China’s AI Ruse

China’s AI Ruse

Alibaba [BABA] and ByteDance are training their latest large language models in southeast Asian data centers in order to sidestep US curbs on advanced semiconductors and access Nvidia [NVDA] chips, the Financial Times has revealed. Offshore training has accelerated since Washington restricted Nvidia’s H20 sales to China. Operators say the moves are legal, while Alibaba’s Qwen and ByteDance’s Doubao have emerged as top global models.

China Leads the World on Open AI

On a not-unrelated note China has overtaken the US in the global market for “open” artificial intelligence (AI) models, capturing 17% of downloads versus 15.8% for American developers including Alphabet’s [GOOGL] Google, Meta [META] and OpenAI. MIT and Hugging Face research shows Chinese open models are gaining influence, giving startups and researchers broader access to AI tools, contrasting with the closed approach of most US tech giants.

Pentagon Moves to Blacklist China Titans 

Elsewhere, the Pentagon has recommended adding Alibaba, Baidu [BIDU] and BYD [BYDDF] to its 1260H list of Chinese military-linked companies, Bloomberg reported, citing an October 7 letter from Deputy Secretary of Defense Stephen Feinberg to Congress. Five other firms were also flagged for inclusion. It remains unclear whether any have been formally added, but the list serves as a key warning signal for US investors.

How’s It Going for These Post-IPO Stocks? Not Great 

The US IPO market has roared back to life in 2025. This IPO wave has delivered spectacular debut pops, but the experiences of Klarna [KLAR], Bullish [BLSH] and Figma [FIG] demonstrate that post-IPO earnings are where the story really begins. OPTO uses these case studies to explore how, while pops can be enticing, sustainable growth and execution post-listing are the true determinants of long-term performance. 

Seeking Alpha: Dividend Stocks to Watch

Seeking Alpha analysts have identified 11 dividend stocks that delivered returns above 20% this year, while also while also scoring ‘B–’ to ‘A+’ on their dividend safety, growth, yield and consistency metrics. The top five by year-to-date performance are Huntington Ingalls [HII], at +66.5%; IBM [IBM], at +38.5%; UGI [UGI], at +37.3%; Oshkosh [OSK], at +34.3%; and Amgen [AMGN], at +30.8%. 

“Race to the Bottom”: Crypto-Treasury Wipeout 

Crypto-treasury stocks are dumping holdings to stem collapsing share prices as the $1trn crypto rout crushes the sector. Strategy [MSTR] — the largest corporate bitcoin holder — is down 50% in three months, dragging peers with it. “There’s going to be a fire sale at these companies”, Adam Morgan McCarthy of crypto data firm Kaiko told the Financial Times. “It’s a vicious cycle. As soon as the prices start tanking, it’s a race to the bottom.”

Will AI Data Centers Electrify PLUG Stock?

Plug Power [PLUG] is a US-based company building an end-to-end green hydrogen ecosystem, from electrolyzers and liquefiers to fuel cells and hydrogen fuel supply. Its main clients include Amazon [AMZN] and Walmart [WMT] but, more recently, Plug has gained attention for positioning its hydrogen systems as clean, on-site power solutions for AI and cloud data centers. With shares down over 90% in the past five years, OPTO considers if it is time to buy PLUG stock.