8:01 AM | Huang Zitao's monthly sales in live-streaming e-commerce nearly reach 25 million yuan; Apple takes the highest commission in China globally; 32 survivors have been found in the crashed passenger plane in Kazakhstan.
TOP3 Big News
Huang Zitao's monthly sales in live-streaming with goods reached nearly 25 million yuan, and he claimed in the live-stream that his number of followers increased by over 1.66 million on the day of giving away cars.
It is understood that within the nearly 30 days, Huang Zitao's account has conducted 4 live-streaming sessions to sell goods, with sales ranging from 10 million to 25 million yuan, mainly in the beauty category. Regarding this, on December 24, Huang Zitao announced in the live-stream that when the number of his followers reaches 15 million, he will give away 10 cars as a welfare. Fans can choose any car models and colors that can be provided in the live-streaming room, but he needs some time to prepare. The reporter found through a third-party platform that on December 24, the number of new followers of Huang Zitao's account exceeded 1.66 million, and the number of new followers in the live-stream exceeded 160,000. As of the morning of December 26, the number of his followers has exceeded 20 million, with a cumulative increase of over 5 million. (Blue Whale News)
The Commission Rate of Apple in China is the Highest Globally
On December 25th, the "Apple Tax" once again sparked heated discussions among netizens. The "Apple Tax" refers to the commission that Apple Inc. charges for paid apps and digital content consumption on its App Store. Public data shows that the "Apple Tax rate" in the Chinese market is the highest globally, with a 30% commission for standard enterprises and a 15% commission for small enterprises. In the United States, the rates are 27% and 12% respectively, in the European Union they are 17% and 10%, and in South Korea, they are 26% and 11%. Apple does not allow transactions outside the App or third-party payments in China, while it is allowed in regions such as the European Union, the United States, and South Korea. (Weibo Digital)
32 Survivors Found in Crashed Passenger Plane in Kazakhstan, Strong GPS Interference May Have Been Encountered Before the Crash
On the 25th local time, an Azerbaijani passenger plane crashed in Aktau, Kazakhstan. Currently, 38 deaths have been confirmed. According to the information released by the General Prosecutor's Office of Azerbaijan, 32 survivors have been found.
A spokesperson for the Russian Federal Air Transport Agency said that initial information indicates that the pilot chose to divert to Aktau after the plane was hit by a bird, causing an "onboard emergency". Flight tracking data from FlightRadar24.com shows that the plane was operating normally when it approached Aktau Airport, and in the final minutes before hitting the ground, its altitude moved significantly up and down. FlightRadar24 revealed in a post that the plane faced "strong GPS interference", which "caused the plane to transmit incorrect ADS-B data", the latter referring to the information that allows flight tracking websites to track the plane. (Xinhua News Agency, Xiaoxiang Morning News)
Big Companies/Big Events
Sam's Club Purchasing Agents Can Earn Up to Ten Thousand Yuan in Cash Back Monthly, While Some Have 30 Membership Cards Blocked in Two Days
Recently, the topic "Suspected Sam's Club Purchasing Agents Splitting Cakes in the Toilet" has trended on the hot search, once again sparking discussions on the issue of Sam's Club purchasing agents. Currently, the annual membership fee for a regular Sam's Club member is 260 yuan, while the premium membership fee is 680 yuan. For those who do not consume frequently, getting a membership card is not cost-effective. Thus, Sam's Club purchasing agents have emerged.
In fact, Sam's Club premium membership cardholders enjoy a 2% cash back benefit on points, and with a co-branded card, there is an additional 2% cash back. Some purchasing agents interviewed revealed that major Sam's Club purchasing agents may have dozens or even hundreds of membership cards, and their monthly cash back amount can reach tens of thousands of yuan. Among them, those who earn a hundred thousand yuan per month are mostly experienced and early-entered major purchasing agents. They already have a large number of private domain customers and even have chain offline stores in multiple locations. A reporter saw in the WeChat Moments of a Sam's Club purchasing agent that in the past two days, more than 30 of his cards have been blocked. (Blue Whale News)
The Douyin account of Yangmaoyue has been banned from being followed, and he has lost millions of followers.
On December 24, some netizens found that the account of the blogger "Yangmaoyue" was banned from being followed. Previously, the online celebrity blogger "Yangmaoyue" caused a stir on the Internet by posting a video complaining about the difficulty for young people to find jobs. With the continuous fermentation of the event, on November 23, Yangmaoyue released an apology video saying: "An inappropriate expression method was used for a serious topic. From now on, I will be more cautious in my words and deeds to ensure that similar mistakes will not be repeated."
According to the third-party data platform, the number of followers of "Yangmaoyue" was about 8.774 million before he posted the controversial video on November 22. In about three days, he lost millions of followers. Currently, his number of followers has dropped to 7.28 million. (Xiaoxiang Morning News)
The coincidence of holidays in 2025 is high, with no holidays for four consecutive months
Recently, netizens found that the Mid-Autumn Festival in 2025 falls on October 6, coinciding with the National Day holiday. And the Dragon Boat Festival in 2025 is on May 31. This means that from June to September 2025, except for weekends, there are no legal holidays for a full four months.
Astronomers say that the coincidence of the Mid-Autumn Festival with the National Day holiday is a normal calendrical phenomenon. In the 100 years of the 21st century, there are 21 years that fall within the National Day holiday. After 2025, the next time will be 2031. (Headline News)
Disgraced Internet Celebrity Tianyou Suspected of Returning to Live Broadcasting but Gets Banned Again, The Party Concerned Responds Late at Night
Recently, it is rumored that the disgraced Internet celebrity "MC Tianyou" used someone else's real-name information to return to live broadcasting, only showing his voice but not his face. Currently, this account has been banned. In the early morning of December 24, Li Tianyou posted on Weibo, seemingly responding to the ban, saying, "Originally, I didn't want to start this live broadcast. Since the mention of this broadcast, someone told me that after this live broadcast, it might... So I hesitated for a moment, but I still chose to start this live broadcast."
It is reported that on February 12, 2018, "MC Tianyou" detailedly described drug use in the form of rap during a live broadcast, and was named by "Focus Interview". The Cyberspace Administration of China included him in the blacklist and implemented a cross-platform ban. (Beijing Youth Daily)
The World's First Next-Generation In Vitro Fertilization Baby Born, Obtaining Regulatory Approvals in Multiple Countries
Recently, a US biotech company, Gameto, announced that the world's first baby conceived using Fertilo was successfully born in Lima, Peru. Fertilo is a breakthrough fertility technology that uses stem cells to help embryos mature in vitro, which is faster, safer, and more accessible than traditional in vitro fertilization (IVF).
The Fertilo technology involves co-culturing ovarian support cells extracted from human induced pluripotent stem cells with immature eggs to simulate the natural maturation process of eggs in the laboratory. Currently, the company is expanding the availability of the technology and has obtained regulatory approvals in multiple countries around the world. (WisdomTechFan)
Xiaomi Automobile Joins Hands with NIO to Officially Start Cooperation on Charging and Energy Supply Network
36Kr learned that according to the official Weibo of Xiaomi Automobile, Xiaomi Automobile joins hands with NIO to officially start cooperation on the charging and energy supply network. More than 14,000 NIO charging piles are included in the Xiaomi charging map, which supports real-time viewing of the dynamic data of NIO charging stations in the charging map, and also supports scanning the code for charging with the Xiaomi Automobile APP.
The Value-Added Tax Law is passed and will come into effect on January 1, 2026.
The 13th meeting of the Standing Committee of the 14th National People's Congress voted and passed the Value-Added Tax Law on December 25. It will come into effect on January 1, 2026. Value-Added Tax is the largest tax category in China. With the formulation and introduction of the Value-Added Tax Law, 14 of the 18 current tax categories in China have had their laws formulated, covering the majority of tax revenues, and significant progress has been made in implementing the principle of tax legalization. (Xinhua News Agency)
Following the Trend of "First-tier" Cities, Housing Prices Rise in Multiple Strong Second-tier Cities
After the property market transaction volume in the four first-tier cities exploded in October 2024, many strong second-tier cities have also followed suit, reversing the market sentiment and seeing a simultaneous increase in both volume and price. According to the data recently released by the National Bureau of Statistics, among the 17 cities where new house prices rose month-on-month, second-tier cities accounted for 10; among the 11 cities where second-hand house prices rose, second-tier cities accounted for 8. Strong second-tier cities such as Tianjin, Nanjing, Hangzhou, Ningbo, Xiamen, Chongqing, and Chengdu have achieved a "double increase" in both new and second-hand house prices. In the previous round of the property market upcycle, these strong second-tier cities had performed prominently; now, under the stimulus of intensive policies, the property markets in these cities are accelerating their recovery and warming up. (Yicai)
The number of foreign tourists traveling to Thailand rebounded to 34.4 million in 2024
According to the data of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports of Thailand, in the year ending December 22, the number of foreign tourists in Thailand reached 34.4 million, benefiting from the relaxation of tourism measures, especially the visa-free policy. Chinese tourists topped the list with 6.6 million, followed by 4.8 million Malaysian tourists, and 2.1 million Indian tourists in the third place. (Sina Finance)
The weight loss drug "Tirzepatide" is listed on Meituan, and the number of reservations has increased by more than three times compared to the previous few days on a sequential basis.
36Kr has learned that after Semaglutide, the new star weight loss drug "Tirzepatide" has been officially launched in China. On the evening of December 23, the media's actual test found that the first GLP-1 dual-target drug Tirzepatide (Mounjaro) has been launched for a limited time on Meituan. Sources close to Meituan revealed that Tirzepatide was sold out in 3 seconds on the night of its debut, and the daily number of reservations has increased by more than three times compared to the previous day. Currently, the supply is gradually catching up with the demand, and it can be purchased throughout the day starting from December 25. The merchant customer service stated that Tirzepatide is currently in high demand, and they will continue to stock up to meet the demand. It is reported that the supply of goods may enter a stable state from January to February.
RT-Mart Super Opens Three Stores for the New Year Celebration
36Kr learned that on December 25, RT-Mart Super Bozhou Jinqiao Store and Taihe Hanlin Square Store opened offline. Then, Haikou Haixiu Middle Road Store will also officially debut on January 4. It is understood that RT-Mart Super has opened three stores in Anhui and Hainan, with the number of stores reaching 34, covering 11 provinces and cities across the country.
Apple May Become the First Company with a Market Value Exceeding $4 Trillion
It is reported that Apple's market value has reached $3.90 trillion (currently approximately 28.48 trillion yuan). Many analysts believe that AI-enhanced features will boost iPhone sales out of the slump, initiating a new super cycle, and make it the first company with a market value exceeding $4 trillion. Since the beginning of November, Apple's stock price has risen by approximately 16%, and its market value has increased by approximately $500 billion. Analysts believe that Apple's expansion of AI technology and the expectation of AI-driven iPhone upgrades are the main drivers of the stock price increase. (IT House)
It is reported that Apple's bezel-less iPhone may be postponed
For a long time, Apple's former chief designer Jony Ive has set the ultimate goal of iPhone design as "a complete piece of glass", that is, to completely eliminate the bezels. A latest supply chain report shows that Apple had hoped to achieve this goal on the iPhone 18, but it seems unlikely at present. It is understood that at Apple's request, Samsung Display and LG Display are developing bezel-less OLED screens for the iPhone. However, due to the current level of technological development not being sufficient to completely eliminate all bezels, the prospect of launching a zero-bezel OLED iPhone in 2026 is still unclear. (Cailian Press)
Japan Sets Up New Ten-Year Tourist Visa for Chinese Citizens
According to the Nikkei, during his visit to Beijing on December 25, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono announced the relaxation measures for Chinese citizens' visas. Specifically, a ten-year tourist visa will be established, and the stay period for group travel visas will be extended from 15 days to 30 days to promote economic and cultural exchanges between China and Japan. These relaxation measures are expected to be implemented in the spring of 2025 after the preparations are completed. (China Overseas Chinese Network)
Honda and Nissan May Finalize the Framework for Business Merger by the End of January 2025
It is reported that Honda and Nissan Motor plan to finalize the framework for business merger around the end of January 2025. Both sides will intensively discuss at the merger preparation committee to be established in the future. Honda and Nissan announced on the 23rd that they have fully initiated consultations, and plan to sign a merger contract in June 2025. A holding company that incorporates both parties is planned to be established and listed in August 2026. If the merger is realized, the new company's annual sales will exceed 30 trillion yen (approximately 1.4 trillion yuan), becoming a giant automotive group with the third-largest sales volume globally. Mitsubishi Motors, in which Nissan is the largest shareholder, will decide whether to join the consultations around the end of January 2025, and the merger framework finalized by Honda and Nissan will be an important basis for judgment.
Some major US banks are reportedly planning to sue the Federal Reserve over the annual stress tests
It is reported that a person familiar with the situation disclosed that some major US banks are planning to sue the Federal Reserve over the annual bank stress tests. The person said that the lawsuit is expected to be filed in the coming days. Previously, the Federal Reserve announced in a statement that it is considering making adjustments to the bank stress tests and will seek public comments on "significant changes". (Jiemian News)
The Forefront of AI
HON HAI ENTERS THE ULTRA-THIN AR GLASSES MARKET, POSSIBLY PREPARING FOR APPLE'S AI NEW PRODUCT ORDERS
It is reported that Hon Hai has announced a collaboration with Porotech to enter the ultra-thin AR glasses market. It plans to establish a Micro LED wafer manufacturing process production line in Taichung, with mass production expected in the fourth quarter of 2025 to meet the related needs of future global mainstream customer products. Considering that Hon Hai's current mainstream customers are Apple, NVIDIA, etc., the industry speculates that Hon Hai is making preparations for Apple's subsequent ultra-thin AR glasses and even the popular AI glasses. This implies that Apple or NVIDIA is driving the development of AI glasses and will entrust Hon Hai for production. Hon Hai is making an advanced deployment to prepare for a large order and is ready to start production upon the customer's instruction. (Jiemian News)
Apple Intensifies Research and Development of AI Chips, Potentially Completely Ending Decades of Unpleasant Relationship with NVIDIA
Apple is accelerating the research and development of its own AI chips to reduce reliance on third-party developers, which could eventually lead to the complete end of the already unpleasant cooperative relationship between Apple and NVIDIA that has lasted for decades. Currently, Apple is still collaborating with NVIDIA to support many functions behind Apple Intelligence. Apple does not purchase NVIDIA chips but rents access rights from cloud services operated by Amazon and Microsoft. However, there are reports that Apple is collaborating with Broadcom to design its own AI server chips, a move that will further sever the connection with NVIDIA. (Sina Technology)
"Doubao" Is Currently Popular, Institutions Focus on Investigating New Trends in Application
Data shows that in the recent three months, the invocation volume of the Doubao large model in the information processing scenario has increased by 39 times, the customer service and sales scenario has increased by 16 times, the hardware terminal scenario has increased by 13 times, the AI tool scenario has increased by 9 times, and there has also been a significant increase in scenarios such as learning and education. The application of large models may be accelerating its implementation. Looking around the A-share market, institutional investors have quickly responded and intensively investigated listed companies in related industries to explore the be implemented application of AI large models such as Doubao on the terminal side. According to incomplete statistics, since December, nearly 60 companies in sectors such as AI PC, AI mobile phones, AI glasses, AIGC concept, and AI chips have been investigated, covering multiple links including downstream applications and upstream hardware of the AI industry. (Shanghai Securities News)
The UK Plans to Trial an AI Tool to Assess Diabetes Risk
It is reported that the UK will launch a trial of an artificial intelligence (AI) tool in 2025. This tool can predict the risk of developing type 2 diabetes 13 years before the patient actually gets the disease. It is understood that this tool is called "AI - Electrocardiogram Diabetes Risk Assessment". It can analyze the results of regular electrocardiogram tests to identify subtle changes that are difficult for the human eye to detect and warn of the risk of developing type 2 diabetes. This will help achieve early intervention and may even help people avoid getting this disease. (Jiemian News)
Alibaba Cloud Tongyi Open Source's First Multi-modal Inference Model QVQ, Visual Inference Comparable to OpenAI o1
36Kr learned that on December 25, Alibaba Cloud Tongyi Qianwen released the industry's first open-source multi-modal inference model QVQ-72B-Preview. QVQ demonstrates an unexpectedly strong visual understanding and reasoning ability, and performs outstandingly in solving complex reasoning problems in mathematics, physics, science, and other fields. Multiple evaluation data show that QVQ surpasses the previous visual understanding model Qwen2-VL, and its overall performance is comparable to reasoning models such as OpenAI o1 and Claude3.5 Sonnet. Currently, developers can directly experience it on the ModelScope community and the HuggingFace platform.
Investment and Financing
"Haoran Technology" Completes Series A Financing of 15 Million
36Kr learned that "Haoran Technology" announced the successful completion of Series A financing, with the financing amount reaching 15 million RMB. The investor is Shenzhen Tianhao Industrial Investment Holding Co., Ltd. This financing will provide strong support for Haoran Technology's business expansion and technological innovation in the fields of software development, network and information consulting services, etc.
"Kedian Intelligent Cloud Technology" Secures $15 Million in Series A Funding
36Kr has learned that "Kedian Intelligent Cloud Technology" has announced the completion of its Series A financing, with a fundraising amount of up to $15 million. This round of financing is jointly led by Starlight Capital Asia Management Group Limited (Starlight Capital) and ADLY LAND SDN BHD D, marking a further deepening of Starlight Capital's strategic layout in the industrial hemp field.
IM Motors Completes RMB 9.4 Billion Series B Financing
On December 25, IM Motors announced the successful completion of the Series B1 equity financing. The overall Series B financing raised a total of RMB 9.4 billion. This round of financing is continued to be supported by state-owned investment institutions and market-oriented investment institutions. The funds raised this time will be used for R&D investment in core technologies such as digital intelligent chassis, steer-by-wire, and intelligent driving, and to accelerate the launch of new products. In 2025, IM Motors will launch 2 pure electric and 2 extended-range models, totaling 4 new products, to enter a larger market and better meet the diverse needs of users.
Cool Products
OnePlus Releases New Glacier Battery
36Kr learned that on December 25, OnePlus officially announced the launch of a new generation of Glacier Battery. This battery is positioned as a high-performance mobile phone battery, using the latest generation of "bionic spherical silicon-carbon" material, with a silicon content of 10% and an energy density of 859Wh/L. It is understood that the new generation of Glacier Battery not only has a super large capacity of 6400mAh, but also achieves a smaller volume and a longer battery life. The new generation of Glacier Battery will be first equipped on the OnePlus Ace 5 series models.
Yuntian Lifei: Jointly Releases AI Smart Glasses with Shanjitech and LOHO
36Kr has learned that Yuntian Lifei stated on the interactive platform that the AI smart glasses jointly created by the company with Shanjitech and LOHO have been officially released. This product is equipped with Yuntian Lifei's self-developed large model "Yuntian Tianshu", which can provide a strong technical foundation for its AI memory system. Relying on Yuntian Lifei's full-stack self-developed AI technology and its rich experience in the urban, enterprise, and consumer markets over the past 10 years, Yuntian Lifei and Shanjitech will work together to build an AI multimodal capability framework and integrate the AI application and service ecosystem to make the glasses a smarter "external brain".
Young People's "AI Usage" Mini Survey
"After Chat GPT crashed, the global academic level regressed by 5 years". In early December, during the busiest period before the final exam week for college students, the 4-hour crash of GPT also caused countless student parties to collapse. Somehow, young people have become inseparable from a series of functions such as AI writing, AI search, AI summarization, AI PPT, etc...
The young people who were the first to come into contact with AI have already taken the express train. Whether it is to find the relevant data needed for papers, quickly convert articles into professional PPTs, or let AI help write planning copies and summarize and extract the content of literature at work, the AI assistant has seemingly become the life butler and learning and work assistant of contemporary people. How much has your life been infiltrated by AI? How much difficulty will it cause to your study and work if you leave the AI search and writing functions? Welcome to participate in the young people's "AI Usage Mini Survey" and share your experience of embracing AI with us.~
Scan the code to participate in the survey
Organized by | Wang Xinyie