Wednesday 16 September 2026

Dario Vitale is appointed as the new Creative Director of Emporio Armani

Dario Vitale was appointed as the Creative Director of Emporio Armani.

Hainan province announces strategy to integrate performing arts with tourism to drive economic growth

Hainan plans to fuse performing arts with tourism, hosting 85 large concerts, music festivals, and top productions in 2025 to draw about 1.33 million attendees and boost tourism spending by nearly 70 billion yuan. The province aims to develop an international performing arts hub under the "performing arts + tourism" model, supported by subsidies and import of top productions, and to provide at least 160 large-scale performances during the 14th Five-Year Plan.

Philippines Tennis Association requests WTA exemption for Alexandra Eala to compete in Asian Games

The Philippines Tennis Association (Philta) has filed a request with the WTA for an exemption from the mandatory China Open so Alexandra Eala can represent the Philippines at the Asian Games. Eala is world No 18 and the highest-ranked player in the women’s singles draw at the Asian Games, which begin on Saturday and run until October.

Formula 1 announces the 2027 race calendar including the Spanish Grand Prix date

Formula 1 announced a 24-race calendar for the 2027 season. The Spanish Grand Prix is scheduled for September 12, 2027.

Cozmo launches the Ginkgo lounge chair designed by Anne-Mette Bartholin and Morten Ernst

Cozmo launches the Ginkgo lounge chair designed by Anne-Mette Bartholin and Morten Ernst. The chair emphasizes economy of material and sculptural presence, turning a 2D shape into a 3D object using as little material as possible. It is featured in Dezeen Showroom.

China men's basketball coach Guo Shiqiang outlines goals for the team following Asian Games progress

China's men's basketball head coach Guo Shiqiang said the team, after advancing to the Asian Games semifinals in Nagoya, is focusing on 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, with two main goals: Olympic qualification and developing young players. The squad features seven players born in 2000 or later, the youngest in 2007, and the team aims to provide growth opportunities and experience for these newcomers. Three players are sidelined by injury, and Guo noted weaknesses in three-point shooting, offensive choices, and defensive rebounding that need to be addressed.

The 11th Shaanxi Art Festival opens its fine arts, calligraphy, and photography exhibition in Shangluo

The 11th Shaanxi Art Festival opened its provincial exhibition of fine arts, calligraphy, and photography in Shangluo. It features 298 works selected from 2,651 submissions, plus 62 invited works by renowned artists, for a total of 360 pieces across painting, calligraphy/seal carving, photography, and sculpture; the first phase runs September 16 to October 14 and the event will extend to the end of the year with free public access and accompanying lectures.

Hong Kong government announces plans to redevelop Victoria Park tennis facilities to host larger tournaments

Hong Kong will redevelop Victoria Park's tennis facilities to potentially host larger tournaments in the future. Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu announced the plan during his annual Policy Address, aiming to strengthen promotion of sports and mega-events; Hong Kong currently holds rights to WTA and ATP 250 events, including the Prudential Hong Kong Open.

Global markets prepare for US and Japanese interest rate adjustments

Sam Altman discusses AI safety at Salesforce Dreamforce conference

Grab Acquires Controlling Stake in Atome Financial for $1.49 Billion

Federal Reserve Signals Potential Future Interest Rate Increases

SK Hynix Explores Options Following U.S. Manufacturing Reports

Hong Kong is rated Asia's top financial hub for the fourth consecutive year in the Global Financial Centres Index

Hong Kong scored 756 and ranked third globally in the 40th edition of the Global Financial Centres Index.

Google Shares Designs for Chicago Thompson Center Redevelopment

Google has released new architectural designs for the redevelopment of Chicago's historic Thompson Center into a modern workspace and community hub. The project features an activated atrium, a grand staircase, and a public art installation, with public opening scheduled for 2028. Additionally, the initiative includes partnerships with local youth organizations to support student attendance and paid art opportunities.

University of Manchester Uses NVIDIA Earth-2 for Air Pollution Forecasting

The University of Manchester is utilizing NVIDIA Earth-2 to forecast air pollution across the UK. Traditional chemistry-based models are expensive, limiting detail and frequency, while air pollution contributed to an estimated 30,000 deaths in the UK last year. Data-driven insights aim to address these limitations.

Abu Dhabi investment aids McLaren in building next-gen SUV

Abu Dhabi investment is set to help McLaren build its next-generation SUV.

European Central Bank Reports Wage Tracker at 2.7% in H1 2027

The European Central Bank reported its wage tracker at 2.7% for the first half of 2027. This figure points to a modest uptick in negotiated wage growth across the region.

ByteDance grows AI-powered short-drama platform Hongguo past major streaming platforms

ByteDance's AI-powered short-drama platform Hongguo overtook the country's major professional streaming platforms.

Tesla China launches discounts on Shanghai-made cars

Tesla China has launched discounts on its Shanghai-made cars to stem slumping deliveries.

OpenAI Publishes Economic Research on Workers Using AI

OpenAI has published new economic research detailing how workers utilize artificial intelligence beyond traditional roles. The study highlights the new activities that are becoming recurring parts of workers' daily routines. This research provides insight into evolving work practices involving AI.

Binance opens Capital Connect platform to wealthy individual investors

Binance is opening its Capital Connect platform to wealthy individuals for the first time.

International Organization for Standardization releases ISO 9001:2026 update

The International Organization for Standardization released ISO 9001:2026, marking the first major revision to ISO 9001 in a decade.

German Economy Ministry increases financial incentives for gas reserves

German Economy Minister Reiche wants to increase financial incentives for dealers to maintain more gas reserves for winter.

Meta launches Meta One subscription service

Meta announced Meta One, a new subscription service spanning Instagram, Facebook, WhatsApp and Meta AI on September 15, 2026.

People's Daily published a commentary rejecting US allegations of industrial-scale AI distillation by Chinese companies

People's Daily published a commentary rejecting US allegations of industrial-scale AI distillation.

The HKSAR government established San Tin Technopole Company Limited in June to spearhead development

The HKSAR government established San Tin Technopole Company Limited in June.

Helpfeel announced that its image sharing service Gyazo suffered unauthorized access leaking user information and image metadata

Helpfeel announced on September 16, 2026 that Gyazo suffered unauthorized access resulting in the leakage of about 23.62 million user records and about 490 million image metadata entries.

Moonshot AI has drawn global investor interest from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East

Moonshot AI has attracted global investor interest spanning Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

Sony unveiled PlayStation Pulse Wireless Headset and Pulse Edge Wireless Headset on September 16, 2026

Sony announced the PlayStation Pulse Wireless Headset and Pulse Edge Wireless Headset on September 16, 2026.

John Lai Sung-ziang agreed to buy a luxury flat in Mid-Levels for HK$98.8 million on August 31

John Lai Sung-ziang agreed to buy a luxury flat at Estoril Court for HK$98.8 million on August 31.

Reach announces plans to cut 220 editorial jobs due to declining online traffic and the rise of AI summaries.

Reach is to cut 220 editorial jobs.

US dollar remains weak amid high public debt and policy tensions despite impending Federal Reserve rate hikes.

The US Federal Reserve faces its first rate hike since 2023.

Z.ai raises its year-end annual recurring revenue outlook to $3 billion following a $5 billion cash injection

Chinese artificial intelligence developer Z.ai raised its year-end annual recurring revenue outlook to US$3 billion.

Local officials in Etrechet resign to protest Google's data center project

Elected officials of Etrechet resigned to protest a gigantic data center project led by Google.

MetaX Integrated Circuits faces a lock-up period expiration for 14 million shares

A lock-up period affecting 14 million shares in MetaX Integrated Circuits is set to expire.

Centre for a Better Britain prepares a policy plan urging major tax cuts

Centre for a Better Britain prepares a policy plan urging major tax cuts

Google and Terradot Launch Brazil Rice Farm Climate Project

Google has partnered with Terradot on a climate project across Brazilian rice farms. The initiative aims to remove 1 million metric tons of methane by 2030 and 1 million metric tons of carbon dioxide by 2040. The project uses irrigation changes and crushed volcanic rock as a scalable model for climate action.

Meta is reportedly developing camera-free smart glasses codenamed Luna

Meta is developing a new set of smart glasses codenamed Luna that would be camera-free.

Bitcoin ETF outflows reach $450 million following US Senate rejection of CLARITY Act

Bitcoin ETF outflows reached $450 million as the price of Bitcoin fell below $76,000. This follows the US Senate's rejection of the CLARITY Act, a bill intended to regulate cryptocurrency market structure.

Salesforce Recovers from Global Seven-and-a-H half-hour Outage

OpenAI Tests Sponsored Agents and Ads in ChatGPT