The world is changing.

This is about business and money.

It happened on Monday, June 29, 2026, at 5:00 am.

The US and Iran are talking, but controlling the Strait of Hormuz is a big problem.

Two important things happened last week that help us understand what the future will be like.

Iran showed its power by stopping two ships, and a Chinese company made a new AI model that is as good as ChatGPT but cheaper.

These two events are connected because they will change how the world works, especially with shipping and AI.

A Chinese company called Zhipu made a new AI model called GLM 5.2.

Iran and maybe Oman will use the Strait of Hormuz to get more power and money.

This means it will be harder and more expensive to ship things.

Other countries with important waterways might do the same, making it even harder to ship things.

China is making AI cheaper, which means more people will use it.

In Australia, people are buying more electric cars because there are many cheap Chinese models available.

The war in Iran is not the only reason people are buying electric cars.

American companies need to rethink their business plans.

Companies are worried about spending too much on AI, so the new Chinese models are attractive.

China's AI models might force American companies to change their business plans or even go out of business.

The new Chinese AI model is called GLM-5.2 and is very good.

GLM-5.2 is an open-weight model, which means its weights are publicly available.

This means anyone can use and improve the model.

The MIT license allows users to download, run, and improve the model.

GLM-5.2 can be used by anyone, and this will change the AI market.

This might not destroy other AI companies, but it will force them to adapt.

It's like what happened with web browsers 20 years ago.

Remember the browser wars?

The first browser war was between Netscape and Microsoft.

Microsoft made Internet Explorer and gave it away for free.

This destroyed Netscape, and Microsoft became the leading browser.

The podcast That's Business with Alan Kohler helps you understand business news.

Google made Chrome to protect its search business.

Chrome became very popular and destroyed other browsers.

The browser wars were about distribution, not technology.

Maybe this time, distribution is not as important because many companies can make AI models.

China is a big market, and companies like TikTok and WeChat are important.

The price of AI stocks is falling, which might cause problems.

The US Nasdaq index fell, and SpaceX's price fell a lot.

SpaceX's price was too high, and now it's falling.

If the AI bubble bursts, it might cause a recession.

But the main thing about AI is that it will increase the demand for electricity.

This will help the energy transition and reduce the use of fossil fuels.

Alan Kohler is a finance presenter and columnist.

Mon 29 Jun 2026 at 5:00 am

Mon 29 Jun 2026 at 7:12 am

See more ABC coverage.

Promotion

リスニング練習