KAMPONG CHHNANG, Cambodia, Sept. 19, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- On September 17, the inauguration ceremony of GAC Cambodia KD Plant was grandly held in Kampong Chhnang Province. Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Wang Wenbin attended the ceremony, while Jiang Xiuyun, Deputy General Manager of GAC Group, and Wang Shunsheng, Deputy General Manager of GAC International and President of the Southeast Asia Regional Center, together with the leadership of TH Group, GAC's strategic partner in Cambodia, witnessed the official launch of the THAM assembly plant for GAC vehicles. This marks a new stage in GAC's development in Cambodia, transitioning from complete vehicle exports to local manufacturing, and stands as yet another achievement of China-Cambodia economic and trade cooperation.
Prime Minister Hun Manet was present in person to witness this important moment. He noted that the official commencement of the GAC KD Plant is a significant achievement of the Royal Government of Cambodia's industrial transformation, helping Cambodia upgrade from labor-intensive industries to capital-, advanced-technology- and high-skill-driven sectors, spurring local industrial development, raising the added value of the national economy, and cultivating new sources of economic growth.
From complete vehicle imports to local assembly, GAC has steadily built its presence in Cambodia. The project was fully launched in 2024, and through close collaboration among all parties, the plant completed all preparatory and construction work and officially entered production. Under this local assembly project, TH Group is responsible for plant investment, construction and vehicle assembly, while GAC supplies complete knocked-down (CKD) kits, technical standards and full-chain technical support. With a designed annual capacity of around 10,000 units.
Strong market performance further validates the results of GAC's deep cultivation. TRUMPCHI has enjoyed explosive growth in Cambodia since 2024, with an average annual compound growth rate of over 300% over the past three years, and ranked first among Chinese automotive brands in Cambodia in 2025, with continuously expanding brand influence.
The production launch of GAC Cambodia KD Plant marks a brand-new starting point for GAC's deep cultivation in Cambodia. Over the past seven years, from channel development to product rollout, from brand establishment to manufacturing upgrading, GAC has been sharing development opportunities with the Cambodian people through tangible capacity, employment and technology.
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GAC Cambodia KD Plant Starts Production, Setting a New Benchmark for Localized Manufacturing
National competition in Shapingba District draws more than 100 teams developing robotics technologies for real-world deployment
CHONGQING, China, Sept. 18, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A national robotics competition held this month in Chongqing offered a look at China's efforts to move embodied artificial intelligence out of research laboratories and into commercial use.
The finals of the 11th "Maker in China" SME Innovation and Entrepreneurship Contest for Intelligent Biomimetic Robots concluded Sept. 11 in Chongqing's Shapingba District. The three-day national competition drew more than 100 teams from across China, with projects spanning biomimetic robotics, industrial automation and AI systems designed to perceive and interact with the physical world.
Alongside the competition, organizers arranged meetings involving companies, universities and research institutions, as well as discussions aimed at technology transfer, financing and local deployment. The event formed part of a national program intended to support innovative SMEs with specialized technologies. Its theme was "Pushing Tech Frontiers, Unleashing Creativity."
The competition comprised 13 tracks, covering work ranging from foundational research to systems approaching commercial deployment. Teams in the startup category competed in three broad areas: cutting-edge technologies, core enabling technologies and specialized applications. Their projects focused in part on the hardware, software and control systems underpinning the next generation of robots.
Teams in the enterprise category, by contrast, tested systems designed for real-world use in the electric power, healthcare and service sectors. The emphasis was on whether the technologies could perform reliably in operating environments and be scaled for broader deployment.
Many of the entries targeted technical bottlenecks that have limited the wider deployment of robotic systems. Projects included multi-robot coordination and task-scheduling systems for warehouses; assistive exoskeletons for older adults and rehabilitation patients; biomimetic robots for inspecting electric power infrastructure; miniature hummingbird-inspired flapping-wing drones; and robots capable of folding clothing autonomously. Together, the projects illustrated the range of engineering approaches Chinese developers are pursuing as they seek practical applications for embodied AI.
The competition also served as a venue for financing and business-development discussions, and several participating projects announced plans to establish operations in Shapingba. At the closing ceremony, the Shapingba District government signed letters of intent with SIASUN Robot & Automation Co., Ltd. and Chentu Technology, among other companies. ZTE also signed letters of intent with teams from Zhejiang University and Xi'an Jiaotong University.
Shapingba is seeking to establish itself as a center for embodied AI within Chongqing's broader robotics supply chain. The value of the district's robotics output rose 233% from a year earlier during the first seven months of 2026, according to local government data.
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Xinhua Finance: Robotics Contest Highlights Chongqing District's Push Into Embodied AI
