1 Krypton at 8 o'clock | Lao Miao Gold apologized after being suspected of plagiarism by Mayday fans; Meituan will completely cancel the fines for riders who are late by the end of the year; Zong Fuli responded to cutting off distributors with annual sales of less than 3 million.

Today's Hotspot Guide

• Cambricon's stock price once exceeded that of Kweichow Moutai, becoming the "King of Stocks" in the A-share market.
• Spring Airlines has entered the "Civil Aviation Version of 12306".
• Apple customer service responded to the "discontinuation of sales of 7 products".
• 14 "insiders" stole Huawei's chip technology, and the main culprit was sentenced to six years in prison.
• The third batch of national subsidies has arrived, and smart lights, study desks and chairs, learning machines, etc. are included in the national subsidy for the first time.
• The latest research from Stanford University: Artificial intelligence is undermining the employment prospects of young Americans.

Top 3 Big News

Laomiao Gold Apologizes for Alleged Plagiarism of Mayday Lead Singer's Fashion Brand's Carrot Pendant

Recently, Laomiao Gold launched a pure gold pendant in the shape of a carrot on an e-commerce platform. Netizens pointed out that its appearance and naming method are highly similar to the IP "Momo Huhu Carrot" under STAYREAL. STAYREAL is a trendy brand jointly founded by Ashin, the lead singer of Mayday, and artist Bu Erliang.

What's more controversial is that Laomiao Gold just officially announced a formal co - branding cooperation with STAYREAL on August 24, and this controversial product is not in the co - branded series, so it was questioned by netizens as "stabbing in the back" the co - branding partner.

After the incident was exposed, Laomiao Gold issued an apology letter on August 26, apologizing to the partner STAYREAL and consumers. It explained that the product was a reserve design within the company and was mistakenly launched due to an operational error by the e - commerce staff. Laomiao Gold said it had deleted all relevant pages, promised that the product would not appear again, and announced a specific compensation plan. (Yicai Global)

Meituan to Completely Eliminate Late Delivery Fines for Riders

On August 26th, Meituan held an Open Day for the Co - governance of Rider Algorithm Negotiation in Beijing, where it disclosed the algorithm logic behind rider deliveries to the public. At the event, the person in charge of rider experience operations at Meituan stated that Meituan will completely eliminate the late delivery fines, which are of great concern to crowdsourced riders, by the end of 2025.

It is reported that in December 2024, Meituan first piloted the "Safety and Punctuality Card" in Quanzhou, replacing the previous late delivery fines with a system that deducts points for late deliveries and awards points for on - time deliveries. As of August, the late - delivery penalty - free mechanism has been piloted in 22 cities. This move marks Meituan's shift in management philosophy from "managing through penalties" to positive incentives.

Previously, Meituan launched an anti - fatigue system that combines pop - up reminders and mandatory offline periods nationwide. It also piloted a "Safety Score" system in over a hundred cities, achieving remarkable results in balancing riders' work intensity and reducing riders' red - light running behavior. (The Paper)

Zong Fuli Responds to Cutting Dealers with Annual Sales Below 3 Million: Normal Optimization Based on Market Strategy and Cooperation Willingness

At the end of August 2025, one year after officially becoming the chairperson of Wahaha Group and one month after the family dispute went public, Zong Fuli gave an exclusive interview to Caixin. For the first time as the top leader of Wahaha, she expressed her business philosophy, understanding of business, and answered some controversial questions.

Regarding the matter of "cutting dealers with annual sales below 3 million", Zong Fuli said that Wahaha's dealer system was once unique in the industry. It has accompanied us for more than 30 years and achieved success together. However, it is inevitable that it will be incompatible in the new era. The change in the number of dealers is a normal optimization based on market strategy and cooperation willingness. Since this year, in fact, the number of newly added dealers is far more than those whose cooperation was terminated. The outside world may only focus on the "exiting" part. But in my opinion, this is exactly a sign of a healthy system. Any cooperation relationship needs to match the times. Those with low efficiency and unable to adapt to the new environment will naturally exit. At the same time, more energetic new partners will join in. I still want to emphasize that dealers are always Wahaha's most important partners at any time. The purpose of the adjustment is not to weaken, but to make the system more stable and long - lasting. What we need to do is to make the cake bigger, rather than fight for a share on the existing cake. (Caixin Magazine)

Big Companies/Big Events

Cambricon's stock price once surpassed Kweichow Moutai, ascending to become the "King of Stocks" in the A-share market

36Kr learned that Cambricon has been continuously strengthening. During intraday trading, it soared nearly 10%, and its stock price once surpassed Kweichow Moutai to become the new "King of Stocks". Cambricon's monthly increase exceeded 100%, and its cumulative increase since 2023 has exceeded 2,500%, with a total market value exceeding 600 billion.

UTour Responds to Controversy over 9.9-yuan Flight Delay Insurance: Has Contacted Insurance Company to Remove the Product

On August 27, in response to the doubts about the 9.9-yuan flight delay insurance, such as betting on "precise delays", extremely low compensation rates, and resembling a gambling game, a customer service representative from UTour told a reporter from the Shell Finance of Beijing News that the "Surprise Number" product is a new flight delay insurance product launched by an insurance company this year. Even if a flight is delayed for less than 30 minutes, passengers still have a chance to receive insurance compensation. The original intention of the platform to launch this product was to provide passengers with more flexible delay protection and offset the negative emotions caused by flight delays as much as possible. However, recently, some users have reported that the product has affected their travel experience. UTour attaches great importance to the relevant feedback and suggestions from users and has promptly contacted the insurance company to remove the product. (Beijing News)

Spring Airlines Enters the "Civil Aviation Version of 12306"

Exclusive information obtained by reporters reveals that the "Civil Aviation Official Direct Sales Platform" of Air Travel Master, known as the civil aviation version of 12306, has recently connected to the direct - sales air tickets of Spring Airlines. As the largest low - cost airline in China, Spring Airlines has always mainly sold its tickets through its own channels. Currently, the "Civil Aviation Official Direct Sales Platform" has integrated the direct - sales air ticket resources of 39 domestic airlines in total, and the fares are directly released and operated by the airlines. The platform revealed that Spring Airlines' low - price special offer product "Super Value Fly" will be launched soon. (Yicai Global)

Starship's Tenth Test Flight Finally Succeeds, Marking a Crucial Step in Musk's "Mars Dream"

Early on August 27th Beijing time, SpaceX's new - generation heavy - lift launch vehicle, the "Starship", conducted its tenth test flight in Texas. According to the live - stream footage, during this test flight, the Starship flew across half of the globe in an hour and finally splashed down successfully in the Indian Ocean. Cheers and applause filled the launch site.

This success is a major breakthrough for the Starship project. Prior to this, the three test flights in 2025 all ended with the rocket or spacecraft disintegrating or exploding in the air. The design goal of the Starship is to transport people and cargo to Earth's orbit, the moon, and even Mars. The significance of its test flight lies in that, if successful, it is expected to become an innovative force in the space field, which is crucial for Elon Musk's grand goal of manned Mars landing and NASA's manned lunar landing program. (Daily Economic News)

Li Liang, Vice President of Douyin: 'The average person leaves in 7 months' is a rumor

On the afternoon of August 26th, Li Liang posted on a social platform, saying that recently he read a commentary article titled "Behind the length-of-service dispute of 'the average person leaves in 7 months', what organizational secrets does ByteDance hide?" The claim of 'the average person leaves in 7 months' in the title is a rumor.

This is not the first time that Douyin - related parties have refuted this rumor. At the end of July this year, during a new session of the All Hands staff meeting within ByteDance, the market rumor that 'the average tenure at ByteDance is 7 months' was refuted. The data showed that among ByteDance's current employees, the median length of service is 2.9 years and the average is 3.0 years; the median length of service of those who have left is 2.5 years and the average is 2.6 years.

Li Liang also said that the above - mentioned commentary article is full of obvious AI hallucinations and is suspected to be an AI - generated article. He refuted many statements in it, such as the claim of an early Spring Festival marketing failure at Douyin and the statement that the company was split into 217 'entrepreneurial units'. (Jiemian News)

Apple Customer Service Responds to "Seven Products to Be Discontinued"

Early on the 27th, the topic of "Apple may discontinue seven products" sparked intense discussion. According to China News Service, in recent years, when Apple releases new mobile phones, the previous generation of Pro series usually gets delisted from the official website. For example, after the launch event of the 16 series in 2024, the 15 Pro series was removed from the official website, but the basic models of the 15 series are still on sale.

On the 27th, an Apple official customer service representative stated that such situations have indeed occurred in previous years, but currently, no official notice regarding the delisting of products this year has been received. The customer service advised users to check the official website after the Apple new product launch event on September 10th to see if the old models are delisted. They also said that even if the products are removed from the official website, consumers can still purchase them through third - party authorized dealers and other channels. (Yicai Global)

After Xinba Withdrew from the Internet, Employees of Xinxuan Confirmed: 10 People Have Been Laid Off in the Department, and All Those Laid Off in This Round Joined This Year

After top anchor Xinba announced his withdrawal from the live - streaming industry on August 18, news of lay - offs at his affiliated Xinxuan Group spread. Recently, Hongxing Capital Bureau learned from two Xinxuan employees that Xinxuan is conducting lay - offs, involving multiple departments.

On the evening of August 26, two Xinxuan employees revealed that Xinxuan is indeed laying off employees, and the lay - offs are related to Xinba's announcement of withdrawing from the live - streaming industry. However, regarding the rumored lay - off ratio of more than 50%, an employee said that not that many people have been laid off at present. About 10 people in his department have been laid off, but the employees are worried that the subsequent lay - off ratio will increase. The above - mentioned employee also said that all the employees laid off in this round joined in 2025, and the compensation plan is N months' salary, so it amounts to about 0.5 months' salary. On August 26, Hongxing Capital Bureau verified the lay - off news with Xinxuan. As of press time, there was no response. (Hongxing News)

To address the market chaos caused by the "price war" on platforms, China Resources Beer has suspended supplies to some online platforms in Sichuan.

On August 27, the Sichuan Marketing Center of China Resources Beer announced that it would suspend the supply of its "Snow Super Dry" and "Snow Pure" series products to instant retail platforms such as Taobao, JD.com, and Meituan.

China Resources Beer pointed out in the supply suspension notice that as JD.com and Taobao have successively entered the instant retail market, platforms such as Meituan Flash, JD Instant Delivery, and Taobao Flash have triggered a price war, which reached a white - hot stage in August. As a result, the prices of China Resources Beer products (especially the "Snow Super Dry" series) have repeatedly broken through the red - line standards. The price of the Snow Super Dry products even dropped below 30 yuan per case. This phenomenon has not only disrupted the normal market price system but also led to the formation of a profit chain through reselling by unscrupulous traders. (Blue Whale News)

14 "Insiders" Stole Huawei's Chip Technology, with the Principal Offender Sentenced to Six Years in Prison

Recently, the highly - concerned case of Zunpai Company's infringement of Huawei HiSilicon's chip technology trade secrets was adjudicated on July 28. There were a total of 14 defendants in this case, all of whom were former employees of Huawei HiSilicon. The estimated value of the involved technical information reached up to 317 million yuan.

The case details show that the principal offender, Zhang, was formerly the head of the RF chip development department of HiSilicon (a wholly - owned subsidiary of Huawei). After leaving the company, he founded Zunpai Company. He colluded with several core employees poached from HiSilicon and, through improper means such as recruiting and colluding with still - employed employees, stole the Wi - Fi chip technology independently developed by HiSilicon over a long period to shorten the R & D cycle of his own company's products.

Finally, the Shanghai Third Intermediate People's Court found all 14 defendants guilty of infringing trade secrets. The principal offender, Zhang, was sentenced to six years in prison and fined 3 million yuan; the remaining 13 defendants were also respectively sentenced to fixed - term imprisonment, suspended sentences, and fines. None of the 14 defendants filed an appeal within ten days, and currently, the first - instance judgment has come into effect. (China Newsweek)

The third batch of national subsidies has arrived. Smart lights, study desks and chairs, learning machines, etc. are included in the national subsidy for the first time

The third batch of funds for the national trade-in program has been allocated. Starting from August 26, they can be claimed on some platforms. This year, the scope of the national subsidy has been expanded again. As it is the back-to-school season, smart lights, study desks and chairs, learning machines, etc. are included in the trade-in subsidy scope for the first time, with a maximum subsidy of 20%. Meanwhile, 3C digital products such as mobile phones, tablets, smart watches, and fitness trackers priced within 6,000 yuan can enjoy a 15% subsidy, with a maximum reduction of 500 yuan. (Securities Times)

Monthly Salary for Fresh Undergraduates in First-tier Cities Reaches 7,885 Yuan

A report released by MyCOS Research Institute on the 27th shows that in the past five years, the proportion of fresh undergraduate graduates finding employment in first-tier and new first-tier cities has slightly declined. In the class of 2024, the proportions were 15% and 25% respectively, remaining basically the same in the past two graduating classes. The proportions of those finding employment in second-tier and third-tier cities and below have increased from 19% and 37% in the class of 2020 to 21% and 39% in the class of 2024. MyCOS data also shows that the monthly income of undergraduate graduates in the class of 2024 in first-tier cities reached 7,885 yuan (the national average for undergraduates is 6,199 yuan). (Yicai Global)

The three major U.S. stock indexes closed higher collectively, and the S&P 500 index hit a new closing high again

36Kr learned that at the close on August 27, the three major U.S. stock indexes rose collectively. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.32%, the Nasdaq Composite rose 0.21%, and the S&P 500 index rose 0.24%. Among them, the S&P 500 index hit a new closing high again. Large technology stocks showed mixed performance. Intel rose more than 2%, while Microsoft, Apple, Amazon, and Google rose slightly. Meta, Tesla, Netflix, and NVIDIA fell slightly. Most popular Chinese concept stocks declined. Li Auto fell more than 8%, XPeng Motors fell more than 6%, NIO fell more than 5%, Futu Holdings and JD.com fell more than 3%, Baidu fell more than 2%, and Alibaba, NetEase, Pinduoduo, and Bilibili fell more than 1%.

Latest Stanford Research: AI is Undermining the Employment Prospects of Young Americans

On August 26 local time, a latest research jointly published by three Stanford economists and yet to be peer - reviewed shows that since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, generative AI has significantly reduced the employment rate of young Americans in "highly automatable" positions, especially in positions such as software developers, front - desk receptionists, translators, and customer service representatives.

Data shows that the number of employed software developers aged 22 to 25 has decreased by nearly 20% compared with the peak at the end of 2022. In contrast, senior developers are less affected because they possess soft skills such as "collaborating with non - technical teams and delivering commercial - grade products" that are difficult to be replicated by AI. It is worth noting that the employment of young people has increased in "AI - augmented" positions where AI can assist rather than replace humans (such as AI - assisted medical diagnosis). The researchers emphasized that leveraging AI to "expand human capabilities" rather than simply "cost - reducing automation" is the key to creating new employment opportunities (Star Market Daily).

Cutting - Edge AI

Google Officially Launches Image Generation Model Gemini 2.5 Flash Image

36Kr learned that on August 26 local time, Google officially launched its most advanced image generation and editing model, Gemini 2.5 Flash Image, codenamed "nano banana". Currently, this model ranks first among AI image editing models in the LMArena benchmark test. It has the capabilities of maintaining character consistency, precisely retouching images using natural language, and fusing multiple images, and enhances its intelligent performance by leveraging Gemini's world knowledge. Currently, users can access it through the Gemini App, API, etc. The API is priced at $30 per million output tokens. (Cailian Press)

OpenAI Plans to Improve ChatGPT to More Accurately Identify Users' Psychological and Emotional Distress Signals

According to a report in the evening of August 27th, Beijing time, OpenAI plans to improve ChatGPT to more accurately identify users' psychological and emotional distress signals and make more appropriate responses.

OpenAI pointed out in a blog post that the upcoming update will help users stay grounded in reality, even if they do not show serious signs of self - harm. The company is also exploring how to connect users with psychologists before they fall into a serious crisis. This is an important difference from the current operation mode of the model: currently, when someone expresses a desire to self - harm, ChatGPT only advises them to contact a suicide prevention hotline. (Sina Finance)

OpenAI and Its CEO Sued

A 16-year-old boy in California, USA, committed suicide after receiving self-harm instructions from ChatGPT. His parents sued OpenAI and its CEO, Sam Altman, on Tuesday, alleging that the company deliberately prioritized profit over safety when it launched the GPT-4o version of this artificial intelligence chatbot last year. The lawsuit aims to hold OpenAI accountable for wrongful death and violation of product safety laws and seeks unspecified monetary compensation. (Sina Finance)

Financial Reports of Big Companies

Meituan: The operating profit of the core local commerce segment in the second quarter dropped significantly year-on-year to 3.7 billion yuan

36Kr learned that Meituan released its financial report for the second quarter of 2025. The financial report shows that Meituan's adjusted net profit in the second quarter was 1.49 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 89%. Due to the fierce competition in the food delivery industry, the operating profit of the core local commerce segment in the second quarter dropped significantly year-on-year to 3.7 billion yuan.

Anta Group: Revenue Exceeds 38.5 Billion Yuan in the First Half, Up 14.3% Year-on-Year

36Kr learned that Anta Sports released its semi - annual report. The financial report shows that in the first half, the revenue was 38.544 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 14.3%, the net profit was 7.031 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 14.5%; the operating profit was 10.131 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 17%; the operating profit margin was 26.3%, higher than market expectations. In addition, the group's net operating cash inflow was 10.93 billion yuan, and the free cash inflow was 7.55 billion yuan, maintaining a stable cash generation ability. As of June 30, 2025, the group's total cash and cash equivalents, bank time deposits and pledged deposits reached 55.58 billion yuan, providing a solid foundation for future investments.

Mixue Group: Achieved Revenue of 14.87 Billion Yuan in the First Half of the Year, a Year-on-Year Increase of 39.3%

36Kr learned that Mixue Group released its semi - annual report. The report shows that in the first half of the year, it achieved revenue of 14.87 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 39.3%; net profit of 2.72 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 44.1%; and gross profit of 4.71 billion yuan, a year - on - year increase of 38.3%. In terms of stores, as of June 30, 2025, the number of Mixue Group's global stores increased to 53,014, with 9,796 new stores compared with the same period last year. The store network covers China and 12 overseas countries.

Going Public

Anter Intelligent Supply Chain

36Kr learned that Midea Group announced that its subsidiary, Anter Intelligent Supply Chain Technology Co., Ltd., submitted a listing application to The Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited through its joint sponsors on August 27, 2025, applying for the listing and trading of Anter Intelligent Supply Chain's H-shares on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange. The initial issuance scale of Anter Intelligent Supply Chain's H-shares shall not exceed 20% of Anter Intelligent Supply Chain's enlarged total share capital immediately after the issuance (before the exercise of the over-allotment option), and the underwriters shall be granted an over-allotment option of not more than 15% of the above-mentioned initial issuance scale of Anter Intelligent Supply Chain's H-shares. The proposed spin-off listing is still subject to the filing or approval of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, the Stock Exchange and other relevant regulatory authorities.

Yashide

36Kr learned that, according to the disclosure on the website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission, Shenzhen Yashide Technology Co., Ltd. (referred to as "Yashide") completed the record-filing for counseling with the Shenzhen Securities Regulatory Bureau on August 26, 2025. It plans to conduct an initial public offering and list on the stock market, and the counseling brokerage is Guosen Securities.

Investment and Financing

3D large model company Yingmou Technology has completed a new round of tens of millions of US dollars in financing

36Kr exclusively learned that Yingmou Technology, a 3D large model company, has completed a new round of tens of millions of US dollars in financing, led by BlueRun Ventures, with follow - on investments from existing shareholders such as ByteDance and Sequoia China Seed Fund. It is understood that the team is about to launch its brand - new 3D generation model, Rodin Gen - 2, next month. This model has reached in - depth cooperation with several globally well - known companies during the internal testing phase.

"Hangmo Technology" Secures Tens of Millions in Angel Round Financing

Recently, "Hangmo Technology," a company specializing in the R & D of intelligent modular joints, announced that it has received tens of millions in angel - round financing from institutions such as XFUND, with the Zhongguancun Industrial Research Institute serving as the long - term transaction advisor. The funds from this round of financing will be mainly used for product iteration preparation and the establishment of a technology R & D team. In the future, the company will continue to focus on the technology of bionic intelligent joints for robots. It is understood that Hangmo Technology is currently in the process of a new round of financing.

Compiled | Chi Yu