EU imposes tariffs of up to 38% on Chinese electric cars
This move may escalate tensions with Beijing
The European Union today imposed provisional duties of up to 38% on Chinese electric vehicle (EV) imports due to alleged unfair state subsidies, potentially escalating tensions with Beijing.
The move aims to protect European manufacturers transitioning to electric power. The Chinese Chamber of Commerce to the EU criticized the tariffs as politically motivated and protectionist, but expressed hope for a resolution through dialogue.
The response in Europe is mixed, with Germany and its major auto companies, including Volkswagen and BMW, concerned about potential negative impacts, while France and Italy support the tariffs. The duties, starting immediately, will be finalized in November for five years, pending an EU vote.
Major Chinese manufacturers like BYD, Geely, and SAIC face varying tariff rates, while companies cooperating with the EU get a 20.8% duty. Tesla, which produces in China, will see its Model 3 and other models affected, with short-term price increases expected. The EU and China are in talks to find a mutually acceptable solution, but any agreement must address EU concerns and comply with WTO rules.
China has threatened retaliation, already probing EU pork imports. The US has increased duties on Chinese EVs to 100%, and Canada may follow. The EU aims to shift to electric vehicles by 2035, but faces challenges balancing protection of its auto industry with avoiding conflict with China. Chinese EV market share in the EU rose from 3% to over 20% in three years. The Kiel Institute predicts the new duties will cut Chinese vehicle imports by 42% and slightly raise EU electric car prices.
And so, the trade wars continue...
Things I’m reading today
OpenAI faces two major security issues this week (link)
OpenAI faced two significant security issues this week. The first involved the Mac app for ChatGPT, where engineer Pedro José Pereira Vieito discovered that user conversations were being stored in plain text locally, without encryption. After this issue gained attention, OpenAI released an update to encrypt these chats.
The second issue traces back to 2023 when a hacker accessed OpenAI's internal messaging systems, leading to concerns about internal vulnerabilities. OpenAI's technical program manager, Leopold Aschenbrenner, raised these concerns with the board and was subsequently fired, which he claims was due to his whistleblowing. OpenAI disputes this, stating his departure was unrelated to his security disclosures.
These incidents, alongside the widespread use of ChatGPT and ongoing challenges with the company's management and public image, raise concerns about OpenAI's ability to manage its data securely (Via Anna Washenko/Engadget).
AWS to develop a $1.3 billion top-secret cloud for the Australian government (link)
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has secured a deal to construct data centers in Australia dedicated to the country’s defense and intelligence sectors.
The project, known as the TS Cloud, will involve an investment of 2 billion Australian dollars (approximately $1.3 billion USD) over the next decade. AWS plans to establish three cloud facilities under a local subsidiary to manage top-secret data storage for Australia’s defense and intelligence agencies.
The initiative aims to enhance information sharing, interoperability with the United States, and resilience of Australia’s government technology infrastructure (Via Maria Deutscher/SiliconANGLE).
