Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank reported a 6 per cent rise in nine-month profit before tax to Dh6.4 billion, supported by expanding customer financing, higher income and improving credit quality. Net profit after tax reached Dh5.6 billion in the nine months ended 30 September 2026, also increasing 6 per cent from a year earlier. Revenue rose 6 per cent to Dh9.7 billion, while the […]
The forecast identifies large language models, which underpin generative AI applications, as an area where China is particularly well positioned to establish leadership. It also anticipates that Chinese companies and research institutions will become at least competitive across other critical technology sectors, potentially reshaping the balance of technological capabilities between Beijing and Washington.
The assessment comes as Chinese AI developers narrow the performance gap with American competitors despite restrictions on access to advanced semiconductors. Improvements in model efficiency, expanding domestic computing infrastructure and competitive pricing have strengthened China’s position in the global market.
Bloomberg Intelligence senior analyst Robert Lea identified a sharp improvement in Chinese model performance earlier this month. Leading Chinese systems trailed their American counterparts by approximately 3% on benchmark scores, compared with around 9% in May and 15% earlier this year.
That narrowing gap followed the September introduction of DeepSeek’s V4.1 Flash model, which demonstrated further advances in reasoning and computational efficiency. The findings suggest that restrictions on sophisticated American chips have not prevented Chinese developers from improving their systems.
The projections nevertheless remain conditional on technological progress, investment and commercial adoption over the next four years. Competitive performance in individual benchmarks does not necessarily establish overall leadership, particularly when computing capacity, profitability and enterprise deployment are considered.
China’s expanding capabilities are already influencing international adoption patterns. Models developed by DeepSeek, Alibaba and Moonshot AI have attracted developers seeking alternatives to comparatively expensive proprietary systems offered by American technology companies.
Data from OpenRouter, a platform providing access to multiple AI models, showed Chinese systems gaining substantial shares of usage during 2026. However, the figures represent activity through that platform rather than the entire global market, where direct subscriptions and enterprise contracts remain significant.
Chinese developers have also benefited from distributing models with openly available weights, allowing businesses and programmers to customise systems without depending entirely on proprietary services. This approach has encouraged international experimentation and strengthened adoption among cost-conscious users.
American companies retain important advantages, particularly in advanced semiconductor access, large-scale computing infrastructure and commercial relationships with enterprise customers. OpenAI, Anthropic and Google continue investing heavily in frontier models and the infrastructure required to train increasingly sophisticated systems.
Financial performance illustrates the distinction between technological competitiveness and commercial success. Anthropic disclosed revenue of $16.3 billion for the first half of 2026, compared with $1.2 billion during the corresponding period a year earlier, reflecting strong demand for its enterprise services.
Chinese developers face greater pressure on pricing, with intense domestic competition limiting opportunities to convert growing usage into sustainable earnings. Lower-cost models can accelerate adoption while simultaneously reducing margins available to finance future development.
Semiconductor manufacturing remains another constraint. Washington’s export controls restrict Chinese access to certain advanced processors and manufacturing equipment, although domestic suppliers including Huawei are developing alternatives intended to support national computing requirements.
China’s response increasingly combines domestic chip development with software optimisation. Researchers have demonstrated that improvements in training methods, architecture and inference efficiency can reduce dependence on the most powerful available hardware.
Beijing is also pursuing greater integration between artificial intelligence and telecommunications infrastructure. A three-year programme issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in June established targets for autonomous networks, computing access and specialised AI applications through 2028.
The programme envisages significant breakthroughs in core technologies by 2030, alongside improved coordination between communications networks, computing resources and intelligent services. Its objectives complement broader efforts to establish domestic technological capabilities.
Regulatory developments could influence the international availability of Chinese technology. Authorities proposed export restrictions this month covering 23 categories of AI technology, including language models, autonomous agents, chip designs and computing clusters.
The draft measures would potentially subject transfers of certain model weights, source code and advanced technologies to government approval. Their final scope and implementation remain undetermined.
China’s Ministry of Commerce has presented the proposals as part of a wider effort to regulate strategically sensitive technology transfers. The consultation also covers technologies beyond artificial intelligence, reflecting the government’s expanding attention to intellectual property and national security.
For overseas developers using Chinese models, the eventual rules could affect access to advanced systems and associated technical resources, depending on the restrictions adopted and the thresholds applied to particular technologies.
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Saudi Arabia and Türkiye have signed a memorandum of understanding to expand educational cooperation, covering student exchanges, teacher development, academic research and educational technology, following talks between their education ministers in Ankara. Saudi Minister of Education Yousef bin Abdullah Al-Benyan and Turkish Minister of National Education Yusuf Tekin signed the agreement on October 26 during Al-Benyan’s official two-day visit to Türkiye, which concluded […]
South Korean cryptocurrency exchange Bithumb has confirmed a cyberattack on its internal employee communications system, exposing personal information and prompting an investigation into whether customer data was compromised. The exchange discovered unauthorised access to its mobile groupware system on Tuesday and disclosed the incident on Wednesday, as financial regulators examined separate security breaches at brokerage Daishin Securities and asset manager Mirae Asset Global Investments. Bithumb said the […]
Dubai has approved a development programme exceeding Dh2 billion alongside new population planning and digital government policies, as authorities seek to align economic expansion with infrastructure capacity and residents’ needs. Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defence of the UAE, chaired Tuesday’s Executive Council meeting at Emirates Towers, where the three initiatives were endorsed. The […]
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Dubai-based ENOC Group has extended its aviation technical services agreement with Indonesia’s PT Pertamina Patra Niaga for another three years, maintaining cooperation on aircraft refuelling safety, fuel quality and operational standards at Indonesian aviation facilities. The renewed agreement, announced on Tuesday, covers annual inspections, technical guidance, operational assistance and specialised training. It builds on a three-year arrangement established in 2023 and a commercial […]
The Summit explored the trends reshaping customer expectations and the future of financial services. Discussions focused on rising wealth, increasing cross-border mobility, and the growing convergence of data, artificial intelligence and human expertise. Participants exchanged perspectives on how deeper partnerships can enhance customer outcomes and unlock new opportunities for the next phase of growth.
Chengdu’s history provided a fitting backdrop for the Summit. More than a thousand years ago, the city pioneered “jiaozi”, widely regarded as the world’s first paper money. Its success depended on trust in the promise behind it, a principle that remains equally important in successful partnerships today.
Dennis Tan, Regional CEO, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Myanmar; Group Partnership Distribution, Prudential plc, said: “Keeping promises sits at the heart of every partnership for Prudential. Founded on trust and strengthened through collaboration, these relationships help us meet customers’ increasingly interconnected health, protection and wealth needs.
“The Summit demonstrated the strength of Prudential’s partnership ecosystem and the opportunities ahead. By bringing together distribution expertise, digital capabilities and market insights, we are working to create better customer experiences and drive long-term, sustainable growth with our partners.”
The programme also featured guest speaker Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s Chief Refereeing Officer and referee of the 2002 FIFA World Cup Final. Drawing on his experience at the highest level of international football, he shared perspectives on leadership, accountability and sound decision-making in complex and rapidly changing environments.
Partnership distribution at Prudential
Prudential harnesses the strength of its partnership ecosystem to translate shared priorities into action, helping more customers achieve greater financial security and confidence for the future.
Partnership distribution has long been central to Prudential’s growth strategy. Since establishing its first strategic bancassurance partnership in 1998, Prudential has built one of Asia’s largest bancassurance franchises, comprising more than 180 banking partnerships across markets. In the first half of 2026, the bancassurance channel delivered US$586 million in new business profit, up 13 per cent on a constant exchange rate basis from US$505 million in the same period last year.
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Prudential provides life and health insurance and asset management in Greater China, ASEAN, India and Africa. Prudential’s mission is to be the most trusted partner and protector for this generation and generations to come, by providing simple and accessible financial and health solutions. The business has dual primary listings on the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (HKEX: 2378) and the London Stock Exchange (LSE: PRU). It also has a secondary listing on the Singapore Stock Exchange (SGX: K6S) and a listing on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: PUK) in the form of American Depositary Receipts. It is a constituent of the Hang Seng Composite Index and is also included for trading in the Shenzhen-Hong Kong Stock Connect programme and the Shanghai-Hong Kong Stock Connect programme.
Prudential is not affiliated in any manner with Prudential Financial, Inc. a company whose principal place of business is in the United States of America, nor with The Prudential Assurance Company Limited, a subsidiary of M&G plc, a company incorporated in the United Kingdom.
Defence technology company Anduril Industries and chipmaker Qualcomm have unveiled plans for a laptop designed and assembled in the United States, with orders expected to open in 2027 as the partners seek to establish a domestic computer manufacturing network. The initiative, called BlueChip, will initially target government agencies, military organisations, emergency responders and public safety customers. Anduril has produced working prototypes, but neither company has disclosed production […]
OpenAI has patched a vulnerability in its application programming interface that allowed security researchers to extract protected reasoning traces from an advanced artificial intelligence model, following a disclosure by cybersecurity firm Xint. The researchers said OpenAI fixed the weakness on 23 October and awarded their team a $6,000 bug bounty. Xint published its findings on 26 October, describing a technique called compaction smuggling that circumvented safeguards intended […]
ISC2 plans to convene its new Cyber-AI Workforce Coalition in November, with initial employment toolkits targeted for spring 2027 as artificial intelligence reshapes cybersecurity jobs and recruitment. Chief executive Scott Beale outlined the timetable during the organisation’s Security Congress in Denver on 26 October, saying the coalition would bring employers, technology companies and workforce specialists together to establish clearer descriptions of emerging security roles. Some companies could […]
Kylian Mbappe has apologised for remarks about former Chinese leader Mao Zedong that provoked widespread criticism in China, cost the Real Madrid forward major sponsorship agreements and prompted an extraordinary intervention by Spanish football authorities. The France captain issued his apology on Tuesday after several Chinese companies terminated commercial partnerships following the circulation of a video in which he appeared to describe Mao as a dictator while […]
China’s state television network CCTV has suspended broadcasts of Spain’s La Liga football competition following controversial remarks attributed to Real Madrid striker Kylian Mbappé about former Chinese leader Mao Zedong, escalating a dispute that has also cost the French international several commercial partnerships. The suspension took effect on Monday night, with television coverage involving Mbappé and promotional material featuring the player also withdrawn. The development prompted an […]
A UAE business delegation led by Foreign Trade Ministry Undersecretary Fahad Al Gergawi held talks with Russian companies at the Russian Industrialist International Forum and Exhibition in St Petersburg, seeking opportunities for investment, technology partnerships and industrial cooperation. The delegation attended the 30th edition of the forum, held from October 22 to 24, with support from the Russia-UAE Business Council and coordination with the UAE Embassy in […]
By Nitya Chakraborty As I read the despondent news of the passing of Jogen Chowdhury, a towering figure of modern Indian art, on Sunday morning in the online edition of a Bengali daily, sitting in my Delhi flat, my memory went 62 years back when Jogen and I, along with a bunch of other close […]
The article Remembering Jogen Chowdhury, Partner In My First Cultural Event appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
Britain must prepare to fight a war alongside its allies within little more than 1,000 days, Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has warned, citing the expanding military capabilities of hostile states. Streeting said adversaries, including Russia, could acquire military strength and capacity to mount an attack by 2030. He described preparing Britain to fight and win a conflict as his defining priority, while emphasising that stronger defences were […]
By Ashok Nilakantan Ayers WASHINGTON: The final week of America’s 2026 midterm election campaign has become a high-stakes confrontation between President Donald Trump and a Democratic opposition seeking to turn voter dissatisfaction over the economy into control of Congress. Neither Trump nor former president Barack Obama is on the ballot. Yet both are criss-crossing the […]
The article Barack Obama Imparts Big Momentum To Democratic Campaign In Last Phase appeared first on Latest India news, analysis and reports on Newspack by India Press Agency).
Arabian Post Staff -Dubai Abu Dhabi renewable energy company Masdar has raised $600 million through its first blue bond, an AA-rated transaction described as the highest-rated publicly issued corporate blue bond worldwide. The five-year securities, rated AA- by S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings, were issued under Masdar’s $6 billion global medium-term note programme. Proceeds will finance or refinance eligible marine renewable energy projects under the company’s […]
Microsoft has opened a voluntary departure programme to approximately 60,000 employees across four countries, offering severance support as the technology group adjusts staffing across several major businesses. The initiative, announced on Monday, covers eligible workers in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and India. It encompasses more than a quarter of Microsoft’s global workforce, although the company has not specified how many departures it expects. Amy Coleman, […]
Veeam Software is holding its VeeamON Tour Dubai conference on Tuesday, bringing together more than 400 technology executives, cybersecurity specialists and partners to examine the protection of corporate data used by artificial intelligence systems. The event, scheduled at Address Sky View, focuses on data security, recovery and governance as businesses increasingly deploy autonomous AI agents capable of accessing sensitive information and performing tasks across enterprise systems. Organisers […]
New silver-coloured water installations are taking shape at Dubai Fountain in Downtown Dubai, with construction continuing beside Burj Lake while the attraction maintains its scheduled performances. Footage shared online shows tall, reflective structures with curved, petal-like forms rising above the water between Dubai Mall and Burj Khalifa. Streams descend from sections of the structures into the lake, creating a separate cascading effect alongside the fountain’s established choreographed […]
Artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency are moving towards practical financial applications, but regulatory uncertainty, technological limitations and institutional infrastructure remain significant obstacles, industry executives and investment specialists told the CryptoAI Summit 2026 in New York. The conference, organised by blockchain news platform Bitpush, brought together representatives from banking, investment management, technology, academia and digital asset businesses to examine how artificial intelligence could reshape payments, trading and financial services. […]
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