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What we’re reading, writing, and arguing about this week.

The new AI phone StepX Neo wants to tap through apps for you

The new AI phone StepX Neo wants to tap through apps for you Most “AI phones” still work like regular smartphones with a chatbot added somewhere in the software

Jul 143 min read

Food & Beverage

Bubble Tea Gets a Storybook Makeover: CHAGEE Taps an 80-Year-Old Illustrator for Its Summer Drop

CHAGEE (霸王茶姬) just made a summer play that has nothing to do with celebrity endorsements or viral dance challenges — and everything to do with an 80-year-old pi

Jul 122 min read

Beauty

Beast's 15th Birthday Is a Mirror Maze Filled With Watermelons and Hidden Perfume

Fifteen years ago, Beast (野兽派) was just a flower shop on Weibo — no storefront, no catalog, just an account that took orders through DMs and wrote a story for e

Jul 112 min read

Food & Beverage

Manner Coffee's Latest Collab Turns a Korean Fashion Brand Into Summer's Chillest Cup

MANNER's collaboration cadence is relentless — but their latest drop with Korean designer brand Rest & Recreation suggests they've figured out something smarter

Jul 112 min read

Marketing

HELLY HANSEN's Summer Collab Rides a Chinese Pun About 'Howling' Into the Wild

Norwegian outdoor brand HELLY HANSEN just made its first move into the designer-toy space — and the hinge point is a single Chinese character: 嗷 (áo).

Jul 102 min read

Marketing

McDonald's Brings Back Wang Leehom 23 Years Later — This Time With Fries

In 2003, Wang Leehom stood in a McDonald's, threw on a pair of headphones, and delivered a Chinese-language hip-hop track that would burrow into a generation's

Jul 102 min read