Google unveils WAXAL, a speech dataset under an open license for 21 African languages to drive inclusive tech development; African institutions own the dataset
A new 21-language dataset gives African institutions ownership and control in a field long dominated by Big Tech.
Interviews with 10 Kenyan AI annotators show how Chinese companies hire data labelers via opaque middleman networks and WhatsApp groups to avoid accountability
Rest of World : LinkedIn: Dámiláre Dòsùnmú . Bluesky: @fireantprincess and @restofworld.org LinkedIn: Dámiláre Dòsùnmú : my latest story is about how chinese AI companies are quie...
Some Japanese stores are using robots from the startup Telexistence to restock shelves, piloted remotely by Filipino workers whose actions train AI models
Filipino tele-operators remotely control Japan's convenience store robots and train AI, benefiting from an uptick in automation-related jobs. Bluesky: @benschleuss , @goldstein , @...
How Ordos, a coal-rich northern Chinese city, has become a testing ground for self-driving trucks after turning into a ghost town due to 2012's coal price crash
The empty boulevards that once symbolized the mainland's property bust now serve as testing grounds for hundreds of autonomous vehicles. Bluesky: @restofworld.org Bluesky: @restofw...
A look at China's push to integrate AI tools into children's lives, even as educators and researchers are skeptical and warn that AI's benefits are overstated
Government support and tech companies' drive for profit fuel a rush to integrate AI tools, from robot tutors to chatbots, in education and caretaking. Bluesky: @restofworld.org . M...
AI firms are striking partnerships and giving some users in Asia free access to AI tools, in pursuit of larger sources of real-world consumer data for training
https://restofworld.org/2025/ai-data- collection-global-deals
A profile of Egune AI, a startup building LLMs for the Mongolian language, as it navigates geopolitics, a lack of resources, and the nascent local tech scene
https://restofworld.org/2025/mongolia- egune-ai-llm
Inside India's growing ~$1.5B e-waste recycling industry: about 95% of workers are employed informally, doing dangerous, toxic, and lawless work for meager pay
https://restofworld.org/... Gayathri Vaidyanathan / @gayathriv : India's informal recycling economy is turning global e-waste into profit, but it comes at a steep human and environ...
An inside look at ex-unicorn Builder.ai's demise, which oversold its AI platform's abilities and frustrated customers with delivery delays and buggy products
In our new feature, we set out to find the truth. X: Varsha Bansal / @varshaabansal : Inside the collapse of London's hottest AI startup https://builder.ai/. This is a story about ...
The US-China trade war has spurred demand for Vietnamese companies that produce chip components like wafers, as Vietnam scales up its semiconductor ambitions
New from @lamle52.bsky.social: — restofworld.org/2025/vietnam... LinkedIn: Mehboob Jeelani : Trump's tariff war has created unexpected winners in Vietnam's semiconductor sector. ...
Q&A with SandboxAQ CEO Jack Hidary on the Alphabet spinoff's partnership with Aramco, how quantum AI can help turn captured CO2 into valuable products, and more
Read today's new story: restofworld.org/2025/saudi-a...
Tokopedia sellers say Tokopedia's strengths have eroded since its TikTok Shop merger in Indonesia, driving thousands of sellers to join rivals, including Toco
restofworld.org/2025/tiktok- ... [image] @restofworld.org : As TikTok looks to change course to comply with U.S. laws, a similar experiment in its second-largest market is unravel...
Tokopedia sellers say Tokopedia's strengths have eroded since its TikTok Shop merger in Indonesia, driving thousands of sellers to join rivals, including Toco
restofworld.org/2025/tiktok- ... [image] @restofworld.org : As TikTok looks to change course to comply with U.S. laws, a similar experiment in its second-largest market is unravel...
Ten current and former Samsung semiconductor engineers say many are leaving for SK Hynix and other rivals due to long hours, heavy workloads, and lower bonuses
Scarred by long hours, low pay, and a hostile work culture, many chip workers are leaving for competitors, including American companies.
How an AI assistant developed by Brazilian nonprofit NoHarm is helping pharmacists in remote Amazon clinics process prescriptions more quickly and catch errors
restofworld.org/2025/brazil- ...
A look at the intensifying race for super apps in the Gulf, as Careem, Talabat, Amazon, Botim, and Noon consolidate various services into single platforms
From Dubai to Riyadh, apps are consolidating ride-hailing, payments, and delivery into single platforms. — The race for super-apps is intensifying in the Middle East. Bluesky: @r...
A look at “kidfluencers” in Brazil who promote online get-rich-quick schemes to other children on TikTok, Kwai, and Instagram, amid growing government scrutiny
Young Brazilians chase social media fame, selling “get-rich” schemes, while legal battles question platform responsibility and the cost to childhood. Bluesky: @rinachandran and @re...
India faces a shortage of agentic AI professionals, with executives estimating fewer than 100K in the country while demand is projected to hit ~200K by 2026
India is grappling with a critical shortage of agentic AI professionals as demand surges, driven by the shift towards sophisticated AI agents capable …
Experts say that India is behind China in deep tech innovation due to its historical focus on services, lower R&D investment, and a brain drain of AI talent
India's government urges the private sector to take the lead in tech innovation, while industry experts say it's complicated. Bluesky: @restofworld.org and @rinachandran X: @furqua...
How Foxconn's $2.5B “Project Elephant” to build iPhones, its second-largest factory outside China, is fueling a real estate boom in a town outside Bengaluru
The $2.5 billion “Project Elephant” will be the company's second-largest factory outside China and create 40,000 jobs.