China’s Siri plunges as Trump casts wider net over tech firms

Bloomberg

Voice-recognition company Iflytek Co plunged following news it is on a list of Chinese technology firms that may face restrictions from the US.
Iflytek, which says it controls over 70 percent of China’s speech technology market, slid as much as 8.2 percent in Shenzhen after people familiar with the matter said the US is considering curbs on the company, as well as Xiamen Meiya Pico Information Co and Beijing Megvii Co, which is unlisted.
Data firm Xiamen Meiya dropped by the 10 percent daily limit in Shenzhen.
Iflytek hasn’t received official notification from the US about any curbs, board secretary Jiang Tao wrote in a posting on Securities Times-affiliated website egsea.com.
The company hopes to receive “fair and just treatment” and has contingency measures and substitutes for components sourced overseas, he said, adding that even if the reports are true, there won’t be a major impact on operations.
Anhui-based Iflytek makes voice-recognition software similar to Apple Inc’s Siri system and says it is committed to enabling machines to listen, speak, understand and think.
China Mobile Communications Group Co is its top shareholder with a 12.85 percent stake.
The Trump administration is broadening its attack on companies linked to China’s vast surveillance network, after initially tackling Huawei Technologies.
Two security camera giants — Hangzhou Hikvision Digital Technology Co and Zhejiang Dahua Technology Co —were brought into the scope this week, sending their shares down more than 9 percent.