Alibaba’s 1,000 robots get ready for Singles Day
11 November 2020 |
10:59 am
E-commerce giant Alibaba's robotic logistics network, inaugurated in 2018, with claims of being the China's largest robot intelligent warehouse, has some 1000 robots sorting delivery packages ahead of the annual Singles Day, the world's biggest shopping day. Singles' Day, also called "11.11" for the November 11 date, was originally set as an unofficial day for unmarried Chinese. But Alibaba -- which accounts for more than half of China's e-commerce -- commandeered it as a discount sales event akin to the late-November US "Black Friday", which "Singles' Day" now handily surpasses.
Related
12 Sep 2021
The four-day work week is back in headlines as Scotland approves a trial. Several countries and companies have tried the concept, with mixed results.
8 Sep 2021
The protesters are showing support for the embattled Brazilian leader, who is feuding with the Supreme Court. Counterdemonstrations are also expected.
10 Sep 2021
The founder of medical testing startup Theranos, Elizabeth Holmes, has been painted as both a villain and an underdog on the first day of her fraud trial in California. She is accused of deceiving patients and investors with claims about technology that could screen for medical conditions with a few drops of blood.
19 Sep 2021
Pope Francis met Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whose right-wing, anti-immigrant policies clash with Francis' call for countries to welcome refugees. Francis discussed refugees and anti-Semitism in Budapest.
15 Sep 2021
The blaze continues to rage close to a popular Costa del Sol resort, fanned by strong winds and late summer temperatures.
18 Sep 2021
Conservative chancellor candidate Armin Laschet has made one his last rolls of the dice: A program for his first 100 days in office if he should win. Laschet trails the center-left candidate Olaf Scholz in the polls.
28 Sep 2021
The eruption of the Cumbre Vieja volcano in Spain's Canaries archipelago enters the seventh day. The airport of La Palma reopened Sunday after a 24-hour closure due to ash, but with flights remaining suspended until conditions improve.
4 Oct 2021
Priests in Cyprus bless pets and their owners as they mark World Animal Day, an international day of action for animal rights and welfare celebrated annually on October 4.
7 Oct 2021
16-year-old Nella Salminen stepped into the shoes of Finnish President Sauli Niinisto as part of a global campaign to promote girls' rights. Salminen spends the day meeting politicians and addressing a global climate action conference.
16 Oct 2021
Exactly 34 years ago today, the charismatic Pan-Africanist and Burkina Faso's then President, Thomas Sankara, was shot dead aged 37 by soldiers during a coup on 15 October 1987. Four years before his assassination with 12 others, Sankara and his close friend, Blaise Compaoré, staged a coup that brought them to power. This is the story of how he shaped Burkina Faso decades after his assassination.
24 Oct 2021
US President Joe Biden has dispatched his top diplomat to the region to shore up democracy and reverse gains made by autocrats under his predecessor Donald Trump.
23 Oct 2021
"It's a day of triumph," says Colombian journalist Jineth Bedoya, hailing the decision of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, which ruled that the Colombian State was responsible for her kidnapping, rape and torture at the hands of paramilitaries in 2000.
Latest
1 hour ago
Pro-choice demonstrators are rallying across the US in opposition to the Supreme Court's draft opinion that could scrap the right to abortion. Protesters say it is only the beginning of their fight against the decision.
1 hour ago
Top G7 diplomats meeting in Germany have warned the war in Ukraine is stoking a crisis that threatens the world's poorest. They also pledged to continue their military assistance to Ukraine for "as long as necessary."
3 hours ago
Nigerian entrepreneur Mustapha Gajibo has been converting petrol mini-buses into electric vehicles at his workshop, but he is now going a step further to build battery-powered buses from scratch in a push to promote clean energy and curb pollution.
3 hours ago
On May 9, Russians mark the defeat of Nazi Germany. But this year, Latvia has banned celebrations on that day, in light of the war in Ukraine. DW's Juri Rescheto went to Latvia's majority Russian-speaking city of Daugavpils to find out how that's going down.
3 hours ago
For years, the US has been arming and training Ukraine's army. But recent reports claim American intelligence is now helping deliver major blows to the Russian military. Could this heat up the Ukraine conflict further?
1 day ago
An Alabama ban on the provision of gender-affirming medication for minors has been blocked by a federal judge. Transgender rights have become a bone of contention for right-wing Republicans.