Unpacking China | Key Chinese Firms to Watch This Week （20/09/2026-26/09/2026）

Weekly Overview（20/09-26/09）

1.Direct Drive Tech（本末科技） Opens Hong Kong IPO Subscription, Set to Become the World’s First Listed Direct-Drive Company

2.Moonshot AI（月之暗面）’s Kimi K3 Launches on Amazon Bedrock, Becoming the First Chinese Large AI Model on a Leading Global Cloud Platform

3.Baidu（百度）’s Overseas Kuku AI（库库AI） Product Kooko Surpasses 10 Million Users Across Nearly 200 Countries and Regions

4.DeepSeek（深度求索） and Moonshot AI（月之暗面） Invited to Address AI Risks at UN Security Council

5.DeepSeek（深度求索）’s Annualized Revenue Tops USD 1 Billion as It Pursues a Second Funding Round

6.Transwarp Technology（星环科技） Lists in Hong Kong, Becoming the First A-Share Company to List Under Chapter 18C

7.Ligent Technologies（纳真科技） Lists in Hong Kong, Raising About HKD 5.4 Billion

8.Ningbo Sanxing Medical Electric（宁波三星医疗电气） Subsidiary Wins USD 132 Million Transformer Contract for US Data Center Energy Storage Project

9.Alibaba Cloud（阿里云） to Add Data Centers in Eight Countries and Regions Over the Next Year

10.BYD（比亚迪）’s Thailand Plant Produces Its 100,000th New Energy Vehicle, With Local Procurement at About 50%

11.More Than 3,500 New Energy Vehicles Depart Taizhou’s Toumen Port for Slovenia, Including Over 2,300 Geely（吉利） Vehicles

12.China Post（中国邮政） Launches Inaugural Jiaxing–Luxembourg Intercontinental Cargo Flight, With Annual Freight Volume Exceeding 12,000 Tonnes

13.Maersk（马士基） Confirms Orders for 26 Green Container Ships, With Chinese Shipyards Securing About USD 5 Billion in Contracts

14.TikTok Shop Launches EU Cross-Border Selling Pilot, Allowing UK Sellers to Serve 12 Countries

15.Taobao（淘宝） to Launch Its Singles’ Day Overseas Campaign Across 20 Markets, With More Than 1.2 Million Merchants Participating

16.TUHU Car（途虎养车） Plans to Acquire Australian Auto Service Chain mycar for HKD 2.25 Billion

Selected Developments

1. Direct Drive Tech（本末科技） Opens Hong Kong IPO Subscription, Putting Its Direct-Drive Module Business to a Public-Market Test

【Event】On September 21, Direct Drive Tech Limited（本末动力〔北京〕科技股份有限公司） opened subscription for its planned Main Board listing in Hong Kong. It plans to offer 50 million H shares globally at HKD 21.60 per share and expects to begin trading on September 29 under stock code 06731.HK. According to Frost & Sullivan data cited in the prospectus, the company ranked first in China’s consumer-robot direct-drive actuator module market by revenue in 2025, with a 61.1% share. Shipments of those modules reached approximately 8.5 million units that year.

The company’s scale advantage is concentrated in this specific segment. Once its modules are incorporated into consumer robots, customers require competitive costs, reliable supply and consistent product quality. Direct Drive Tech has established relationships with four of the world’s ten largest consumer-robot providers by revenue, giving it a customer base for further production growth.

The 61.1% figure does not mean the company holds more than 60% of China’s overall robot actuator module market. It applies to the narrower consumer-robot direct-drive segment; its ranking and share differ in the broader consumer-robot actuator module market. The company also sells wheel-legged robots, but actuator modules currently account for most of its revenue. The commercial scale of the two businesses should be assessed separately.

The company plans to use the proceeds to expand capacity and fund research and development. The offering gives this upstream supplier access to the public capital market, but it has yet to list. Its post-listing valuation, use of proceeds and ability to sustain growth will need to be tested against subsequent results.

2. Baidu（百度）’s Kooko Surpasses 10 Million Overseas Users as Its AI Office Business Expands Globally

【Event】At Baidu AI Day on September 21, Baidu’s document and cloud-storage businesses announced that Oreate AI, their overseas AI office platform, had been rebranded as Kooko, the international version of Kuku AI（库库AI）. Baidu said Kooko had surpassed 10 million overseas users within a year of launch, reaching nearly 200 countries and regions. Its broader Kuku AI business had more than 40 million monthly active AI office users worldwide.

Kooko offers overseas users tools for research, content creation and document editing. For Baidu, the product provides a way to bring capabilities developed through its document and cloud-storage businesses to international users. Its geographic reach shows that it has attracted users across markets, while differences in local work practices and needs will require continued product adaptation.

The two user figures measure different things. The more than 40 million figure refers to monthly active users of Baidu’s broader AI office offering worldwide. The more than 10 million figure refers to Kooko’s overseas user total; Baidu has not identified that number as monthly active users. Presence in many countries also does not establish a substantial active user base in each market.

Kooko is already operating. Its next test is whether users continue to rely on it for work and whether paid use can support the cost of providing the service. The figures disclosed so far do not establish its overseas paid conversion rate or revenue scale. The 10 million-user milestone demonstrates reach, while commercial performance requires further operating data.

3. TUHU Car（途虎养车） Signs Deal to Acquire Australia’s mycar Service Network

【Event】On September 24, TUHU Car announced that an indirect wholly owned subsidiary had signed a share purchase agreement to acquire all the shares of Conti Trade Australia, a subsidiary of Continental（大陆集团）. The target operates 279 tyre, maintenance and repair stores across Australia under the mycar Tyre & Auto brand. The agreed enterprise value is AUD 403 million, or about HKD 2.25 billion. After adjustments for net debt and working capital, the estimated payment at completion is currently AUD 278 million, or about HKD 1.55 billion.

The value of the deal lies in mycar’s local service network. Vehicle maintenance and repair depend on store coverage, technicians, parts supply and customer trust; online customer acquisition alone cannot deliver those services. If the acquisition closes, TUHU Car can build its Australian business on an existing network rather than establishing one from scratch.

Acquiring the stores would also bring responsibility for local operations. TUHU Car would need to manage inventory and suppliers and determine which capabilities developed in China suit mycar’s Australian business. Continental has said mycar will continue to sell its tyres after completion, making the existing supply relationship part of the integration.

The parties have signed an agreement, but the transaction remains subject to regulatory approvals and other closing conditions. The HKD 2.25 billion figure is enterprise value, not the estimated cash payment. When the stores become part of TUHU Car, and whether the acquisition improves their performance, will depend on completion and subsequent operations.

4. Sanxing Electric（ 三星电气） Subsidiary Signs USD 132 Million US Data Center Transformer Contract

【Event】On September 24, Ningbo Sanxing Medical Electric Co., Ltd.（宁波三星医疗电气股份有限公司） announced that its wholly owned subsidiary, Ningbo AUX Intelligent Technology Co., Ltd.（宁波奥克斯智能科技股份有限公司）, had won a US data center energy-storage oil-immersed transformer project and signed an overseas supply contract. It will supply oil-immersed transformers under the USD 132 million contract, equivalent to approximately CNY 885 million or 6.16% of Sanxing Electric’s audited 2025 revenue.

Data center construction requires supporting power distribution equipment. For a transformer supplier, winning a contract is followed by production, export, delivery and customer acceptance. Sanxing Electric’s contract covers the supply of specific equipment; it is not a contract to build or operate a data center.

The order gives the company a project reference as it expands its US data center power distribution business. Its contribution to financial results will depend on execution and revenue recognition. The announcement did not identify the customer or disclose a delivery schedule or profit margin, so the contract value should not be treated as current-period revenue.

The company also noted potential risks from trade policy, exchange-rate movements and other market factors affecting exports. The next points to watch are whether it delivers the products as agreed and whether the project leads to further orders.

5. BYD（比亚迪）’s Thailand Plant Produces Its 100,000th Vehicle, With Local Procurement at About 50%

【Event】BYD said on September 23 that its plant in Rayong, Thailand, had produced its 100,000th new energy vehicle on September 21. The milestone vehicle was a BYD ATTO 3. The plant began operations in July 2024 as BYD’s first overseas passenger-vehicle production base and has a designed annual capacity of about 150,000 vehicles. According to BYD, Thai nationals account for approximately 95% of its workforce, while local procurement represents about 50% of sourcing.

Reaching cumulative production of 100,000 vehicles takes the Rayong plant beyond its initial construction and production launch. It serves the Thai market and also exports vehicles, allowing BYD to organize production locally and supply other markets in the region.

The local procurement figure indicates that a supporting supply chain is developing. It does not mean every critical component is produced in Thailand, nor does it directly measure local value added. Local employment, parts procurement and vehicle exports represent different aspects of the operation and should be assessed alongside supplier capabilities, product certification and actual sales.

The 100,000th vehicle is a cumulative production milestone, not a measure of sales or deliveries during the period. BYD’s next test is whether the plant can maintain steady output while connecting local sourcing, regional exports and its sales and service network.

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