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Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jul 1, 2021

Fired by bot at Amazon: ‘It’s you against the machine’

Former Amazon managers said a largely automated system is insufficiently attuned to the real-world challenges drivers face every day.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 30, 2021

Big Tech is gearing up for a massive fight with Modi’s India

India is growing more assertive in its efforts to control online communications, challenging Twitter and Facebook's practices and threatening to set a precedent that could extend worldwide.
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC
Jun 27, 2021

YouTube takes down Xinjiang videos, forcing rights group to seek alternative

The channel's administrators appealed the blocking of 12 videos, with some reinstated — but they say YouTube did not provide an explanation as to why others were kept out of public view.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 9, 2021

Sapporo unprepared for Olympics amid COVID-19 resurgence in Japan

Officials in the city say they still don't have key information, including how many athletes to expect and details on health facilities.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jun 8, 2021

Boeing charged Japan 1,500% markup on plane part, U.S. Air Force says

The Boeing-Japan case is the latest example of military contracting officials having difficulty compelling contractors to provide backup data for parts classified as 'commercial items.”
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 3, 2021

Don’t let autocrats run the internet after COVID-19

Lukashenko's government blocked much of the internet during protests last summer with the help of technology from U.S.-based Sandvine Inc.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 26, 2021

Japanese firms double down on online sales in China amid tourism halt

Demand for Japanese cosmetics is rising as Chinese consumers unable to travel abroad accelerate purchases on e-commerce platforms.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) headquarters in Washington in 2023. Groups with EPA grants say they have been unable to access funds from the agency.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change
Feb 5, 2025

Trump’s freeze on climate money sows fear and confusion

A federal judge temporarily blocked the spending pause days later but uncertainty persists, with the full impact of the disruption still coming into view.
Elon Musk has in two weeks created a new center of power in Washington as he executes U.S. President Donald Trump's cost-cutting initiative to reduce the size of the U.S. government.
WORLD / Politics
Feb 6, 2025

Musk creates new power base in Washington with takeover of U.S. agencies

Elon Musk has in two weeks created a new center of power in Washington as he executes Donald Trump's cost-cutting initiative to reduce the size of the U.S. government.
Only couples experiencing infertility would be eligible to access assisted reproductive technology, while those in de facto marriages and same-sex couples will be excluded.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Feb 6, 2025

Assisted reproductive tech bill submitted to Upper House

The proposed legislation is aimed at guaranteeing the right of people born through the use of such technology to know their origins.
A representative from the prosecutor's office shows parts of an unidentified missile, which Ukrainian authorities believe to be made in North Korea, in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on Jan. 6.
WORLD
Feb 6, 2025

Ukraine sees marked improvement in accuracy of Russia's North Korean missiles

The increase in accuracy — to within 50-100m of the intended target — suggests North Korea is successfully using the battlefield to test its missile technology.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang and U.S. President Donald Trump. Microsoft and Nvidia are quietly engaging with the Trump administration on policies affecting AI, chip exports and data centers
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 9, 2025

Tech giants Microsoft and Nvidia taking a quieter approach to Trump

Under Biden, the United States curbed the sale of Nvidia chips to China and capped the sales of its AI chips to more than 100 other countries
A worker welds at a steel manufacturing facility in Mexico City on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 10, 2025

Trump to announce 25% steel and aluminum tariffs in latest escalation

Trump, speaking to reporters on Air Force One on his way to the Super Bowl in New Orleans, said he will announce the new metals tariffs on Monday.
Justice Minister Keisuke Suzuki addresses a meeting of the Legislative Council held at the ministry on Monday.
BUSINESS
Feb 12, 2025

Japan eyes measures to empower firms with details of de facto shareholders

Shareholder lists compiled by companies currently display only the names of trust banks and other nominal shareholders, making it difficult to identify de facto shareholders.
While DeepSeek's low-cost AI has attracted businesses, security experts warn that patching these vulnerabilities can be expensive and still less secure than Silicon Valley's more expensive models.
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 18, 2025

The DeepSeek AI revolution has a security problem

The AI model that shocked Silicon Valley by doing more with less might be doing too little on safety. That could hurt its business prospects.
Takashi Tachibana, leader of controversial political group NHK Party, said he received information from Minoru Kishiguchi of Nippon Ishin no Kai, relating to allegations of harassment by Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 20, 2025

Nippon Ishin says member involved in giving papers to NHK Party head

Nippon Ishin says Minoru Kishiguchi provided documents related to alleged harassment by Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito.
Hyogo Gov. Motohiko Saito (foreground) attends a meeting with the Hyogo Prefectural Assembly's special investigative committee in the city of Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture, on Dec. 25.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 21, 2025

Two Ishin lawmakers quit special panel probing Hyogo governor

Minoru Kishiguchi and Makoto Masuyama had leaked information from the panel to the leader of the NHK party.
Catholics attend a Mass to pray for Pope Francis' health at the Plaza Constitucion in Buenos Aires on Monday.
WORLD
Feb 25, 2025

Pope Francis still critical but shows 'slight improvement,' Vatican says

The 88-year-old pontiff was spending his 11th night in Rome's Gemelli Hospital, making it the longest hospital stay of his nearly 12-year papacy.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries' announcement is believed to be part of a push by Japan as it vies with Germany for a lucrative contract to build new Mogami-class frigates for Australia.
JAPAN
Feb 26, 2025

MHI to ramp up Australian business activities with eye on frigate contract

The expansion is seen as a push by Japan to improve its chances of securing a winning bid over Germany to supply the Australian Navy with seven to 11 warships.
The computers and smartphones seized by the Metropolitan Police Department on Thursday in Tokyo's Bunkyo Ward
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 28, 2025

Three teens arrested over fraudulent subscriptions to Rakuten Mobile

Police believe the suspects obtained at least about 2,500 subscriptions and sold them for a total of about ¥7.5 million in crypto assets.
A screen shows news footage of plane debris at the site where a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 plane crashed in the Chinese city of Wuzhou, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in March 2022.
WORLD / ANALYSIS
Feb 28, 2025

Air safety reporting under scrutiny as crashes lie unresolved

Almost half of 268 accidents involving fatalities or major damage between 2018 and the end of 2023 lack a final report.
Students at a job fair in Chiba. Companies have been racing to secure talent amid serious labor shortages by taking steps including raising starting salaries.
JAPAN
Mar 1, 2025

Japanese firms start job fair for 2026 graduates

Companies have been racing to secure talent amid serious labor shortages by taking steps including raising starting salaries.
Japan aims to more than triple domestic cybersecurity industry sales in the next decade, from the current ¥900 billion ($6 billion) to ¥3 trillion.
BUSINESS / Tech
Mar 5, 2025

Japan aims to triple domestic cybersecurity industry sales in next decade

Japan-made cybersecurity products currently occupy less than half of the nation's domestic market share.
An M777 howitzer crew firing at Russian targets near the front lines of the Dnipro region, Ukraine, on Feb. 12
WORLD / Politics
Mar 6, 2025

U.S. cuts intelligence for Ukraine, adding pressure for peace deal

The move underscores Trump's willingness to play hardball with an ally as he pivots to a more conciliatory approach to Moscow.
A demonstrator holds a sign with a picture of death row inmate Brad Sigmon outside the South Carolina Department of Corrections following his execution by firing squad, at the Broad River Correctional Institution in Columbia, South Carolina, on Friday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Mar 8, 2025

South Carolina carries out first firing squad execution in U.S. in 15 years

The convicted murderer said he feared the alternatives of the electric chair or lethal injection would risk a slower and more torturous death.
Yumeshima Station, connected directly to the Osaka Expo venue's east gate, opened in January on Osaka Metro's Chuo subway line.
JAPAN
Mar 12, 2025

Osaka Expo organizers working on ways around traffic gridlock

The association expects daily visitors to peak at 220,000, with some 130,000 forecast to use Osaka Metro's Chuo subway line.
Federal law enforcement agents led by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement prepare to conduct an arrest south of Atlanta, Georgia, on Feb. 5.
WORLD / Society
Mar 12, 2025

Amid Trump deportation threats, U.S. communities prepare

The harsh rhetoric and detentions are intensifying into a pounding drum beat that is prompting new action from civic groups.
An electronic dictionary section at a mass retailer in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward in 2005
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 13, 2025

Electronic dictionary market shrinking in Japan

Sales of electric dictionaries are falling in Japan amid declining birthrates and widespread use of smartphone apps.

Longform

A small shrine perched atop rocks braves the waves hitting the shoreline during a storm in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture. The area is under threat of a possible 31-meter-high tsunami if an earthquake strikes the nearby Nankai Trough.
If the 'Big One' hits, this city could face a 31-meter-high tsunami