A ‘white-collar bloodbath' doesn't have to be our fate
The distinction between augmentation and replacement can be subtle. PHOTO: REUTERS
There's been a lot of talk in recent weeks about a 'white-collar bloodbath ', a scenario in the near future in which many college-educated workers are replaced by artificial intelligence (AI) programmes that do their jobs faster and better.
Dr Dario Amodei, the chief executive of the AI company Anthropic, recently predicted that half of entry-level positions in fields like law, consulting and finance could meet this fate in just a few years.
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Straits Times
19 minutes ago
- Straits Times
Ready for blast-off: Can China's commercial space firms replicate SpaceX magic?
A methane-fuelled rocket by LandSpace Technology, takes off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, in China, on May 17. PHOTO: REUTERS – On a clear morning on May 17, a methane-fuelled rocket thundered off its launchpad in the Gobi Desert, piercing the sky over northwestern China carrying six satellites into orbit. This marked the fifth successful flight for LandSpace, one of China's rising commercial aerospace companies, and underlined Beijing's ambition to catapult its commercial space sector onto the global stage. Two days later, Galactic Energy, another fast-growing Chinese space player, launched a rocket from a ship at sea off eastern Shandong province, deploying four satellites into orbit. The number of rocket launches in China by both state-owned and private firms is expected to hit a record high in 2025, according to Chinese industry reports, amid plans to ramp up investment in the sector. So far, China has carried out more than 30 orbital launches, including at least six in June, with more on the horizon. In 2024, the country recorded 68 orbital launches and in 2023, 67 launches. China's space sector used to be tightly controlled by the state until it was opened up to private companies in 2015. Today, there are over 500 commercial space companies in China. China's commercial space market is projected to balloon from around 2.8 trillion yuan (S$497.9 billion) in 2025 to over 6.6 trillion yuan by 2029, according to various research estimates. In 2024, the Chinese government listed the commercial space sector as a 'new engine of economic growth' in its government work report for the first time, prompting cities such as Beijing and Shanghai to roll out plans to accelerate investment in the sector. Private firms offer services such as space tourism, satellite internet, Earth imaging for farming or city planning purposes as well as private rocket launches for putting small satellites into orbit. In Beijing's southern Daxing district, more than 160 aerospace-related enterprises have formed a cluster nicknamed 'Rocket Street'. The city is building an exhibition hall where visitors, from the second half of 2025, can watch real-time launches of commercial rockets across China. Catching up with the US China's space startups are chasing what analysts call the 'SpaceX moment' or a breakthrough that sees a private Chinese space firm rival Elon Musk's rocket giant on the global stage. SpaceX is the undisputed industry leader, accounting for more than half of the world's 259 orbital launches i n 2024. It is largely thanks to its reusable Falcon 9 workhorse, which has reduced costs for its customers. At least six Chinese commercial space companies have so far successfully launched rockets into orbit. But none have yet to launch and recover a reusable rocket in the way SpaceX has done so since 2017. China's progress is evident, but it still lags far behind the US , said Mr Clayton Swope, deputy director of the Aerospace Security Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). 'China has not been able to replicate the SpaceX magic, but arguably no other company anywhere has been able to do space at scale like SpaceX,' he said. Investors in China hoping to emulate SpaceX's success have poured money into Chinese private space companies with launch capabilities. Bu t these Chinese firms operate on 'a very small scale', especially compared with SpaceX or Rocket Lab, which is founded in New Zealand but headquartered in the US. Rocket reusability lies at the crux of China's commercial space ambitions, as it is a key factor in cutting launch costs and attracting clients outside of China. Dr Svetla Ben-Itzhak, assistant professor of space and international relations at Johns Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies, said that while China's private firms are about five to seven years behind SpaceX in reusable launch technology, the gap could close more rapidly given advances in propulsion and accelerated development cycles. Chinese aerospace firms are optimistic about their prospects, with at least two founders of these companies saying that they could match SpaceX's capabilities by 2030. LandSpace founder Zhang Changwu, for instance, said in a June interview that the next three to five years will be a 'decisive period' for China's commercial space industry. His company is aiming for China's first orbital reusable flight by the end of 2025. Space tourism looks set to be launched in China soon. Deep Blue Aerospace, a Chinese firm developing reusable rockets, plans to conduct a 12-minute suborbital flight – meaning the rocket will reach outer space but not enter orbit – for space tourists in 2027. Its first two tickets, priced at 1.5 million yuan, were snapped up the moment they went on sale in October 2024. Meanwhile, state-backed CAS Space has pledged to begin space tourism flights by 2028. However, barriers remain for Chinese firms eyeing global markets. 'International customers want high reliability rates and China's commercial launchers generally just don't have that yet,' said CSIS' Mr Swope. Lingering trust issues with China may also hold back international interest in using China's space services for launch, remote sensing or broadband, he said. 'Due to geopolitical developments, would a Chinese company shut off service to international customers? Are there security concerns arising from the use of a Chinese company?' said Mr Swope. Dr Ben-Itzhak echoed these sentiments, noting that the distrust of Chinese tech is the main hindrance, largely due to perceived and often explicit links to the Chinese government and military, and concerns over transparency. There have also been setbacks in China's commercial space push. In June 2024, a test rocket by Chinese firm Space Pioneer malfunctioned and crashed in central Henan province. No one was hurt, but the company compensated locals for damaged buildings. Months later, in December, the initial public offering (IPO) of Jilin-based satellite firm Chang Guang Satellite Technology was abruptly halted, raising fresh doubts about the sector's profitability and long-term prospects. Even so, Chinese companies, particularly state-owned ones, are making inroads in markets that are friendlier to China. In November 2024, CAS Space's commercial rocket delivered a remote-sensing satellite for Oman, marking a key step into the international market. Analysts said a breakout moment for China's space startups may not just come from reusable rockets but could also come in the form of a high-profile IPO, securing more foreign clients or completing a broadband satellite mega-constellation akin to Starlink. SpaceX now has more than 7,800 Starlink satellites in operation. In comparison, China's two main competitors, Guowang and Qianfan, have deployed about 50 and just under 100 satellites respectively. Still, Qianfan has inked partnerships to offer satellite communications in Brazil, Malaysia and Thailand and is eyeing dozens of other markets in Asia, Africa and Latin America. Dr Ben-Itzhak said if a private Chinese company breaks through globally, it would not only challenge US commercial dominance but could also change perceptions of China from being a state space power to an innovation leader in space tech. 'This would be comparable to Huawei's rise in telecom,' she said. 'But this time, with rockets and satellites.' Michelle Ng is China Correspondent at The Straits Times. She is interested in Chinese foreign policies, property trends, demographics, education and rural issues. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
an hour ago
- Straits Times
Japanese telco giant NTT weighs data centre Reit IPO on SGX mainboard
NTT DC Reit's portfolio will comprise six data centre assets across three markets: four in the US, one in Austria and the sixth in Singapore. ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO SINGAPORE - After a spate of delistings from its mainboard this year, the Singapore Exchange (SGX) could be looking at a much-needed rebound with a potential real estate investment trust (Reit) listing by Japanese telecommunications group Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT). NTT Data Group, a subsidiary of NTT which offers technology and data solutions, has filed a preliminary prospectus with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) for a Reit listing of its data centres on the SGX mainboard. NTT DC Reit's portfolio will comprise six data centre assets across three markets: four in the US, one in Austria and the sixth in Singapore with a total appraised value of US$1.6 billion (S$2 billion). The offering price for the Reit will be US$1 per unit. Among the Reit's cornerstone investors is Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC, which will subscribe for 100.88 million units valued at around US$100.88 million. Other investors include AM Squared, Hazelview Securities, Pinpoint Asset Management and Viridian Asset Management. If successful, NTT DC Reit would be the third data centre Reit to list in Singapore, following Keppel DC Reit and Digital Core Reit. The Japanese telco is among the world's largest data centre providers with a portfolio spanning 2,200 MW2 of IT power globally. It said in its prospectus that there is 'significant growth in the global data centre market with further headroom for expansion'. According to a report by Fortune Business Insights in June, the global data centre market size was valued at US$242.7 billion in 2024, and is expected to grow to US$584.8 billion by 2032, with an annual growth rate of 11.7 per cent. Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
Straits Times
2 hours ago
- Straits Times
Crime costs Chile $8 billion a year as violence chokes economic growth
SANTIAGO - La Piojera in downtown Santiago has been a lively bar for over a century, drawing locals and tourists with typical Chilean foods, drinks and music, but now its doors are shutting earlier and sales are plummeting as rising crime has strangled the country and the economy. Chile is losing an average of 2.6% of its gross domestic product, about $8.2 billion a year, due to rising crime according to a study released by CLAPES UC, a research center at Chile's Universidad Catolica. The report attributed the economic impact due to businesses, like La Piojera, closing earlier or shutting down in high-crime areas, the loss of investment and increased spending in security. "My sales are down 60%," Mauricio Gajardo, manager of La Piojera, told Reuters on a Saturday night, when only a few patrons were at the bar. Gajardo said La Piojera used to be full at 8 p.m. on a Saturday night and would close past midnight. Now, on average, he closes at about 8:30 p.m. "The city helped me with a few municipal guards, but people still insist the area is dangerous," Gajardo said. Other businesses are trying another approach, offering discounts to customers to keep them throughout the night. "After 10 p.m. we've noticed our business drops ssignificantly," said Cristian Gonzalez, manager of Bar & Vuelvo. "So we try to prepare and face this with discounts or offers after 11 or 12 at night." Chile has seen an uptick in murders since 2016, rising to 6.0 in 2024 from a low of 2.32 per 100,000 in 2015. The elevated rate is still one of the lowest in Latin America, but researchers say this makes the economic impact more significant than a similar rise in more dangerous countries like Colombia or Mexico. "Countries (with a high murder rate) have in some way normalized the situation and the impact of a rise in the murder rate is less when the rate is already very high," said Leonardo Hernandez, a professor and one of the authors of the study. This has been the case for Jose Tomas Rodriguez, a local university student, who says he and his friends have already changed the way they go out. "It's not just me, but my whole social circle, we're changing our routine and going out earlier, maybe go out in the afternoon," Rodriguez said. "I think it's something that everyone has been changing." REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
