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xTool Serves as Diamond Partner of FAB26 Boston, Advancing Distributed Production Across the Global Fab Lab Network

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The company debuted the O1 Omni Printer, launched the 1% Maker Challenge with MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms and the Fab Foundation, and outlined how community-level fabrication can move from prototyping to real production.

BOSTON, Aug. 7, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — xTool, a global maker technology company, served as Diamond Partner of FAB26 Boston, the Fab Lab Global Conference, held July 27–31 across the MIT campus and Fab Hub Kendall. The company used the conference to make the case that digital fabrication has passed a threshold: local workshops, classrooms, and community spaces can now produce finished goods, not only prototypes.

That argument sits at the center of both organizations’ work. The Fab Lab network, convened by the Fab Foundation and originating at MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms, has spent 25 years building distributed fabrication capacity in communities worldwide. xTool’s presentation in the conference’s Tools & Tech program, titled “From Prototyping to Distributed Production,” addressed what it takes for that capacity to support actual production.

Driving the Shift From Prototyping to Distributed Production

xTool brought its iconic xTool Truck to FAB26 Boston as part of the company’s ongoing 2026 MakerFest Tour. Beyond the tour stop, xTool elevated its presence at this year’s event as a FAB Diamond Partner, demonstrating that the company is far more than a hardware supplier or merely a sponsor of the event —it is a deeply committed partner in driving maker culture forward. Highlighting this mission in his FAB26 keynote, Stein Shi, U.S. General Manager at xTool, stated that xTool devices are built not only as everyday appliances, but as robust instruments that put real manufacturing power in makers’ hands.

“At xTool, our belief is simple: creation is a fundamental human instinct. Our job is to remove the friction between a spark in your mind and a finished object in your hands. We don’t think of our tools as appliances. We think of them as instruments that put real production capability into more people’s hands, in more places. And to do that well, the tools have to actually be good — not “good enough for a hobbyist,” but good enough to run a business on.”

—Stein Shi, xTool U.S. General Manager

Bringing this belief to life, xTool introduced the groundbreaking xTool O1 Omni Printer to the FAB26 community. As the world’s first all-in-one desktop printer capable of working on virtually any material, the O1 integrates UV, DTG, DTF, and UV DTF printing technologies into a single platform. By uniting multi-ink technology with robust mechanical innovation, the xTool O1 breaks past traditional single-material limits—empowering everyone from hobbyist creators to small business owners to scale their operations and unlock massive business potential from a single setup.

Empowering the Fab Lab System with xTool Squad

xTool is extending its mission beyond personal productivity tools for individual creators to embrace the broader community. This aligns directly with the Fab Foundation’s conviction that technology achieves its true purpose when it serves communities.

By pairing Fab Lab’s global infrastructure with xTool Squad’s hyper-local network, xTool is helping turn “making almost anything” into “making almost anywhere.” Where the Fab Foundation’s 2,710+ Fab Labs across 160 countries answer how to make almost anything, xTool Squad bridges the final mile by bringing making directly into every neighborhood. A growing network of 1,327+ hosts across 106 cities has transformed local studios and garages into neighborhood demo hubs, hosting more than 13,000 creator interactions so far. Serving as the accessible entry point—or the embryo—of a full Fab Lab, these xTool Squad spaces ensure that anyone, anywhere can take their first step into creation just minutes from their doorstep.

Sparking Tangible Impact through the 1% for the Makers Donation Program

Translating this community-first philosophy into action, xTool has joined forces with the Fab Foundation and MIT’s Center for Bits and Atoms (CBA) to launch the “1% Maker Challenge.”

The challenge expands upon xTool’s “1% for the Makers” initiative, which has donated over $860,000 in equipment across 100+ global partners to empower schools, community makerspaces, and artists worldwide. Born alongside the Fab Foundation and MIT’s CBA, the “1% Maker Challenge” inspires creators to harness technology for real-world impact. The initiative recognized three standout projects: the wildlife cloche set earned the MIT CBA Choice Award for inspiring wildlife conservation through endangered species artwork; the Community Choice Award celebrated the most-downloaded project, an intricate woodworking piece designed to warm shared spaces; and the Social Spotlight Award went to DahoraKit, demonstrating how xTool machinery and open-source designs break down technical barriers to make STEM and robotics truly universal.

Igniting the Future of Making through Immersive Workshops

Throughout the five-day conference, xTool engaged the FAB26 community with 10 immersive, hands-on workshops in partnership with MIT. The workshops spanned advanced fields like materials science, precision optics, industrial calibration, and project-based learning (PBL), while also focusing on practical creator applications such as custom streetwear design. Attendees got hands-on experience with the F2 Ultra, P3 CO2 laser, Apparel Printer, MetalFab, WonderPress and the newly introduced xTool O1 Omni Printer.  High levels of engagement underscored xTool’s leadership within the maker ecosystem, leaving attendees inspired and equipped to make futures that matter.

The achievements at FAB26 mark another milestone in xTool’s long-term mission to empower maker communities worldwide. Looking ahead, xTool leadership and technical experts will join the MIT Tech Talk in early October, while the 2026 MakerFest Tour continues rolling forward to connect with new communities and inspire the future of making.

About xTool

xTool is a global premium consumer-tech brand dedicated to empowering digital-to-physical creation. As the world’s largest and fastest-growing laser engraver innovator, xTool provides a comprehensive ecosystem of laser-based personal creative tools, material printers, user-friendly software, accessories, and consumables. Through these innovations, xTool empowers creators to turn imagination into meaningful creations that deliver emotional fulfillment, commercial success, and personal achievement. Discover more at xtool.com.

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SOURCE xTool

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Poll finds surging demand for AI-based video encoding

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HANGZHOU, China, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Hikvision has developed Guanlan Encoding, a technology that uses AI to identify more and less information-rich areas in video images and encodes every frame accordingly.

To gauge the potential impact of the new technology, asmag.com and Hikvision have teamed up for a survey of asmag readers, entitled “AI encoding technology for video security,” and asked them about their experience with the “storage challenge” and where they see potential in their projects for AI-based encoding.

Storage pressure is real and growing

When asked “How significant a challenge is video storage cost or capacity in your business or projects?” a large number of respondents—38.2%—identified storage pressure as a “major challenge.” It was the second-most given answer among all respondents, trailing closely behind 43.2% who said storage is a “moderate” challenge. When asked “Has the storage challenge changed compared to 12 months ago?” the largest share of respondents—once again 43.2%—said it has “increased moderately.” 

Guanlan Encoding—Hikvision’s solution to a growing pain point

Guanlan Encoding is built on the H.265 standard and integrates Hikvision’s Guanlan Large-Scale AI Model into continuous encoding workflows. Rather than compressing every part of a frame equally—the approach traditional codecs take—Guanlan Encoding identifies which parts of a scene matter most, such as people, vehicles and other moving objects, and allocates more detail to them. Static or low-motion background footage, by contrast, is compressed far more aggressively.

According to Hikvision, this combination of different compression rates in the same frame helps reduce storage needs by 30% to 50% on average without sacrificing details that matter for investigations and monitoring.

Guanlan is already gaining ground

Even though it was introduced so recently, over half of survey respondents expressed familiarity with Guanlan Encoding: 43.3% said they are “familiar with it” despite not yet having hands-on experience, while 8.3% said they are already using the technology.

Overall, the survey showed the severity of the storage challenge, but also that Hikvision is well positioned to offer a significant fix to the pain point. Guanlan Encoding plays a key role as it uses AI not to produce more data, but to reduce the burden of more data on storage infrastructure.

Find more reporting about the “AI encoding technology for video security” on the dedicated landing page on asmag.com, or download the full results of the survey.

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SOURCE Hikvision Digital Technology

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Noah Holdings Hosts 2026 Global Investor Summit “The Year of Realization: A New Chapter in Global Allocation”

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Serving Global Chinese Families With a Global Investment Network, Licensed Teams and AI Capabilities

HONG KONG, Sept. 21, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Noah Holdings Limited (“Noah” or the “Company”) (NYSE: NOAH; HKEX: 6686), a wealth management institution serving global Chinese families, together with its global asset allocation platform Olive Asset Management (“Olive”), successfully held its 2026 Global Investor Summit, themed “The Year of Realization: A New Chapter in Global Allocation,” in Hong Kong. Addressing the industry transformation driven by AI and the long-term wealth needs of global Chinese families, Noah discussed how it is combining the global investment network and professional expertise it has developed over the years with AI capabilities to build a wealth management system that clients can use and rely on over the long term.

Investment professionals from Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP, a part of BlackRock), Macquarie Asset Management, Bridgepoint, HarbourVest Partners and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Asset Management attended the summit and participated in discussions. Noah’s global network of investment managers is an important foundation of its investment capabilities. Through its ongoing investments in funds globally, Noah and Olive continue to build relationships with managers and accumulate underlying research data, drawing on these resources to understand industry shifts, validate investment judgments and support clients’ long-term asset allocation.

Understanding the Responsibility of Wealth Management, Starting From Clients’ Long-Term Interests

Noah Holdings believes that the productivity shift brought by AI is changing how wealth is created and is placing new demands on families’ long-term planning. Wealth management needs to understand the long-term forces behind changes in technology, capital and family needs, while also factoring in family governance and succession. The responsibility of professional institutions is to help clients understand these changes and make judgments based on their own needs, building trust through long-term engagement.

Noah Holdings Chairwoman Norah Wang said: “Care is what expertise is for – that has always been Noah’s foundation. Our job is not to predict events, but to identify forces. Real care means using professional judgment to help clients see clearly which fluctuations they can bear, and which risks they must avoid.”

Noah Holdings CEO Zander Yin said at the summit that every technological revolution rewrites the world order and redraws the map of resources. The productivity shift now being driven by AI is no exception – it is likewise changing the path for corporate growth and investor participation.

Yin said: “The industrial revolutions of the past freed human hands; this AI revolution is further extending the human brain and human intelligence. Noah’s long-accumulated insight into GPs lets us keep observing how leading investment institutions make their choices. With AI, we are connecting this accumulated knowledge into clearer research threads – this ‘map’ is the trajectory of choices made by the world’s leading institutions. Following this map to identify companies worth deeper research is the approach we take.”

These judgments ultimately need to be embedded in a system clients can use. Noah’s three platforms operate in coordination: ARK Wealth Management handles account services and investment execution, covering the global banking system, trading channels, mutual funds and structured products; Olive Asset Management is responsible for long-term asset allocation, covering private equity, venture capital, real estate and global infrastructure; and Glory Family Heritage focuses on family protection and intergenerational planning, providing global family succession and lifestyle services. The three platforms work together within a unified framework to translate clients’ long-term needs into concrete investment, allocation and succession arrangements.

Noah Olive’s “Institutional Intelligence”: Making Judgment Evidence-Based and Experience Cumulative

Olive Asset Management Global CEO Peng Jing said at the summit that Olive is continuing to build its “institutional intelligence,” turning the research, decisions and experience accumulated through long-term investment practice into shared organizational methods and standards, so that professional judgment can accumulate over time, be tested, and improve through practice.

Observing the choices made by top-tier institutions is the starting point for research, not the conclusion. A global network of managers provides breadth of research, but institutional prestige and the number of investments alone cannot substitute for judgment. The team tracks how many genuinely independent sources of information support a given judgment, rather than simply counting how many firms have co-invested. At the execution level, Olive evaluates company quality and purchase price separately; at the research level, screening models need to be tested using only the information available at each historical point in time, with the methodology then refined based on actual outcomes. Project data, the basis for decisions, and the lessons drawn from both successes and mistakes are thereby retained within the organization over time. In this process, AI helps expand information coverage, detect anomalies and maintain ongoing tracking, while the professional team remains responsible for industry judgment, risk assessment and final decisions.

The summit also included a series of breakout sessions on topics such as cutting-edge technology in Silicon Valley, positioning in global private markets, opportunities in public markets, and family succession planning, with professionals from Noah and partner institutions taking part in the discussions.

Noah will continue to connect global investment resources, professional research and client service, working through its platforms to support the long-term investment and wealth succession needs of global Chinese families.

About Noah Holdings Limited

Noah Holdings Limited (NYSE: NOAH; HKEX: 6686) is a Singapore-headquartered wealth management institution focused on serving global Chinese high-net-worth families. Founded in 2005, Noah listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2010 and completed a dual primary listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2022. The Company’s business spans nine countries and regions, with account and trading centers in Singapore, Hong Kong, China, the United States, and Shanghai, China.

Disclaimer:

This press release is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice, an offer, or a solicitation of an offer to invest. Investing involves risk; the prices of securities and funds can rise as well as fall, and past performance is not indicative of future performance. The forward-looking statements contained in this release are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from these statements.

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SOURCE Noah Holdings Limited

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When Music Reads Emotion: THEi Launches Centre for Music Therapy Research to Deepen Guangdong-Hong Kong Integration and Leverage AI to Fill the Healthcare Talent Gap

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Download high-res photo here: https://bit.ly/4rcZWOx 

HONG KONG, Sept. 22, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — The fast pace of modern life and an aging population drive demand for mental health and non-pharmacological holistic wellness. In alignment with the health development priorities of the national 15th Five-Year Plan and the Healthy China Initiative, the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi) held the launch ceremony for its Centre for Music Therapy Research (CMTR) at the Sky Concert Hall in Shenzhen on 16 September. The launch aims to address the demand for innovative healthcare talent while fostering Guangdong-Hong Kong integration.

The event gathered prominent leaders across government, business, higher education, and technology sectors, including Mr Paul CHONG Kin-lit, BBS, MH, Vice Chairman, THEi’s Board of Governors; Professor Alan LAU Kin-tak, President of THEi; Ms LIU Ying,

Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Digital Innovation and Technology, THEi and

Director of Centre for Music Therapy Research, THEi; Mr YANG Pengda, Education Entrepreneur and Deputy Director of Centre for Music Therapy Research, THEi;  Mr WAN Kun, Deputy Director-General, Development and Reform Bureau of Futian District, Shenzhen Municipality; Ms MA Hui, Director of Tchaikovsky Conservatory (China) International Exchange Centre; Dr CAI Yuejun, Key Laboratory of AI-Enabled Music Therapy, Shanghai Conservatory of Music; Dr PANG Yan, Associate Research Professor, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); Doctoral Supervisor, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS).

The event featured strategic partnership signing ceremonies and a cross-industry networking reception, alongside an immersive “Emotional Healing Show” concert performed by celebrated musicians, including winners of ‘Golden Bell Awards’ and ‘Wenhua Award’, as well as former members of the renowned Twelve Girls Band. A key highlight was the live instrumental and choral performance of the iconic pop song Beneath the Lion Rock, which resonated with the Centre’s positioning of “Hong Kong’s International Connectivity”—marking a major milestone of advancing interdisciplinary mind-body wellness in the GBA.

Empowering Big Health with Applied Sciences: Nurturing “Work-Ready” Professionals in the GBA

Mr Paul CHONG Kin-lit, BBS, MH, Vice Chairman, THEi’s Board of Governors, delivered opening remarks, stating: “As an applied discipline bridging art, science, and medicine, music therapy plays a pivotal role in tackling mental stress, broader wellness demands, and specialised healthcare needs. Guided by our education philosophy of ‘applied science and immediate application,’ THEi drives industry-academia-research integration. By extending the reach of our Centre to Shenzhen, we leverage the GBA’s innovative ecosystem and expanding demand to pair global music therapy standards with cutting-edge technology—building a premier hub for scientific research, practical application, and community service.”

Professor Alan LAU Kin-tak, President of THEi, emphasised in his keynote that higher education must stay attuned to modern trends and national developments: “Music is undergoing a redefinition where sound, emotion, and AI intersect. As a pioneer in applied science and work-ready education, THEi sees growing demand in the GBA for expertise in non-pharmacological therapies, mental wellness, and the silver economy. By launching the Centre in Shenzhen, we fuse academic research with regional innovation. Through short-term and professional training programmes, we aim to fast-track market-ready, multidisciplinary talent equipped with technological, clinical, and commercial expertise to directly address key social needs.

Top Academic Talent Joins Forces

The newly launched Music Therapy Research Centre is directed by Ms LIU Ying, Visiting Associate Professor in the Department of Digital Innovation and Technology at THEi. A distinguished expert in Chinese traditional music, Ms LIU leads the Centre’s core content strategy, backed by international innovation expertise from Dr PANG Yan, Associate Research Professor, Shenzhen Institutes of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); Doctoral Supervisor, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) and his team.

As the champion of the Guzheng category at the 9th Chinese Music ‘Golden Bell Awards’, and the exclusive recipient of the gold, silver, and bronze awards in this category. Ms LIU noted that the Centre maximises synergy between Hong Kong and Shenzhen by pairing “Hong Kong’s global perspective with Shenzhen’s development speed” to construct a regional cross-disciplinary hub. Guided by the vision of “medical treatment in hospitals, healing in daily life,” the Centre uses Five-Tone theory and AI-based EEG technologies to deliver non-clinical wellness solutions. She stressed that with a clear focus on problem-solving over sheer size, the Centre will advance practical training programs, therapeutic products, and industry benchmarks through the integration of arts, science, and commercialisation.

Mr YANG Pengda, Education Entrepreneur and Deputy Director of Centre for Music Therapy Research, THEi, underscored his belief that “investing in education is a high-value commitment, not a cost,” – a vision driving his multi-year support for THEi’s research centres. Praising THEi’s work-ready degree’s programmes – which features a 100% internship placement and over 95% graduate employment, he noted that the Institute’s programmes are tailored to industry needs. He emphasised that the new Centre is grounded in societal demand, tackling issues like sleep disorders affecting 300 million individuals and elder care for 320 million seniors—effectively leveraging technology and humanity to improve the quality of lives.

The Centre signed strategic MoUs with Key Laboratory of AI-Enabled Music Therapy, Shanghai Conservatory of Music and Tchaikovsky Conservatory (China) International Exchange Centre The partnerships will foster deep collaboration across music arts research, professional talent training, and international exchange, laying a solid artistic foundation for the Centre’s ongoing development.

Moving ahead, the Centre will focus its efforts on four core strategic pillars: advancing AI-assisted music therapy research to improve personalised non-pharmacological treatments; exploring traditional Chinese music to unlock its therapeutic emotional benefits; delivering arts-based healing to support seniors and individuals with special needs; and integrating digital music with immersive technology to drive music therapy beyond traditional stages into a smart, holistic era of care.

Following the official launch of the Centre and its upcoming professional training programmes, THEi is set to reinforce its leadership in regional applied science education—accelerating sustainable innovation to support high-quality development across the GBA and nationwide.

About the Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Music Technology

The programme places a strong emphasis on cross-cultural exchange, covering three major professional domains: game music design, contemporary music composition, and film scoring. By integrating artificial intelligence and augmented reality/virtual reality (AR/VR) technologies into practical learning, the programme equips students with professional mastery in audio engineering and sound design, enhancing their ability to combine artistic creativity with technological innovation.

About Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi) 

Founded in 2012, the Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi) is a member institute of the Vocational Training Council (VTC). THEi offers over 20 professional “Applied Science-Oriented” undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes across seven academic areas: Product and Fashion Designs, Sports and International Events Management, Digital Construction and Building Services, Horticulture, Arboriculture and Landscape Management, Chinese Medicine and Food Science, Hotel Management and Culinary Arts and Technology, and Digital Technology and Innovative Business. The programmes integrate theoretical knowledge with practical applications, and cover industries with growth potential in Hong Kong and the Asia-Pacific region, ensuring that students can apply what they learn effectively.

THEi’s undergraduate and postgraduate degree programmes are accredited by the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications. The curriculum emphasises the practical application of applied science, aligning with the latest developments in business and industry. The undergraduate degree programmes offer 100% work-integrated learning training to support students in building their career paths at an earlier stage.

THEi Chai Wan Campus was awarded the “Leadership in Sustainable Design and Performance Award – Institutional” of the Asia Pacific Leadership in Green Building Awards presented by the World Green Building Council (WorldGBC) in 2020.

Media Contact:

Ms Janice Lam 
Tel: (852) 3890 8227 / (852) 9718 0817
Email: janicelam@thei.edu.hk / media@thei.edu.hk

Ms  Rainbow Chiu 
Tel: (852) 3890 8520
Email: rainbowh@thei.edu.hk  / media@thei.edu.hk

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SOURCE Technological and Higher Education Institute of Hong Kong (THEi)

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