“Religious” chatbots, based on the Bhagavad Gita, emerge in India, with millions using them, some answering ~50K questions per day and others condoning violence
Claiming wisdom based on the Bhagavad Gita, the bots frequently go way off script. — • NEW DELHI, INDIA Tweets: @cengizyar , @hare_brain , and @karan_singhs Tweets: Cengiz / @cengizyar : Talk to you...
TikTok Shop is thriving in Indonesia, TikTok's second-biggest market with an estimated 110M users; Data.ai: the Shop seller app has ~5.5M Indonesian downloads
TikTok Shop, the controversial app's ambitious next phase, has caught fire in Indonesia. “This is truly the year of TikTok,” says one seller. Tweets: @juokaz , @shiraovide , and @cengizyar Tweets: @j...
After India's legal orders this week, Twitter blocked the tweets of 122 users, including reporters and politicians, from Indian users; it used to push back more
https://restofworld.org/... Lauren Weinstein / @lauren@mastodon.laurenweinstein.org : Instead of pushing back as #Twitter used to do, Elon now bends over for India's requests to block accounts. - http...
A look at the Chinese social e-commerce app and women-friendly “lifestyle bible” Xiaohongshu, which has 200M MAUs and critics describe as a consumerist trap
Known as China's “lifestyle bible,” the social media platform is an aspirational living guide or a consumerist trap. Tweets: @restofworld , @mikeelgan , @violazhouyi , @openbarllc , @violazhouyi , @re...
US tech firms are outsourcing developer jobs to Mexico, Peru, and Uruguay, making it harder for Latin American startups to attract talent despite recent layoffs
Rest of World : Tweets: @restofworld , @cengizyar , and @alexgonzor Tweets: @restofworld : One founder in Mexico said hiring reminds her of the dating scene growing up in Cancún: “If you wanted a boy...
Experts: India's TikTok clones like Moj and Josh have failed to replicate TikTok's success, and Instagram and YouTube will take over India's short-video segment
Creators are instead gravitating toward Instagram and YouTube, which may eventually be the winners in the Indian short-video segment. Tweets: @glenngabe , @restofworld , @restofworld , @restofworld , ...
Inside China's $16B virtual influencer industry, as motion capture actors complain of hard working conditions powering their avatars four to five hours per day
It's really about the Pacific, but Taiwan stands in the way. Art: Mark Corry. Tweets: Ross Dawson / @rossdawson : Virtual influencers are becoming massive, especially in China, where it's a $16bn ind...
Instagram-based thrift stores in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Nepal are making used clothes popular, even desirable, among young shoppers
Rest of World : Tweets: @fogginsophie , @cengizyar , and @itikaspunit Tweets: Sophie Foggin / @fogginsophie : Years ago, running a successful thrift store would have been unthinkable in most of South...
China's crackdown and economic downturn have led to massive layoffs in its tech sector, but some workers are relieved to exit the industry's “996” work schedule
Viola Zhou / Rest of World : Tweets: @vickiturk , @cengizyar , and @alvinfoo Tweets: Vicki Turk / @vickiturk : A highly-paid tech job was the dream for China's young workers. Now, amid widespread lay...
Bitcoin fell to under $18K on Saturday, below its $19,511 high during its 2017 bull cycle, as ether dropped below $1K; both are down 70%+ since November 2021
what this means Robert Reich / The Guardian : The Crypto Crash: all Ponzi schemes topple eventually Hudson Lockett / Financial Times : Celsius warns it will ‘take time’ to stabilise as bitcoin hovers ...