Cross-Strait Maritime Pressure: China’s coast guard escorted a state oceanographic survey ship inside Japan’s EEZ east of Taiwan, with vessels flanking the research ship for three days near Yonaguni—seen as a jurisdiction grab amid Japan-Philippines maritime talks. Export Controls Escalation: Beijing added 20 Japanese entities to a dual-use export control list and another 20 to a watch list, tightening licensing and requiring risk assessments, as tensions over Taiwan and Japan’s security posture deepen. Cloud Invoice Lottery Boost: Taiwan’s Ministry of Finance plans to add more NT$500 prizes to the cloud invoice lottery from July-December, potentially raising total prizes per draw to 4.05–4.25 million, after electronic receipt usage hit 67% by June 15. AI Chip Race in the Region: South Korea unveiled an $880bn (and up to $1tn) investment push for memory chips, AI data centers and robotics, aiming to double memory capacity in five years—fueling price pressure that could spill into consumer electronics. Aviation Demand: EVA Air said it plans direct flights to Delhi starting early December, targeting transit demand between South Asia and North America via Taipei. Innovation Link-Up: ICIE launched Explore2Expand Taiwan (July 29–Aug 2) to connect global entrepreneurs and investors with Taiwan’s semiconductors, AI and advanced manufacturing ecosystem.