight experiences, etc. The "Land Aircraft Carrier" is designed for this purpose. After a period of actual operation, once the safety of flying cars has been verified in practice and relevant management standards have been gradually established, it is expected that typical application scenarios of flying cars will emerge in another 5 to 10 years, that is, grid-based travel with relatively fixed routes between airports and stations, and between cities. With the maturity of more and more technologies, after basically solving the cost, safety, and management problems of flying cars, the real urban three-dimensional transportation described in science fiction movies may emerge. This process may take 15 to 20 years. (Global Times)

The three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower collectively, and most large technology stocks declined

36Kr learned that at the close of trading on November 15, the three major U.S. stock indexes closed lower collectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell by 0.7%, the Nasdaq Composite Index dropped by 2.24%, and the S&P 500 Index declined by 1.32%. Most large technology stocks fell. Arm dropped by more than 5%, Amazon fell by more than 4%, Meta dropped by 4%, NVIDIA dropped by more than 3%, Microsoft dropped by more than 2%, Google and Apple dropped by more than 1%; Tesla rose by more than 3%. Popular Chinese concept stocks were mixed. JD.com rose by more than 4%, Li Auto and Tencent Music rose by more than 2%, Weibo, NetEase, NIO, and Pinduoduo rose by more than 1%; Alibaba and iQIYI dropped by more than 2%, and Bilibili dropped by more than 1%.

Midea Reaches Strategic Cooperation with Falabella, the Largest Retailer in Peru

36Kr has learned that on November 16, Midea Group announced that it has recently reached a strategic cooperation with Falabella, the largest retailer in Peru. Its Peruvian branch has fully entered the local largest retail channel - Falabella. It is introduced that Falabella, as one of the largest retailers in Latin America, covers multiple major countries and has more than 500 offline physical stores.

Two Yonghui Supermarkets in Beijing Announce Closure

On November 15, according to the store announcement of Yonghui Supermarket, the Jinquan Square store of Yonghui Supermarket will conduct a merchandise clearance event from November 11 to November 17. Yonghui stated that the company headquarters is carrying out a unified integration and optimization of various resources. After a comprehensive evaluation, it was decided that the store would cease operations from November 18. The Qinghe store of Yonghui Supermarket also issued a closure announcement on November 1, stating that after a comprehensive evaluation, it was decided that the Qinghe store would conduct a merchandise clearance event from November 24 to November 30 and cease operations from December 1. It is worth noting that both closure announcements of the two stores mentioned: The current store closures are to ensure a more quality and better tomorrow. (Beijing Business Today)

From next year, the upper age limit for applying for medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicle driver's licenses is proposed to be extended to 63 years old.

36Kr has learned that recently, the "Decision of the Ministry of Public Security on Amending the 'Regulations on the Application and Use of Motor Vehicle Driver's Licenses' (Draft for Comment)" was released. This revision mainly includes: adjusting the application age regulations for medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicle driver's licenses. The upper age limit for applying for medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicle driver's licenses will be extended from 60 years old to 63 years old. It clarifies the regulations on medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicle drivers applying for an extension of driving time due to the flexible delayed retirement. In order to be in line with the national flexible delayed retirement policy, it is stipulated that drivers over the age of 63 who apply to continue driving medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicles should undergo physical examinations and tests of memory, judgment, and reaction ability. If their physical conditions meet the requirements for continuing to drive medium and large-sized passenger and freight vehicles, they can apply to the vehicle management office to extend the driving qualification period of the original permitted vehicle type.

Li Ziqi Was Appointed as the Cultural Communication Ambassador of Dongyuan Wooden Movable-Type Printing

On November 16, Li Ziqi was appointed as the cultural communication ambassador of the Dongyuan Wooden Movable-Type Printing Cultural Research Institute in Ruian, Zhejiang. The wooden movable-type printing technique in Dongyuan, Ruian is the only known wooden movable-type printing technique that has been preserved and is still in use in China. In 2010, it was included in the "List of Intangible Cultural Heritage in Need of Urgent Safeguarding" by UNESCO as "Chinese Movable-Type Printing". (China News Network)

The Cyberspace Administration of China Issues the Construction Guidelines for the Minors' Mode, Exploring and Proposing Age-Based Recommendation Standards for the First Time

The Cyberspace Administration of China recently released the "Construction Guidelines for the Minors' Mode in the Mobile Internet", optimizing and upgrading the original minors' mode on mobile terminals. This guideline promotes "three major optimizations" in terms of time, content, and functionality. In terms of time management, the minors' mode allows users to set a total limit on the daily online time. In terms of content construction, age-based recommendation standards are proposed for the first time, giving priority to displaying age-appropriate content. In terms of functional safety, on the premise of ensuring the needs of use, it avoids functional services that induce addiction and provides many "customized" functions to achieve a double improvement in convenience and safety. (CCTV.com)

It is expected that the production and sales of new energy vehicles in China will exceed 12 million this year.

The 2024 Guangzhou International Auto Show is being held. After the annual production of new energy vehicles in China has reached the tens of millions level, the contents displayed at this auto show are comprehensively "new-oriented", concentrating on showcasing the new generation of intelligent and electrified technologies. Zhao Yang, vice president of the Automobile Branch of the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said that this year, special subsidy funds have been arranged by the national, provincial, and municipal finances at all levels to promote the replacement of old vehicles with new ones. At the same time, car companies have launched a variety of preferential car purchase activities. In addition, financial institutions have also launched exclusive financial services for the benefit of the people, continuously releasing market vitality for both the supply and demand sides of the automotive industry. The industry expects that the production and sales of new energy vehicles will exceed 12 million this year. (CCTV News)

Boeing has issued layoff notices to more than 400 employees, and the layoffs are expected to take effect officially in mid-January next year.

It is reported that the latest progress has been made in the layoff plan announced by the US-based Boeing in October. The company has successively issued layoff notices to more than 400 of its employees who belong to the Aerospace Professional Engineering Employees Association. It is understood that Boeing has announced the layoff of 438 people, including 220 technical department employees, as well as 218 professional employees such as engineers and scientific researchers. The company hopes to improve the current deteriorating financial situation through this. The layoff decision is expected to take effect officially in mid-January next year, and the affected employees will receive a severance payment and medical welfare subsidies. (Cailian Press)

Netflix Resumes After About Six-Hour Outage in the US

The video streaming platform Netflix resumed operations after an approximately six-hour outage in the US, according to the network status monitoring website Downdetector.com. That night, viewers were watching the boxing match between Mike Tyson and Jake Paul. Data shows that there were more than 90,000 fault reports about Netflix at the peak of the outage. (Sina Finance)

The Weight Loss Version of Semaglutide Officially Launched in China

Novo Nordisk announced on the 17th that Ozempic, the world's first and currently the only glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist (GLP-1) weekly injection for long-term weight management, has officially been launched in China. Ozempic (Semaglutide Injection for Long-Term Weight Management) can achieve an average weight reduction of approximately 17%, and its weight loss effect can last for at least 2 years. Up to now, Semaglutide has accumulated more than 22 million patient exposure years of usage experience. (Caixin)

The Forefront of AI

Kimi Releases a New Generation of Inference Model, with Mathematical Abilities Comparable to OpenAI o1 Series

36Kr has learned that Kimi has officially released a new generation of mathematical inference model, k0-math. Benchmark tests show that the mathematical ability of Kimi k0-math can be compared to two publicly available models of the globally leading OpenAI o1 series: o1-mini and o1-preview. In four mathematical benchmark tests including the middle school entrance examination, the college entrance examination, the postgraduate entrance examination, and MATH containing entry-level competition questions, the first-generation model of k0-math outperformed the o1-mini and o1-preview models. In the benchmark tests of two more difficult competition-level mathematics question banks, OMNI-MATH and AIME, the performance of the first-generation model of k0-math reached 90% and 83% of the highest score of o1-mini, respectively. At the same time, the Kimi Explorer Edition has also innovated the search experience by applying reinforcement learning technology, achieving breakthroughs in the three reasoning abilities of intent enhancement, source analysis, and chained thinking. Dr. Yang Zhilin, the founder of Kimi, introduced that the k0-math model and the more powerful Kimi Explorer Edition will be gradually launched on the Kimi web version and the Kimi Smart Assistant APP in batches in the coming weeks to help everyone solve more challenging mathematical and search research tasks.

Big Company Financial Reports

Alibaba: Invested 4.1 billion US dollars to repurchase 414 million common shares in Q2 of fiscal year 2025

36Kr learned that Alibaba released the financial report for the second fiscal quarter of fiscal year 2025. The financial report shows that 4.1 billion US dollars were invested to repurchase 414 million common shares in this quarter, and the outstanding shares further decreased by 2.1% net compared to the end of June. As of the quarter ending September 30, Alibaba had 18.620 billion outstanding common shares, with a net decrease of 405 million common shares in this quarter. According to statistics, Alibaba has repurchased more than 4 billion US dollars for three consecutive quarters.

Ant Group: Net profit of 7.59 billion yuan in the second fiscal quarter, with a year-on-year growth of 193%

36Kr learned that Alibaba released its financial report for the second fiscal quarter of fiscal year 2025. In this quarter (July - September), Alibaba received a revenue of 2.478 billion yuan (353 million US dollars) from Ant Group. It can be estimated that Ant Group's net profit for this quarter is 7.59 billion yuan, with a year-on-year growth of 193%, reflecting the recovery of Ant Group's profit performance to normal this year. Alibaba's financial report reveals that the significant year-on-year growth in the data of the revenue received from Ant Group this quarter is due to the impact of the regulatory fine on Ant Group in the same period last year.

Investment and Financing

"Tianwu Technology" Completes Over 100 Million Yuan Series A Financing

36Kr has learned that "Tianwu Technology" has recently completed a Series A financing of over 100 million yuan. This round of financing is led by Qiming Venture Partners, with Yonghua Investment, Jingtao Capital, and the existing shareholder, Ben Cao Capital, and other institutions participating. The raised funds will be mainly used for the development of self-developed projects, as well as the technological iteration and upgrade of the general artificial intelligence for protein design, AccelProtein™ (derived from the Pro series artificial intelligence developed by Hong Liang's team at Shanghai Jiao Tong University). Tianwu Technology was founded in 2021 and focuses on using AI for protein design, serving the fields of innovative drugs, in vitro diagnostics, nutrition and health care, etc.

Muu Ant Robot Completes Series C Financing

36Kr learned that the Aiqicha APP shows that Shanghai Muu Ant Robot has recently completed Series C financing, and the investor is Wutong Investment. Muu Ant Robot was founded in 2016, focusing on the research and development, design, production and sales of driverless handling robots and application solutions, to create unmanned handling robots in the intelligent manufacturing industry.

UniUni Completes $30 Million Series C2 Funding to Accelerate North American Expansion

36Kr has learned that recently, UniUni announced the completion of a $30 million Series C2 funding round. This round was led by North American venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners (Bessemer), with participation from Celtic Ventures, LFX Venture Partners, Joy Capital, and BlueRun Ventures. The funds from this round will be mainly used to accelerate UniUni's expansion process in the United States, including the addition of warehouses, the deployment of a robot sorting center that further reduces costs, increases efficiency, and improves accuracy, as well as the continuous upgrading of software technologies, such as achieving the integration of artificial intelligence in customer service and delivery routes.

Compiled by | Da'an