Reusable Rockets: China successfully recovered the first-stage booster of its Long March-10B on its maiden flight using a sea-based net capture, a world-first approach that signals China is entering the reusable-rocket era with a different engineering path than SpaceX. AI Governance: Beijing is holding talks with Alibaba, ByteDance and startup Z.ai about restricting overseas access to China’s most advanced AI models, with officials discussing national-security penalties for AI theft/leaks and possible funding limits for domestic AI startups. Critical Materials: China temporarily bans helium exports to protect domestic supply as geopolitical shocks threaten chipmaking gas availability. Space Science: Tianwen-2 released the first close-up image of Earth’s “quasi moon” Kamoʻoalewa, advancing a sample-return mission planned for 2029. Extreme Weather: Typhoon Bavi battered eastern China after mass evacuations, bringing violent winds, flooding and landslides across Zhejiang and beyond. Public Health: A systematic review flags pesticide residues in infant formula across multiple countries, raising concerns about combined, multi-class contamination risks. Space/Defense: China’s submarine-launched long-range ballistic missile test in the Pacific drew condemnation from regional allies for destabilizing, low-transparency signaling.