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Women, Teens Helped Build Terracotta Army, Chinese Study Says

Timely reports on issues and events from across China. Drawing on a vast range of sources, these succinct articles provide insights into the significance of each issue in a wider context.

NEWS

The study, which analyzed ancient fingerprints left on the statues, is the first to assess the division of labor involved in the production of the first emperor of China’s ghostly army.

Reel to Real: The ‘Voy Boys’ and the Movie That Never Was

Articles that cut to the core of contemporary China. In-depth, informed, and carefully crafted, every piece is carried by the voices of the story’s participants.

FEATURES

A Beijing filmmaker set out to make a blockbuster about disabled kids finding healing in sport. Instead, she helped build Xinjiang’s first blind football team.

Chinese Reality Show’s Medical Students Criticized as Incompetent 

The eighth season of “An Exciting Offer,” which follows the lives of medical students, has drawn pushback online after participants revealed serious gaps in their training and knowledge.

In China, an AI Idol’s ‘Maternity Leave’ Backfires on Her Creators

The creators of an AI girl group said the stress of managing their concept led them to announce one member’s pregnancy in order to suspend her online persona.

The New Upgrade for Concert Fans in China: Rent More Zoom

Fans are renting flagship camera phones with telephoto lenses for clearer shots from distant seats, as ecommerce platforms market them as “concert essentials.”

China Drafts Landmark Gig Worker Labor Rights Rules

The policy would require platforms and their partners to sign labor contracts or agreements with their employees and improve algorithmic oversight.

China Misses Basketball Medal in 2nd-Worst Asian Games Finish

The defeat has prompted scrutiny of the team’s head coach and its traditional training methods.

China Tells E-Commerce Apps to Stop Selling Loans

Food delivery, e-commerce, and other purchase platforms will no longer be allowed to encourage customers to buy financial products such as loans at checkout.

How a Rotten Apple Brought China’s Internet Into a Mushroom Lab

After a mushroom grew from an apple, researchers turned online curiosity into a two-year breeding project with help from samples sent in from across China.

China Gives Schools More Flexibility as Enrollment Shrinks

Multiple cities are opening schools that combine educational levels and offer flexible enrollment models to counter falling primary school numbers.

Eating Less Reduced Breast Tumors in Mice, Chinese Study Finds

Mice subjected to three weeks of restricted caloric intake experienced a reduction in breast tumor size and number due to a newfound biological mechanism — potentially enhancing existing cancer therapies.

Hundreds Still Missing After Deadly China-Nepal Border Mudslide

Search teams are still working through deep mud and broken roads as an upstream landslide dam raises fears of further flooding.

Inside the Chinese AI Studio Shrinking Short-Drama Crews to One

Former animators, cinematographers, and VFX artists are helping build AI systems that can script, storyboard, generate, and revise short dramas with unprecedented speed.

China’s Short-Drama Boom Was Built on Speed. Then AI Got Faster.

AI-powered production is upending China’s ultrashorts market, cutting shoots, budgets, and specialized crew work while forcing companies to find cheaper ways to keep live-action production viable.

Cash Cow: China’s Most Mocked Cartoon Is Suddenly a Viral Hit

The film, made by a mother-son duo with no industry experience and without the use of AI, is projected to earn tens of millions of dollars at the box office.

An AI Actress Sold Contact Lenses. China Isn’t Buying It.

The ad, featuring breakout AI character Fang Taozi, sparked heated discussion online over whether avatars can and should be used to endorse products meant for humans.

Chinese Rafting Park in Hot Water Over ‘Female Companion’ Service

The attraction, which has since been ordered to suspend operations, had advertised women who would kiss and hug customers, depending on price, as customers river raft.

The Chinese Chicken Joint That Rejected Fame Now Craves It

The restaurant, which went viral this spring, has tried to sustain its popularity through livestreaming and expanding to other cities, despite previously claiming it did not want the attention.

China’s Summer Hit Recasts the Eight Immortals as Con Artists

The blockbuster animation “All Wishes Come True!” places Taoist legends in a fairyland where gods are assigned temples, ranked by incense offerings, and judged by KPIs.

All-Women ‘Shaolin Soccer’ Tribute Scores Big, Divides Fans

The film drew large audiences but disappointed those hoping for the heights of the Hong Kong action star’s past kung fu comedies.