Technology

Launch of Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding

Published

2 years ago

November 16, 2024

A strategic partnership between two of the largest Qatari companies to add value to the local and regional market, enhancing food security and innovation in several key sectors.

DOHA, Qatar, Nov. 16, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Senyar Trading & Distribution Company and Al Baladi Holding have announced the launch of their strategic partnership under the name of ‘Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding’. The launch ceremony was attended by Sheikh Faisal bin Qassim Al Thani, Chairman of Al Faisal Holding, and Mr. Mohammed Abdullah Al Attiyah, Chairman of Al Baladi Holding. This partnership aims to provide added value to the Qatari and regional markets, and to enhance the role of Qatari companies in supporting and developing the local economy in line with Qatar National Vision 2030.

Within this partnership, a strong economic icon was established under the name ‘Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding Group’, capable of implementing huge projects across the MENA region in a number of different vital sectors, especially livestock and agricultural production projects, which contributes to supporting food security and enhancing livestock in a sustainable manner. In addition, the retail sector constitutes a significant part of the Company’s activities.

Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding Group Holding includes Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding LLC, based in Qatar, Al Faisal Al Baladi Group for Malls Management and Operations, based in Egypt, and Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding, based in the Sultanate of Oman. As well as livestock and agricultural production, these companies will operate in several diverse sectors including distribution and wholesale, manufacturing, hospitality and hotels, restaurants, food and beverages, with the retail sector also constituting a significant area of focus. Through these activities, they will seek to meet the growing demand for innovative products and solutions, while supporting sustainable economic development in Qatar and the region.

Commenting on this announcement, Sheikh Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani, Chairman of Al Faisal Holding, stated: “I am pleased to witness the formation of this strategic partnership that represents the development of the private sector in Qatar and enhances its ability to compete through cooperations built on solid foundations. This partnership is a realization of Qatar Vision 2030 of empowering the private sector and enhancing its contribution to the local economy. I wish both parties success in this promising partnership.”

Mr Mohammed Abdullah Al Attiyah, Chairman of Al Baladi Holding and Chairman of Al Faisal Al Baladi, said: “We are delighted with this cooperation which opens new horizons for growth and expansion. Al Baladi Holding has achieved remarkable successes in recent years, and this partnership comes to underpin our position in the market and expand the scope of our activities. We hope that Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding will contribute to the development of successful and innovative projects that will be a source of pride for everyone.”

Sheikh Mohammed bin Faisal Al Thani, Vice Chairman of Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding, added: “We share common goals, integrated resources, and expertise with Al Baladi Holding. Through this partnership, we will achieve integration and synergy in diverse businesses to maximize value for all parties, including consumers and investors, which will benefit all stakeholders and contribute to achieving a positive impact across every level.”

Mr. Abdullah Mohammed Al Attiyah, Vice Chairman of Al Baladi Holding, said: “Undoubtedly, the stability of the Qatari economy, the diversity of investment opportunities, and the positive business environment, have all contributed to Al Baladi Holding’s market leading position. We look forward to this partnership with confidence in its promise to help build a bright future”

Mr. Tarek Mahmoud Al Sayed, Board Member of Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding, added: “Food security projects hold special importance, especially in their comprehensive and sustainable concept, which constitute an essential part of our future strategy. We seek to play a pivotal role in the region through livestock and agricultural production projects, as we currently own a number of livestock and agricultural production companies in Qatar and Oman, and we plan to expand and launch new projects in a number of countries in the region and North Africa. This will support Al Faisal Al Baladi in becoming a leading company in achieving food security at the regional level.”

Mr Hany Al Sayyadi, CEO and Board Member of Al Faisal Al Baladi Holding, concluded by saying: “This partnership strengthens our diversified investment portfolio and facilitates the expansions of our presence in regional and global markets. Our vision is to achieve a strong presence in the Middle East region, by focusing on innovation and quality in all our sectors. This partnership is a natural extension of the vision of both companies to enhance economic integration and contribute to driving development in Qatar and the region.”

Al Faisal Al Baladi plans to expand its business activities in regional and global markets, by utilizing the diverse investment opportunities represented by the manufacturing, hospitality and retail sectors. The Group’s current portfolio includes more than 30 leading companies in their fields, including Al Baladi and Al Baladi Express Markets, Al Wajba Dairy and Juice Factory, City Limousine Company, in addition to a number of restaurants and companies in the food sector, and many others.

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Technology

From China Mobile’s Call Upgrade to the Commercial Launch of “Calling + AI” by Leading Operators: AI Is Reshaping the Value of Native Calling

Published

3 minutes ago

July 25, 2026

BEIJING, July 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — On June 15, 2026, China Mobile announced a comprehensive upgrade to its traditional calling services, ushering in a next-generation calling experience defined by HD, intelligence, and security. This milestone not only marks a major leap in telecommunication innovation but also reflects a global, inevitable shift: the transformation of basic communication into intelligent, inclusive services.

Breaking Experience Barriers and Redefining the Paradigm of Basic Calling

Overcoming the limitations of traditional, voice-only interactions, China Mobile has leveraged its mature VoLTE/VoNR network foundation to deeply integrate AI models with HD audio and video capabilities. Without requiring users to change their phones or SIM cards, seven core AI functions are now seamlessly embedded into the native dialer interface.

These upgrades include Live Captions bridge communication gaps for the elderly and hearing-impaired; HD video calls and AI noise reduction create a crystal-clear, immersive calling experience; AI anti-fraud intercepts high-risk calls in real time to safeguard users’ assets. Furthermore, the introduction of Data Channel (DC) technology and visual call menus transforms standard calls into agile, interactive service windows, enabling multi-party collaboration and seamless business transactions directly within the call. Through this initiative, China Mobile has successfully evolved traditional calls from a mere voice pipeline into a secure, integrated information hub.

“Calling + AI” Becomes a Strategic Consensus Among Global Leading Operators

From a global perspective, China Mobile’s call upgrade is not an isolated milestone, but a microcosm of the global telecommunications industry’s broader transformation. Throughout 2026, major operators worldwide are accelerating the commercial deployment of “Calling + AI” solutions:

Deutsche Telekom launched Magenta AI, leveraging artificial intelligence to enhance calling across all scenarios;T-Mobile US introduced a network-side, real-time translation service covering over 80 languages, effectively breaking down cross-border communication barriers;Saudi stc rolled out English-Arabic bilingual simultaneous interpretation, which has now entered large-scale commercial trials;South Korea’s LG U+ launched its ixi-O intelligent calling assistant, shifting the user experience from passive responses to proactive smart interactions and earning three prestigious GLOMO industry awards.

The synchronized efforts of these global leaders confirm that basic calling services have officially entered a new era of AI integration. Deeply empowered by artificial intelligence, “Calling + AI” has become the definitive blueprint for the intelligent transformation of the global telecommunications industry. As operators continue to refine these native capabilities, the traditional voice network is poised to reclaim its position as the most secure, ubiquitous, and valuable entry point in the AI era.

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SOURCE China Mobile

Technology

Trip.com Group Sincerely Accepts Administrative Penalty Decision Issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation of the People’s Republic of China

Published

3 hours ago

July 25, 2026

SINGAPORE, July 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Trip.com Group Limited (Nasdaq: TCOM; HKEX: 9961) today announced that it has received the administrative penalty decision issued by the State Administration for Market Regulation of the People’s Republic of China.

Trip.com Group sincerely accepts the decision and will adopt rectification measures in accordance with applicable laws and regulations to implement the decision’s requirements. The Company will strengthen its long-term governance mechanisms and strive to contribute to the sustainable development of the travel industry.

Trip.com Group’s management team will host a conference call at 8:00 AM U.S. Eastern Time on July 27, 2026 (or 8:00 PM Hong Kong Time on July 27, 2026).

The conference call will be available on Webcast live at: http://investors.trip.com.

All participants must pre-register to join this conference call using the participant registration link below:
https://register-conf.media-server.com/register/BIb78e08d8f18340c4882a7e4ab961906b.

Upon registration, each participant will receive details for this conference call, including dial-in numbers and a unique access PIN. To join the conference, please dial the number provided, enter your PIN, and you will join the conference instantly.

For further information, please contact:
Investor Relations
Trip.com Group Limited
Email: iremail@trip.com

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SOURCE Trip.com Group Limited

Technology

NAVER Partners with Brookfield and NVIDIA to Expand Korea’s National AI Factory Infrastructure Buildout

Published

5 hours ago

July 25, 2026

SAN FRANCISCO, July 25, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — NAVER, Brookfield and NVIDIA announced an expansion of Korea’s sovereign AI factory infrastructure. New investments will increase the initial NVIDIA DSX™ AI factory deployment from 55 megawatts to 200 megawatts.

Announced during Korea President Jae Myung Lee’s AI Summit visit to San Francisco, the planned 200-megawatt expansion will be built with the NVIDIA DSX platform at NAVER’s GAK Sejong hyperscale data center in Sejong, South Korea. The expanded infrastructure will provide Korea- and U.S.- based AI innovators with access to production-scale AI compute for building next-generation models, agents and AI-powered services.

Under the terms of the agreements, Brookfield will fund up to $9 billion as the exclusive capital partner, NVIDIA will invest $1 billion and NAVER will fund the remaining amount to finance the $10 billion project.

This builds on NAVER’s June announcement to extend its GAK Sejong data center with NVIDIA DSX, with a long-term path to gigawatt-scale sovereign AI infrastructure serving Korea’s enterprises, industries, government organizations and global AI cloud customers. Combining Brookfield’s capital with NVIDIA’s computing platform, the investment supports NAVER’s AI factory deployment.

“NVIDIA’s strategic investment and our infrastructure supply agreement with Brookfield have propelled NAVER’s vision for the AI Factory business into a robust execution phase,” said Haejin Lee, Founder and Chairman of NAVER. “Leveraging the solid partnerships with our global partners, we will drive technological innovation, foster a sovereign AI ecosystem, and spearhead efforts to strengthen South Korea’s AI competitiveness.”

AI Factory Expansion and Open Model Collaboration to Fuel AI Innovators

NAVER, as an NVIDIA Cloud Partner, provides deep expertise in operating hyperscale infrastructure powered by the full-stack NVIDIA AI platform. The 200-megawatt AI factory, featuring NVIDIA Vera Rubin and Blackwell platforms, will establish a dedicated resource pool for emerging AI companies, providing the compute, software and support needed to develop and deploy competitive AI models and applications at scale.

This expanded infrastructure also builds on NAVER and NVIDIA’s collaboration on open model development for agentic and physical AI. NAVER is advancing its HyperCLOVA X models to be based on NVIDIA Nemotron™ 3 Ultra open models with its proprietary data and training expertise. NAVER is also the first Korean company to join the NVIDIA Nemotron Coalition, contributing to open model development across pretraining, post-training and reinforcement learning.

NAVER plans to launch an AI agent platform in Korea in the second half of the year, powered by NVIDIA Agent Toolkit software including NVIDIA NemoClaw™ blueprints. NAVER is also developing a Seoul World Model using proprietary urban street-view and spatial modeling data, built on NVIDIA Cosmos™ world foundation models.

About NAVER

Founded in 1999, NAVER is Korea’s largest Internet company and one of the world’s top tech companies. Leading cutting-edge technologies, NAVER operates the No.1 search engine in Korea and holds various business portfolios encompassing commerce, fintech, cloud, AI and robotics.

NAVER recorded sales of KRW 12.04 trillion (USD 8.18 billion) in 2025. TEAM NAVER continues to enhance its business portfolio and expand its global presence across Japan, North America, and Europe, while pursuing innovation through continuous research and development in future technologies.

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SOURCE NAVER