分类： technology

China has marked a monumental advancement in space technology by successfully executing its inaugural metal 3D printing experiment in orbit. This pioneering achievement represents a critical transition from terrestrial research to practical space-based engineering verification, positioning China at the global forefront of in-orbit manufacturing capabilities.

The groundbreaking experiment was conducted using a specialized retrievable scientific payload developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Mechanics. The equipment traveled aboard the Lihong-1 Y1, a commercial recoverable suborbital vehicle engineered by CAS Space primarily for space tourism applications. On January 12th, the spacecraft launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, reaching an altitude of approximately 120 kilometers and crossing the Kármán line—the recognized boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space.

Upon achieving microgravity conditions, the system autonomously fabricated metal components, overcoming extraordinary challenges unique to the space environment. Researchers conquered complex obstacles including stable material transport in weightlessness, full-process closed-loop control systems, and seamless coordination between the experimental payload and launch vehicle.

Following the mission, the payload capsule safely returned to Earth via parachute-assisted landing, enabling scientists to recover invaluable data on melt pool dynamics, material transport mechanisms, solidification behavior, and the geometric precision and mechanical properties of space-manufactured components.

The Lihong-1 Y1 vehicle, celebrated for its cost-effectiveness and operational flexibility, demonstrated its viability as a platform for scientific experimentation. Beyond the 3D printing apparatus, the mission also transported precious rose seeds for agricultural research purposes.

According to deputy chief designer Wang Yingcheng, ongoing development focuses on incorporating crew-life-support systems and high-reliability escape technologies, potentially enhancing both low-cost suborbital research capabilities and commercial space tourism prospects. This breakthrough establishes a foundation for future space infrastructure development and advanced manufacturing operations beyond Earth’s atmosphere.

China’s commercial space sector is poised for a revolutionary leap as private aerospace company Beijing InterstellOr Human Spaceflight Technology reveals ambitious plans to offer civilian space travel experiences. The announcement comes amid a wave of favorable government policies designed to boost the nation’s commercial space industry.

At a recent business presentation in Chengdu, company founder and CEO Lei Shiqing detailed the development of the CYZ-1 manned spaceship, engineered to provide paying passengers with what she described as a “safe, comfortable and affordable” suborbital flight experience. The spacecraft represents a significant milestone in China’s growing private space sector.

The technical specifications reveal a sophisticated design: the 8-metric-ton spacecraft features a 4-meter diameter with 21 cubic meters of interior space, comprising two primary components—a crew module accommodating six passengers and a standalone escape capsule for emergency scenarios. The vessel will be propelled by a small carrier rocket that separates at approximately 70 kilometers altitude.

Following separation, the craft will continue its ascent through momentum, crossing the internationally recognized Kármán line at 100 kilometers—the conventional boundary of space—with capacity to reach altitudes up to 200 kilometers without achieving orbital velocity. Passengers will experience approximately three minutes of weightlessness during the 20-minute journey before the spacecraft initiates atmospheric reentry.

The landing sequence employs multiple giant parachutes to ensure a soft touchdown, completing what InterstellOr promises will be an extraordinary adventure for space enthusiasts.

Chief designer Zhang Minjie, formerly of the China Academy of Space Technology, emphasized the incorporation of innovative technologies in escape, reentry, and landing systems. “Our focus on reusability significantly reduces operational costs while maintaining stringent safety standards,” Zhang stated. “We will conduct extensive ground testing to verify all systems before manned missions.”

The company’s roadmap includes two unmanned test flights scheduled before late 2028, with the inaugural crewed mission to follow shortly thereafter. Remarkably, over 20 seats on initial flights have already been reserved by Chinese business leaders, a prominent actor, and a distinguished scientist at approximately $430,000 per ticket.

Looking beyond suborbital tourism, InterstellOr has announced development of the CYZ-2 model capable of reaching low-Earth orbit, with maiden voyage projected around 2032. Recent successful tests of the landing-buffering system have yielded satisfactory results, with post-examination analysis confirming system reliability and structural integrity.

This venture signals China’s accelerating entry into the commercial space tourism market, potentially creating new opportunities for civilian space experiences while demonstrating technological advancements in reusable spacecraft design.

In a significant shift within the artificial intelligence landscape, major U.S. technology firms are increasingly integrating Chinese-developed AI models into their core operations, challenging the long-standing dominance of American AI laboratories. Pinterest, the visual discovery platform with hundreds of millions of monthly users, has emerged as a prominent case study in this technological transformation.

The San Francisco-based company has been experimenting with Chinese AI architectures, including the DeepSeek R-1 model launched in January 2025, to enhance its recommendation systems and shopping assistant capabilities. According to CEO Bill Ready, this strategic implementation has effectively transformed Pinterest into an AI-powered commerce platform, with the ‘DeepSeek moment’ representing a pivotal breakthrough in open-source AI development.

Technical leadership at Pinterest reveals compelling advantages driving this adoption. Chief Technology Officer Matt Madrigal reported that open-source techniques employed from Chinese models demonstrate 30% greater accuracy than leading off-the-shelf alternatives while reducing operational costs by up to ninety percent compared to proprietary systems from U.S. developers like OpenAI.

This trend extends well beyond Pinterest’s operations. Across the Fortune 500 landscape, Chinese AI models are gaining substantial traction. Airbnb has incorporated Alibaba’s Qwen model extensively to power its AI customer service infrastructure, with CEO Brian Chesky citing superior performance, speed, and cost-effectiveness as decisive factors.

Hugging Face, the premier platform for AI model distribution, provides further evidence of this market shift. Product lead Jeff Boudier noted that Chinese models consistently dominate the platform’s trending rankings, with some weeks featuring four out of the top five training models originating from Chinese laboratories. In September, Alibaba’s Qwen surpassed Meta’s Llama to become the most downloaded large language model family on the platform.

The competitive landscape has evolved rapidly since Meta’s release of its open-source Llama models in 2023, which initially established industry standards for bespoke applications. However, the underwhelming reception of Llama 4 and Meta’s subsequent collaboration with Alibaba, Google, and OpenAI for training new models signals a fundamental restructuring of AI development alliances.

According to a recent Stanford University analysis, Chinese AI models have not only caught up but potentially surpassed their global counterparts in both capability metrics and user adoption rates. This development coincides with increased pressure on U.S. firms like OpenAI to prioritize revenue generation and profitability, potentially creating strategic openings for Chinese technological advancement in the open-source domain.

Former UK deputy prime minister Sir Nick Clegg observed the paradoxical nature of this competition, noting that China appears to be democratizing AI technology more effectively than Western democracies despite their different governance models. The Stanford report further suggests that substantial government support has contributed significantly to China’s open-source AI achievements, while U.S. companies face increasing commercial pressures that may influence their development priorities.

A landmark international research initiative titled “Building Global Consensus on AI Guardrails” was formally inaugurated in Beijing on Friday, bringing together prominent scholars from China, the United States, and other nations. The project addresses the urgent need for coordinated global action to establish safeguards for responsible artificial intelligence development and deployment.

Professor Jia Qingguo, Director of the Institute for Global Cooperation and Understanding at Peking University, emphasized the critical nature of this endeavor in a video address. “Given our existing understanding of AI risks, the stakes are very high,” he stated. “We must address the challenges and risks AI poses to avoid ending up in a disaster unparalleled in history. Since AI is a global phenomenon, effective risk management presents significant challenges that demand international cooperation.”

The ambitious project will develop a comprehensive policy and implementation blueprint that maps existing AI governance frameworks worldwide. Its primary objectives include identifying areas of convergence and divergence across different regulatory approaches and proposing concrete mechanisms to build global consensus on implementing responsible AI safeguards.

Professor Wang Dong, Executive Director of the same institute, highlighted the current fragmentation in global AI governance. He noted persistent divisions among nations regarding risk assessment methodologies, technological boundaries, and governance implementation pathways. This research initiative aims to bridge these gaps through scholarly collaboration and evidence-based policy recommendations, creating a foundation for more harmonized international AI governance standards that balance innovation with ethical considerations and risk mitigation.

Chinese authorities have unveiled comprehensive classification measures for online content potentially affecting minors’ physical and mental health, marking a significant advancement in digital protection frameworks. The Cyberspace Administration of China announced these measures on Friday, developed through interagency collaboration involving cyberspace, publishing, film, education, industrial technology, public security, cultural tourism, and broadcasting authorities.

The regulatory framework, scheduled for implementation on March 1, establishes four distinct categories of online information based on their potential impact on young users’ wellbeing. This systematic classification approach addresses both established concerns—such as unauthorized use of minors’ images—and emerging technological challenges including algorithmic recommendation systems and generative artificial intelligence applications.

Under the new provisions, internet platforms and content creators must implement proactive prevention mechanisms and countermeasures against harmful content. The measures align with China’s existing Regulations on the Protection of Minors Online, creating a cohesive legal ecosystem for youth digital safety.

The Cyberspace Administration emphasized its ongoing commitment to purifying the online environment, stating it will intensify supervision of platform responsibilities and content governance. This initiative aims to foster a cleaner, healthier digital space specifically tailored for young internet users while accommodating rapid technological evolution in the digital landscape.

Beijing has positioned itself at the forefront of commercial aerospace innovation with the official promotion of its groundbreaking ‘Rocket Street’ project during a high-profile industry conference held Friday at E-Town. The event, themed ‘Harnessing Forces to Develop the Aerospace Industry,’ brought together government officials, research institutions, leading enterprises, and financial representatives to chart the sector’s technological transformation.

The conference showcased significant developmental milestones, including the announcement of nine major production-capacity projects, six satellite programs, and the establishment of six specialized industrial platforms under the Rocket Street initiative. These revelations coincided with the presentation of strategic opportunities anticipated during China’s 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030).

Ma Chao, Deputy Director of the Robotics and Intelligent Manufacturing Industry Bureau at the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area, emphasized the conference’s role in expanding industrial development space and strengthening sector support through shared platforms. ‘This gathering significantly boosts new productivity and reinforces confidence in our industry’s development trajectory,’ Ma stated.

Corporate participants expressed strong appreciation for E-Town’s comprehensive ecosystem, which includes targeted policies, robust industrial infrastructure, and enhanced synergistic capabilities. Xia Dongkun, Executive Vice-President of Galactic Energy—a prominent commercial aerospace firm with research and development facilities in the area—noted: ‘The district provides precisely calibrated policies covering talent acquisition, investment facilitation, and insurance solutions. The shared platforms substantially improve industrial coordination, operational efficiency, and financial capacity.’

In a notable development, Galaxy Space co-founder Liu Chang revealed plans to establish a massive satellite manufacturing facility in Beijing with an annual production capacity of 500 satellites. This installation would represent China’s largest mass-production center for low Earth orbit satellites, incorporating advanced technologies including intelligent driving systems and embodied intelligent robots.

The 145,000-square-meter Rocket Street complex has completed final inspections and is now transitioning to operational status, cementing its position as the nation’s premier commercial space research and production base.