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People take pictures of the city skyline lit up by drones during a performance to welcome the Lunar New Year of the Dragon, at Marina Bay in Singapore on Feb. 10.
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Feb 26, 2024

Singapore embraces AI to solve everyday problems

Ranked the fifth most innovative country by the GII last year, Singapore was an early adopter of AI, releasing its first national strategy in 2019.
A Sustainable Smart City Partner Program forum in Kitajima
ESG CONSORTIUM
Feb 27, 2024

NTT tool Sugatami reflects cities’ extensive possibilities

With the use of digital technology to solve rural social problems now promoted as a national policy, some places have begun trying to use data to analyze their current situation, identify problems and find solutions.
A Boeing Co. 737 Max airplane on the production line at the company's manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington, in March 2019
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 27, 2024

Boeing's safety culture slammed by FAA after 737 Max midair door loss

An expert report shows the work still to be done at Boeing despite efforts to overhaul its culture after fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 killed 346 people.
Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Oct. 17, 2023
WORLD / Politics
Feb 28, 2024

Serbian leader says ‘Taiwan is China’ as Xi plans Balkan trip

The Serbian leader’s wading into rising tensions over the Taiwan Strait sends a signal of allegiance to Beijing.
JAPAN / Society
Feb 28, 2024

Japan issues urgent notice to schools after boy chokes to death

The first grader in the city of Miyama, Fukuoka Prefecture, is believed to have choked on a boiled quail egg contained in a stew served for school lunch.
Japanese actor Hiroyuki Sanada attends the red carpet event for FX's "Shogun" at the Academy theater in Los Angeles on Feb. 13.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 27, 2024

Disney’s ‘Shogun’ has a lot to teach the West

Walt Disney returns "Shogun" to the screen and reinvents an epic tale for a new generation.
Japan's factory output in January fell at the fastest pace since May 2020 due to a drop in automobile-related production.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 29, 2024

Japan factory output falls at the fastest pace in nearly four years

A production downturn in motor vehicles is also adding to concerns about the fragility of an economy that slipped into recession late last year.
Starbucks workers hold a rally in New York City in 2022.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 29, 2024

Starbucks' pivot on union may shape labor relations beyond its stores

The iconic coffee chain has been locked in a bitter, high-profile and multifront battle with the union across the U.S. since its first win in 2021.
Red Bull's Christian Horner was cleared following an investigation into complaints of inappropriate behavior made against him by a female team member.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Feb 29, 2024

Red Bull boss Christian Horner cleared of inappropriate behavior

A statement from Austrian energy drink brand Red Bull, the parent company of the world champion Formula One team, said the "grievance has been dismissed."
Hideo Kojima (right), mayor of Ginan, Gifu Prefecture, hands his letter of resignation to the head of the town's assembly at the town hall on Thursday.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Gifu town mayor resigns amid sexual harassment allegations

Hideo Kojima, 74, a former town assembly member, was first elected mayor in November 2020 and was serving his first term.
JAPAN / Politics
Feb 29, 2024

Talks on easing Japan defense export rules pushed back to March

The Liberal Democratic Party and junior coalition partner Komeito failed to reach an agreement on revisions to existing restrictions on Wednesday.
An MQ-9 Reaper drone stands on the runway at Naval Base Ventura County Sea Range, Point Mugu, near Oxnard, California. The Defense Ministry is considering purchasing the Reaper for intercepting foreign aircraft approaching Japanese airspace.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 1, 2024

New drone tech in spotlight as Japan eyes boosted capabilities

As Tokyo seeks to beef up its unmanned systems, inspiration could come from the latest tech displayed at this year's Singapore Airshow.
Execs at four major Japanese insurers, including Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance, will take pay cuts over price fixing.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 1, 2024

Four general insurance firms punish 132 people over price-fixing

The four general insurers, including Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance, also submitted business improvement plans to the Financial Services Agency.
Business is booming for Japan's top airlines as the weak yen spurs the arrival of more foreign visitors, while local demand for international trips and domestic routes remains high.
BUSINESS
Mar 1, 2024

Japan’s top airlines to hire 3,700 workers in the next year

Business for the airlines is booming as the weak yen spurs the arrival of more foreign visitors.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 2, 2024

Japanese fighter jets and U.S. bombers train over Sea of Japan and East China Sea

The joint exercises over the two waterways were seen as a show of deterrence to both Beijing and Pyongyang.
An earthquake measuring a shindo 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale that hit southern Chiba Prefecture was among several that have shaken the area in recent days.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Mar 3, 2024

Japan warns of more strong quakes as 'slow slip' phenomena hits Chiba

Three earthquakes measuring a shindo 4 on the Japanese seismic intensity scale, as well as four measuring a shindo 3, have occurred since Thursday.
Alexei Navalny delivers remarks during his election campaign in Moscow on Aug. 1, 2013. Russian authorities vilified the opposition leader with a viciousness that suggested he was more influential than Moscow would admit. Little has changed since he died.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

Kremlin seeks to suppress Navalny’s influence, in death as in life

Russian authorities have vilified late opposition leader Alexei Navalny with a viciousness that suggested he was more influential than Moscow would admit.
Six months have passed since Japan started releasing treated water from the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant into the Pacific Ocean.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Mar 4, 2024

Fukushima water release still vexing China-Japan ties

China-bound exports of Japanese fishery products in 2023 plunged by some 30% from the previous year in value terms.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang speaks during the 54th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, in January.
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

China scraps premier's briefing, breaking years of convention

The decision removes a rare platform for investors to learn more about the nation’s policy direction under President Xi Jinping.
Nikolai Nozdrev, who arrived in Tokyo on Sunday, succeeds Mikhail Galuzin as Russia's ambassador to Japan.
JAPAN / Politics
Mar 4, 2024

Russia’s new ambassador arrives in Japan after more than yearlong absence

Moscow had left the post unfilled for over a year amid strained ties with Tokyo.
PFAS does not break down easily and remains in the body and the environment for a number of years, and is thus called “forever chemicals.”
JAPAN / Explainer
Mar 4, 2024

Japan’s food safety panel drafts intake limit for 'forever chemicals'

The report spells out the “tolerable daily intake” of PFAS through food for the first time. Here's what you need to know.
The EU hit Apple with a €1.8 billion fine ($1.9 billion) on Monday for violating the bloc's laws by preventing music streaming services from informing users about subscription options outside of its App Store.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 5, 2024

EU fines Apple €1.8 billion over curbs on music streaming services

The European Union found Apple had violated law by preventing music streaming services from telling users about subscription options outside its App Store.
Rescuers clear debris from a multistory building heavily damaged following a Russian drone strike in Odessa on Sunday.
WORLD / Politics
Mar 6, 2024

ICC issues warrants over Russian strikes on Ukraine's power grid

The court has previously targeted Russian President Vladimir Putin with an international arrest warrant over the deportation of Ukrainian children.
JAPAN / Society
Mar 7, 2024

Osaka weighs 'entry fee' for foreign tourists in bid to combat overtourism

The proposed fee is separate from the lodging tax already in place for all tourists.
An event for female coders in New York in 2013. Women’s full participation is key to ensure technologies like AI help bridge the gender gap.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 7, 2024

Now is our chance to govern AI for women’s empowerment

The pace of AI development may seem relentless, but there's still time to create safeguards to ensure that innovation doesn't perpetuate gender inequality.
The Hong Kong flag and surveillance cameras outside the Central Government Offices in Hong Kong
ASIA PACIFIC / Politics
Mar 8, 2024

Hong Kong government issues draft of new national security law

It includes sentences of up to life imprisonment for treason, 20 years for espionage and 10 years for state secrets offenses.
Flint will call out when someone walks past and, in his cute but lonely voice, ask if you’ll spend some time with him.
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Mar 11, 2024

Spare a few seconds for Flint

Nobody knows the history of this mysterious man, but we do know that Flint loves lazing around in the sun with his furry friend Emery.
Akira Toriyama
CULTURE
Mar 8, 2024

'Dragon Ball' creator Akira Toriyama dies at 68

A post announcing his death said Toriyama was “working on many projects” and that “there was so much more that he wanted to accomplish.”
Demonstrators hold a banner as they take part in a march to call for gender equality and protest against gender discrimination as part of an International Women’s Day march in Tokyo in 2021.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 8, 2024

Recognizing the vocabulary surrounding International Women’s Day

Many of the terms describing issues women are facing in Japan have a string of complex kanji. Knowing the basics can go a long way in aiding understanding.
A march calling for gender equality in London in 2019. Women are still paid less than men for the same work, but real equality means more than just eliminating wage disparities.
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 8, 2024

A zero gender pay gap is the goal. But what happens next?

Eliminating the gender pay gap is vital, but it isn't the be-all and end-all. So much more needs to be done to achieve true equality at work and beyond.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’