News
Trump administration blacklists Xiaomi, 10 other Chinese companies
Xiaomi headed the Huawei way?
The US has added Xiaomi and 10 other Chinese companies to a blacklist amid national security concerns. The current blacklist is only focused on companies that have military ties and strategic importance in China.
The Defense Department released names of additional “Communist Chinese military companies” operating directly or indirectly in the United States.
Although adding Xiaomi to the list is surprising, the company has largely remained apolitical and focuses on making affordable smartphones. Considered to be China’s answer to Apple, Xiaomi plays a crucial role in progressing China’s telecommunication industry. It surpassed Apple in global smartphone sales in the third quarter, according to IDC.
Xiaomi is China’s second-largest smartphone maker and dominates multiple developing markets like India. Xiaomi’s stock plunged more than 10 percent following the announcement, although it’s considered to be a knee-jerk reaction at the moment.
The ban means that Xiaomi risks getting delisted from global benchmarks like MSCI and American stock exchanges. Just last week, China Mobile, China Telecom, and China Unicom were removed from MSCI indexes. This largely affects their ability to raise capital from the open market in the future due to global compliance complications.
In response, a Xiaomi spokesperson told GadgetMatch, “The Company has been in compliance with the law and operating in compliance with the relevant laws and regulations of jurisdictions where it conducts its businesses. The Company reiterates that it provides products and services for civilian and commercial use. The Company confirms that it is not owned, controlled, or affiliated with the Chinese military, and is not a “Communist Chinese Military Company” defined under the NDAA. The Company will take an appropriate course of actions to protect the interests of the Company and its shareholders.”
Other companies banned
Apart from Xiami, the additional companies blacklisted include Advanced Micro-Fabrication Equipment, Luokong Technology Corporation, Beijing Zhongguancun Development Investment Center, GOWIN Semiconductor, Grand China Air Company, Global Tone Communication Technology, China National Aviation Holding, and Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC).
Furthermore, the ban is a stepping stone for US authorities to curb Chinese companies’ growth in the international market. The US took a similar step with Huawei and gradually pushed it out of every possible industry. Today, Huawei can’t use Google Mobile Services, cannot ship phones to the US, and has lost significant ground in supplying 5G equipment to telcos worldwide.
Finance
HONOR, Fidesmo partner for contactless payments across Europe, Middle East
Enabling contactless payments on the HONOR Watch 6
HONOR and Fidesmo have partnered to launch contactless payments across Europe and the Middle East on the HONOR Watch 6.
Powered by Fidesmo Pay, the integration enables users to connect an existing Mastercard or Visa card to their watch and complete contactless transactions directly from the wearable device.
This brings Fidesmo’s network of over 900 banks and financial institutions to HONOR’s customers. Users can connect an existing card to the HONOR Watch 6 instantly through the HONOR Health App, which installs a unique token directly onto the watch.
Acting as a secure reference to the payment method, this token allows customers to pay without storing their actual payment details on the device. Once installed, users can tap the watch at any
contactless terminal to pay, just as they would with a card or phone.
HONOR joins a group of device partners that already includes Swatch, Polar, and Mondaine as Fidesmo continues to build momentum across categories.
Entertainment
Max vs 100 will feature Max Verstappen race against 100 go-karters
The live event will stream at midnight on September 17.
As a child, one of my favorite thought experiments is to imagine who would win in a fight between my favorite characters at the time and a number of other random beings. For example, will Superman prevail against 100 Magnetos? Those are the ways I kept my young mind occupied. Now, as a former child, I still do the same thing but with more realistic people, like imagining if Steph Curry can win against 100 high schoolers. This week, ESPN and Disney+ are making one of those imaginary fights real: Formula 1 legend Max Verstappen versus 100 go-karters.
In an upcoming live event streaming exclusively on Disney+, Max vs 100 will pit the four-time world champion against 100 go-karters from everywhere in pop culture. This gaggle of 100 will include popular content creators such as Twitch streamer ExtraEmily, car photographer Larry Chen, and NBA shooting coach Chris Matthews.
All 101 drivers will race around one of the most iconic tracks in Formula 1 history, Silverstone in England. The track will be reconfigured to match the special race.
Of course, this is more than just a parade of go-karts. Max Verstappen will start at the back of the grid, meaning he has to overtake all 100 racers to win. Now, the Dutch driver is no stranger to winning from the back. In 2024, he won the Sao Paulo Grand Prix despite starting from P17 (out of 20 racers). Max vs 100, though familiar for the driver, presents a different challenge. Can he overtake 100 times to win the race?
Max vs 100 will stream live through Disney+ on September 17, 12:00am PHT.
Apps
Apple’s best feature to cure motion sickness is finally on Android
Google copies a good page from Apple’s playbook.
As an Android user, I’ve been jealous of iPhone users for a while now, but it’s not for the reason you might think. See, I’m ridiculously prone to motion sickness when I’m not driving. So, when I discovered that Apple has a software-based cure called Vehicle Motion Cues, I wanted it immediately. Now, Android does have third-party apps that do the same thing, but they’re not as good as a fully native version. Well, those dark, nauseating days are about to come to an end. Android 17 is finally getting a similar tool called Motion assist.
Before that, let’s rewind for a bit. What do these features do? How can they cure motion sickness?
Whenever you open Vehicle Motion Cues or Motion assist, the interface spawns a series of dots on the screen. These dots respond to movement. For example, if the vehicle turns to the left, the dots also go to the left, mimicking the movement. Without cues like this, the stationary nature of the screen clashes with our brain’s perception of movement. The disparity creates that feeling of nausea. Basically, our eyes are desperately trying to focus on the static screen, but our brains are telling us that we should be seeing motion. Having moving dots reorients our brain and places the phone inside our perception of movement.
Now, you can enable the same feature on your Android 17 device through Settings > All services > Motion assist under Personal & device safety. You can also set it so that the feature turns on automatically when the phone detects that you’re in a moving vehicle. Finally, you can also tweak the shape, color, and opacity of these dots.
Android 17’s Motion assist is rolling out now to compatible devices.
SEE ALSO: These are the best Android 17 features (if you hate AI)
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