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🟠 Trump gets $36 billion from Japan

🟠 Trump gets $36 billion from Japan

+ Poland bans Chinese cars

February 19, 2026

☕️ Good morning friends,

An Indian proverb says: "He who hunts for a tiger must expect to find a tiger."

That seems to describe the Japan-Trump situation from today's Top Bit well. What do you think?

Also in today's issue:

Vietnam Opens to Starlink: SpaceX gets green light to operate 600,000 terminals
Sam's Club Cracks China: Localization over cookie-cutter US model drives success
Poland Bans Chinese Cars: Military fears espionage through onboard sensors

P.S. Wow! The latest podcast episode with Francesco already went through the roof on day one.
If you also want insider knowledge from the robotics scene, watch and listen here.

🍿 Youtube
🎧 Spotify
📻 Apple Podcasts
… and everywhere else podcasts are available.

KOSPI rises, won falls: South Koreans invested more money abroad in 2025 than ever before. The total reached $114.35 billion, nearly three times the previous year. Foreign investors were mostly net sellers, with 11.8 trillion won leaving the market, weakening the won. Even so, the value of their Korean holdings nearly doubled as the KOSPI surged 76% in 2025.

TOP BIT

$36 billion for gas, oil, and diamonds – the world's largest power plant

Expensive gifts from Japan for Trump

Japan and the US have agreed on the first three megaprojects of their $550 billion investment package. Trump celebrates it as proof of his tariff policy. Tokyo is under pressure – and pays.

❝

"The scale of these projects are so large, and could not be done without one very special word, TARIFFS."

Donald Trump, US President

The three projects

Project	Location	Volume	Details
Gas power plant	Portsmouth, Ohio	$33 billion	9.2 GW – world's largest, SoftBank
Crude oil terminal	Gulf of Mexico	$2.1 billion	$30 billion annual revenue, Sentinel Midstream
Diamond factory	Georgia	$600 million	Synthetic diamonds, Element Six

The gas power plant alone equals nine nuclear reactors and could supply 7.4 million households. Japanese companies like Toshiba, Hitachi, and Mitsubishi Electric are to deliver turbines.

The fine print

The profit participation is extremely one-sided. After repayment of the initial investment, the profit split shifts to 90:10 in favor of the US, according to reports.

Additionally, after Trump's approval, Tokyo has only 45 days to physically transfer the promised funds.

⚠️ Reality check

"Strategic, but hardly bankable," is how Japanese financial circles describe the projects. Politicians and corporate leaders have openly criticized Trump's tactics as "blackmail."

But dependence on the US market and especially Washington's security policy role against China, North Korea, and Russia left no choice.

📊 All details & data: Yahoo Finance, New York Times, CNBC

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INVEST SPOTLIGHT

Emotional AI: Taiwanese startup builds efficient AI that understands emotions

China has 300 million people over the age of 60, and the number is rising fast. At the same time, millions of caregivers are missing. The government is investing heavily in technical solutions, yet most of today’s “smart companion” products are essentially Siri in a plastic shell.

We are working with a Taiwanese deeptech startup that has developed what it calls an Emotional Language Model. Unlike traditional language models, it detects emotional states, adjusts tone and speaking pace in real time, and improves with every interaction.

The key advantage: everything runs fully on-device. No cloud, no internet connection, no data leaving the device. Privacy by design.

The first use case: Adam-Care, an AI-powered care companion for seniors. It does not just respond, it acts proactively and escalates to professional staff when needed.

The model: requires only 100,000 parameters. For comparison, ChatGPT uses more than 100 billion. It runs entirely on a simple microcontroller. No server, no cloud, no internet required.

The technology: based on a proprietary AI architecture, not a transformer model like ChatGPT, and is said to be 90 times more parameter-efficient. A working prototype is already available for download.

IP: 7+ patents covering the core technology. Technical collaborations with Huawei, DJI, and Baidu.
Serial founder: More than 10 years as CEO of a global safety-tech company in China, delivering 200% revenue growth for four consecutive years. The co-founding team includes members from MIT, Foxconn, and Singapore’s state research agency A*STAR.
Raising: $2 million seed round via a Singapore SPV.
Use of funds: Development of the first Adam-Care product and initial pilot projects.

Interested in this deal or similar rounds? 👇🏻

Fundraising

⚡ C2i Semiconductors raises $15 million Series A for AI power management: Founded in Bengaluru in 2024, the startup develops power management chips for AI data centers. Peak XV Partners and TDK Ventures led the round.

🔄 Nio subsidiary Mirattery raises $145 million for battery swap: The battery platform behind Nio’s swap stations brought in two new state-backed investors from Hefei in an extended Series C3. The total Series C now stands at nearly RMB 2 billion.

Looking for investors for your tech startup? Let’s talk about your spotlight. Get in touch with us.

HIGHLIGHTS

🇻🇳 Vietnam gives Starlink the green light: Vietnam has granted SpaceX a frequency license for Starlink. The satellite internet service is initially allowed to operate four ground stations and up to 600,000 terminals. Vietnam becomes the fifth country in Southeast Asia with Starlink after the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia and Timor-Leste. Yes, that’s a country — we had to look it up too.

🇨🇳 Sam’s Club cracks the China formula: While foreign retailers are pulling out of China one by one, Walmart’s Sam’s Club keeps expanding. The recipe: deep localization instead of copying the U.S. model. Instead of 1kg steaks, it offers 450g portions suited to Chinese refrigerators, along with copper ornaments and ginseng for Lunar New Year. Gift boxes were sold out in many stores.

🇨🇳 Budweiser vs. Heineken in China: China’s two largest premium beer brands had completely opposite years in 2025. Budweiser APAC reported its sharpest profit decline since 2020, with the CEO citing “results below potential.” Heineken, by contrast, counts China among its top three profit drivers. The reason: Chinese consumers are drinking more at home rather than in bars — and that’s where Heineken is strong, while Budweiser had leaned heavily on the hospitality channel.

🇵🇱 Poland bans Chinese cars from military sites: The Polish army has barred vehicles made by Chinese manufacturers from entering military facilities. The reason: onboard sensors could potentially collect sensitive data. Company phones are also prohibited from connecting to infotainment systems in Chinese vehicles. The army said the measures align with NATO standards.