Krypton Evening News | The "Elon Musk version of WeChat" may be launched this Friday; Meta is betting on AI avatars and is creating an AI version of Mark Zuckerberg; AI collectible brand "MOMOTOY" has completed tens of millions of yuan in financing
Large companies:
Kingsoft Office: Net profit in Q1 is expected to increase by 402% - 473% year-on-year
36Kr learned that Kingsoft Office announced that it expects to achieve a net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company of 2.022 billion yuan - 2.307 billion yuan in the first quarter of 2026, a year-on-year increase of 401.89% - 472.81%.
Huadian Co., Ltd.: Net profit in Q1 is expected to increase by 54.76%-65.25% year-on-year
36Kr learned that Huadian Co., Ltd. announced that it expects the net profit attributable to shareholders of the listed company in the first quarter of 2026 to be between 1.18 billion yuan and 1.26 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 54.76%-65.25%.
Meta Bets on AI Avatars and Is Creating an AI Version of Zuckerberg
Meta is creating an artificial intelligence version of Mark Zuckerberg that can interact with employees on his behalf. This is one of the important measures for the tech giant to fully transform into the AI field. According to four people familiar with the matter, the group with a market value of $1.6 trillion has been developing photo - realistic, real - time interactive AI 3D avatars. Three of them said that the company has recently prioritized the AI version of Zuckerberg. (Sina Finance)
Redshop, Xiaohongshu's cross - border e - commerce platform, will be officially launched in June this year
According to a report on the morning of April 13th, today, a source close to Xiaohongshu told the media that its cross - border e - commerce platform, Redshop, will be officially launched in June 2026. This marks that Xiaohongshu is entering a new strategic phase of "platform going global" from the testing phase of "merchants going global", further improving its global business layout. Regarding this, the source close to Xiaohongshu said, "Redshop will be officially launched in June 2026. In the first phase, it plans to invite some seed merchants on a targeted basis, focusing on categories such as intangible cultural heritage handicrafts and special handicrafts, and will gradually expand to more categories later." (Sina Technology)
Wang Shi Responds to Rumors of Being Arrested: Everything Is Fine, Let the Law Deal with the Rumormongers
36Kr learned that on April 12th, there were online rumors that Wang Shi, the founder of Vanke, had been arrested. Wang Shi responded on his personal Weibo, saying, "It seems that everyone is more concerned about my situation than I am. Everything is fine. Let the law deal with the rumormongers."
Glory's robots "Lightning" and "Yuanqizai" set out for the Beijing Yizhuang Marathon
On April 19th, the robot marathon will be held in Beijing Yizhuang. Glory's self-developed robots "Lightning" and "Yuanqizai" have officially signed up to participate, becoming the world's first robot marathon challengers sent by a major terminal manufacturer. According to the Glory technology team, Glory's robot "Lightning" integrates the latest achievements of Glory in the fields of intelligent manufacturing and embodied AI, with a high-performance, high-explosion and stable body, high-dynamic motion control algorithms, real-time perception, understanding and autonomous decision-making capabilities.
Investment and financing:
AI trendy toy brand "MOMOTOY" completes tens of millions of yuan in financing
36Kr learned that the AI trendy toy brand "MOMOTOY" has completed tens of millions of yuan in financing, invested by Yipu Fund, with a post - investment valuation of 250 million yuan. The brand's person - in - charge revealed that the funds from this round of financing will be mainly invested in four core areas: AI technology iteration, the implementation of high - end product matrix, global channel expansion, and the establishment of flagship stores in core business districts.
New products:
Baidu Duclaw Launches Crayfish Life Assistant
36Kr learned that recently, DuClaw under Baidu Smart Cloud announced a new round of upgrades. On the basis of previously connecting with Xiaodu hardware, it further connects with Baidu Maps. Now, users can deploy crayfish through DuClaw. With just one travel instruction, they can simultaneously activate Xiaodu and Baidu Maps to complete tasks including schedule queries, weather and traffic conditions, and travel planning suggestions, and the results will be feedback to users in real - time through voice interaction with Xiaodu hardware.
The electrification process of the Dutch automotive industry is accelerating
Data recently released by the Dutch Central Bureau of Statistics shows that the sales of traditional fuel-powered vehicles in the country are gradually shrinking, and the electrification process of the automotive industry is accelerating. Behind this phenomenon are both the long-term guidance of the Dutch automotive industry policy and the significant impact of the recent rapid increase in international oil prices. The data shows that at the beginning of 2026, the total number of passenger cars in the Netherlands was approximately 9.4 million, a nearly 2% increase from a year ago. Almost all of the new additions were electrified models. Currently, the number of vehicles in the Netherlands that are fully or partially powered by electricity has exceeded 2 million, a nearly 6% increase from a year ago, accounting for about one-fifth of the total vehicle stock. (Caixin)
WPS 365 Unveils Three Major Ecological Strategies in Southeast Asia
36Kr learned that recently, WPS 365 made its debut at GITEX ASIA 2026 in Singapore, showcasing its solutions as a global one-stop AI collaborative office platform. Currently, WPS 365 is accelerating the implementation of three major ecological strategies in Southeast Asia: building a local channel network, deepening integration with global cloud providers, and providing customized digital support for enterprises. WPS 365 has reached strategic partnerships with Huawei Cloud, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Google Cloud, deeply integrating application capabilities with infrastructure to provide solutions that are more adaptable to the local computing power environment and regulatory framework.
“Elon Musk's Version of WeChat” May Launch This Friday
The long - promoted communication software XChat by Elon Musk is expected to be available on the Apple App Store on April 17. It is reported that XChat will use end - to - end encryption and support functions such as audio/video calls, editing/deleting messages, blocking screenshots, and self - destructing messages after reading. It also allows users to create large group chats of up to 481 people. However, XChat also has some problems, such as concerns about the privacy of decrypting users' messages. (Caixin Press)
Today's Viewpoint:
Agency: It is estimated that Apple will capture nearly 20% of the foldable phone market share this year
36Kr learned that according to the latest industry research from TrendForce, Apple is expected to enter the foldable phone market as early as the second half of 2026, which has drawn public attention to relevant technological innovations. Among them, the optimization of panel creases is shifting from the previous "mechanical confrontation" that relied on hinges and support structures to the "stress management engineering" centered on material stacking. Crease treatment has become a core indicator for measuring a brand's display technology integration capabilities. The agency estimates that Apple, with its brand image and consumers' expectations, will capture nearly 20% of the foldable phone market share in 2026. (Caixin)
Other notable news:
The General Offices of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council: Promote the In - depth Reform of Industry Associations and Chambers of Commerce
The General Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the General Office of the State Council issued an opinion on promoting the in - depth reform of industry associations and chambers of commerce. The opinion proposes that, in accordance with the principle of coordinated and efficient operation, industry associations and chambers of commerce with overlapping business, overly small institutional scale, overly detailed field division, and weak functional roles should be optimized and integrated. Industry associations and chambers of commerce that have malfunctioned, disrupted the order, witnessed industry shrinkage, or completed their mission should be expedited to exit in accordance with the law. Priority should be given to cultivating and developing industry associations and chambers of commerce that are in line with major national strategies and regional development orientations, meet the needs of industrial transformation and upgrading, and serve the development of new - quality productive forces. Active support should be provided for the legal establishment of industry associations and chambers of commerce in strategic emerging industries, future industries, green and low - carbon industries and other fields. (Xinhua News Agency)
Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez Visits Xiaomi Science and Technology Park
On April 13, Spanish Prime Minister Sánchez and his entourage, who are on an official visit to China, visited the Xiaomi Science and Technology Park in Beijing. Lei Jun, the founder, chairman, and CEO of Xiaomi Group, accompanied Sánchez to tour the Xiaomi Technology Exhibition Hall and introduced Xiaomi's business layout and development in the European market. According to Omida data, Xiaomi is the smartphone brand with the largest market share in Spain, ranking first with a market share of 30% in 2025. In recent years, Xiaomi has continuously expanded its layout in the European market and established cooperative relationships with several local Spanish enterprises. (Global Times)