HNSE Asia AI Hardware Battle 2025 Adds Japan Retail Showcase for Top 10 Winners; Application Deadline Extended to July 12

LINGSHUI, China, July 3, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The organizers of the HaiNan-Southeast Asia AI Hardware Battle (HNSE AHB) are pleased to announce an expanded prize package for this year's competition and an extended deadline for entries. Organized by TechNode and TNGlobal, and presented by Lingshui Li Autonomous County Development Group Holdings Limited, the competition will now award each of the Top 10 winners a minimum two-week in-store showcase at select CCC Group retail outlets across Japan, including the iconic Tsutaya Books chain.

This retail opportunity is powered by the Japan-based crowdfunding platform GREEN FUNDING, which is now a strategic partner of HNSE AHB, further strengthening the program's bridge between Asian hardware innovation and global consumer markets.

The new retail benefit extends HNSE AHB's original incentives, which already include round-trip airfare to the Grand Finale in Hainan on July 26, 2025, booth exhibition passes at the "Tech Meets Art" Festival, global media exposure, and investor matchmaking opportunities. HNSE AHB now gives founders direct access to Japan's influential tech-lifestyle audience. CCC Group operates more than 800 Tsutaya stores, widely regarded as design-forward cultural hubs that attract early adopters and trend watchers.

Products selected for the showcase must (1) confirm a campaign launch on the GREEN FUNDING platform, (2) clear GREEN FUNDING's internal screening process, and (3) meet CCC Group's scheduling criteria for store category fit and campaign timeline. Store locations and display periods will be determined at GREEN FUNDING's discretion, ensuring that each product is matched to the most suitable Tsutaya venue. Full terms and conditions are available from the HNSE AHB organizing team.

"By combining the creative reach of GREEN FUNDING with the cultural influence of Tsutaya Books, we are offering founders an end-to-end pathway from prototype to Japanese consumers in record time," said Dr. Gang Lu, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of the TechNode Group. "This is exactly the kind of market-entry catalyst our competition was designed to deliver."

Japan remains a leading global market for consumer technology, yet localization hurdles—ranging from language to retail distribution—can be a hurdle for overseas startups. GREEN FUNDING, founded in 2011 and owned by the CCC Group, is recognized as one of Japan's top crowdfunding portals for creative tech gadgets. Its promotion of hardware campaigns through both digital backer communities and physical Tsutaya stores has proven highly effective in driving early sales and media coverage.

Key dates: applications are extended to July 12, 2025, while on-site finals take place July 26, 2025 in Lingshui, Hainan, followed by the award ceremony on July 27, 2025. Eligible teams—startups and established firms alike—must present an AI-driven hardware product that has reached at least the prototype stage and fits one of HNSE AHB's focus sectors, including smart home, wearables, smart vehicles, robotics, and VR/AR.

With GREEN FUNDING now a strategic partner, HNSE AHB offers what we believe is an unparalleled launchpad: pitch in Hainan, secure investor backing, and debut in Japan's most celebrated lifestyle bookstores—all within the same summer. The countdown to the application deadline has begun; we look forward to welcoming the region's brightest hardware talents to the stage.

Interested innovators can apply via the registration link on the official event page at https://technode.global/hnse-ahb, scan the QR code in the poster, or contact elliesoo@technode.com for further guidance.

For any questions regarding this release, please contact
Contact Person: Ellie Soo
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Email:  elliesoo@technode.com 

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

HNSE Asia AI Hardware Battle 2025 Adds Japan Retail Showcase for Top 10 Winners; Application Deadline Extended to July 12

GUANGZHOU, China, Jan. 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Recently, GAC's independently developed Quark E-Drive power domain control system has achieved the world's first dual certification for deeply integrated ASIL D functional safety and information security, accredited by DAkkS, Germany's national accreditation body. The certification was evaluated and issued by SGS-CSTC Standards Technical Services Co., Ltd. (SGS), a globally recognized certification authority.

ISO 26262 is the internationally recognized core standard for automotive functional safety. Within this framework, ASIL D represents the highest automotive safety integrity level, requiring near-zero tolerance for safety-critical failures. Achieving an ASIL D certification accredited by DAkkS signifies that the certified product meets the highest globally accepted standards for automotive safety.

The certified Quark E-Drive power domain control system has been in production use since February 2025, and is now deployed across multiple models under GAC's brands - HYPTEC and AION. As the industry's first electric drive power domain system based on deep integration using a single main control chip, the solution significantly reduces chip count, minimizes risks associated with chip-level failures, and boosts motor controller efficiency to as high as 99.9%. The certification confirms that GAC has completed the system's full product development lifecycle in strict compliance with ISO 26262:2018 functional safety and ISO/SAE 21434:2021 information security standards.

Throughout the project, GAC Technology Research Center worked closely with SGS experts, strengthening safety design across all development phases while ensuring engineering feasibility and an optimal user experience.

Zhao Hui, Vice President of SGS China, commented: "The successful certification highlights GAC's strong team and robust development systems. We are pleased to support the safety of the Quark E-Drive and look forward to closer collaboration."

This milestone represents a major breakthrough for GAC in e-drive safety and sets a new global benchmark for the intelligent electric vehicle industry.

** The press release content is from PR Newswire. Bastille Post is not involved in its creation. **

GAC's Quark Electric Drive Achieves the World's First DAkkS ASIL D Functional Safety and Information Security Dual Certification