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E-scooter startup Lime has launched its service in some of Tokyo’s most densely populated neighborhoods
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 20, 2024

Uber-backed e-scooter startup Lime enters Japan after Korea exit

Lime, which has a global fleet of around 200,000 e-bikes and scooters, on Monday launched its service in some of Tokyo’s most densely populated areas.
Nippon Paper Crecia's Scottie brand toilet paper (right) and Daio Paper's Elleair brand toilet paper
JAPAN / Politics
Aug 21, 2024

Tokyo court dismisses extra long toilet paper patent lawsuit

The court dismissed a lawsuit filed by Nippon Paper Crecia against Daio Paper for allegedly infringing on its patents for toilet rolls.
Tomoaki Kobayakawa, president of Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings (left), hands a set of documents to Kashiwazaki Mayor Masahiro Sakurai during their meeting in the city in Niigata Prefecture on Thursday.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 22, 2024

Kashiwazaki mayor willing to OK restart of nuclear reactor

The willingness emerged after the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa plant's operator shortened the time frame for the possible decommissioning of other reactors in the complex.
Seven & I Holding’s logo is seen at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Tokyo on Aug. 19. Apart from 7-Eleven, Seven & I also owns, has stakes in or operates a number of other iconic properties, including Denny’s, Tower Records and Ito-Yokado.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 22, 2024

Japan warms to audacious Canadian bid for 7-Eleven operator

The deal might just work if Alimentation Couche-Tard lets the convenience store chain get on with business and continue to develop and expand globally.
Masanobu Sakamoto (left), head of the National Federation of Fisheries Cooperative Associations, meets with industry minister Ken Saito (right) in Tokyo on Friday.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 23, 2024

Head of fishery group expresses industry's concern over import bans

Such bans by other countries in response to the release of treated water from the Fukushima nuclear plant leave the sector uncertain about its future, he says.
The Fukushima No. 1 plant in August last year
JAPAN
Aug 23, 2024

One year on, no abnormalities have been found in tritium levels off Fukushima

The plant has so far discharged 60,000 tons of treated water, which contains small amounts of radioactive tritium, into the sea after diluting it with seawater.
Tepco employees serve scallops at an event in Tokyo last month.
BUSINESS
Aug 25, 2024

Japan scallop exports shifting away from China dependence

The efforts led to increases in scallop exports to the United States and other markets, highlighting the scallop supply chain's shift away from China.
Lions players celebrate after a win over the Buffaloes on Wednesday at Belluna Dome in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Aug 25, 2024

A fight over free agency in NPB, with help from an American union

The union representing players in NPB is fighting to secure rights over players' images and give them the opportunity to make the jump to MLB sooner.
The central monitoring room of the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Okuma, Fukushima Prefecture, on Aug. 9
JAPAN / Society
Aug 25, 2024

Tepco completes fourth round of fiscal '24 treated water release

Since discharges began in August last year, the company has released 62,400 metric tons of the treated water over a total of eight rounds.
The surprise 19% price increase comes even as PlayStation 5 sales have slowed.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 27, 2024

Sony hikes PlayStation 5 price in Japan citing cost volatility

The surprise move comes even as PS5 sales have slowed and Sony is widely expected to refresh its offering with a revamp of the console in coming months.
The Chinese government has dismissed U.S. accusations, saying the hacking attacks attributed to Volt Typhoon are the work of cyber criminals.
BUSINESS / Tech
Aug 28, 2024

Chinese hackers breach U.S. internet firms via startup

The revelation will add to concerns over the susceptibility of U.S. critical infrastructure to cyberattacks.
A train carrying steel slabs leaves the U.S. Steel Edgar Thomson Works steel mill in Braddock, Pennsylvania.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 29, 2024

Nippon Steel woos U.S. union with extra $1.3 billion investment

The United Steelworkers union has so far opposed a corporate tie-up with U.S. Steel.
U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris (center) and her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, disembark from their campaign bus in Savannah, Georgia, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Aug 29, 2024

VCs want Harris to prioritize abortion rights and pro-tech policies

Of about 800 venture capitalists who signed an open letter of support, 225 detailed their reasons for endorsing Harris and the policies they favor in a survey.
The icon for the Telegram messenger app. Toncoin, a digital asset from a blockchain project linked to Telegram Messenger LLP, has lost about $2.7 billion in market value, reflecting the uncertainty sparked by the detention of the messaging app's co-founder.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 29, 2024

Telegram ‘black swan event’ exposes risk in popular crypto deals

The detention of Telegram founder Pavel Durov is reverberating through the crypto venture capital sector.
Attendees play the For All Time mobile game on smartphones at the NetEase Games booth at the Tokyo Game Show in the city of Chiba in September last year.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 30, 2024

Tencent and NetEase rethink Japan approach as game strategy stalls

The companies are reconsidering or scaling back many of their investments in Japanese studios, after years of spending yielded few hit games.
Tetsuro Higashi, the chairman of Rapidus, at the company's headquarters in Tokyo in February 2023
BUSINESS
Aug 31, 2024

Japanese government considering investment in Rapidus

The government apparently hopes the move will help spur private-sector investments in and loans to Rapidus by increasing the company's credibility.
Tokaido Shinkansen trains were canceled due to heavy rains in Tokyo on Thursday after Typhoon Shanshan, one of Japan's strongest typhoons in decades, dumped torrential rain across southern regions.
JAPAN
Sep 1, 2024

Tokaido Shinkansen line back in service on all sections

JR Tokai earlier said it would resume services on all sections from the first trains of Monday. But it moved up the plan as weather improved and safety was confirmed.
By using an app, call center workers can practice calming down angry callers.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 3, 2024

Japanese companies develop AI tools against 'customer harassment'

Japanese companies are developing artificial intelligence tools to protect call center workers from "customer harassment."
Ryobi Holdings has hired Kyosuke Suzuki, a former currency trader at Societe Generale, to set up an artificial intelligence-powered hedge fund specializing in forex.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 3, 2024

Bus group Ryobi sets up forex fund to survive population fall

The move follows its previous investments in real estate, supermarkets and other areas as it tries to secure funds to maintain its bus fleet and grow.
Elon Musk during an event in Manhattan in November 2023
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2024

Musk’s Starlink backs down, vowing to block X in Brazil

Elon Musk’s satellite internet provider Starlink reversed course and said it would comply with an order by Brazil’s top court to block access to X.
Sanrio, the owner of the Hello Kitty brand that operates two indoor theme parks, has enjoyed a 93% gain in its stock this year, as the ongoing heat and heavy rain keep visitors away from outdoor entertainment.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2024

Hello Kitty stock soars 93% as Tokyo heat sends tourists indoors

Ongoing heat and heavy rain have been key factors in keeping visitors away from outdoor entertainment facilities.
Volkswagen Chief Executive Officer Oliver Blume speaks at a Volkswagen media event in Beijing on April 24.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 4, 2024

From peace-maker to taboo-breaker, VW boss Blume takes on the unions

Volkswagen disclosed it was not only planning to scrap a 30-year old job security plan, but weighing the closure of plants in Germany.
Michie Hino, 77, works at an elderly care home in Chiba Prefecture. She is one of a growing number of senior Japanese citizens working into their 70s.
JAPAN / Society / FOCUS
Sep 5, 2024

Working till your 70s — Japan's prospective gift to the world

A struggling pension system and the highest inflation in decades have led more Japanese people to delay retirement until their 70s or later to make ends meet.
Alimentation Couche-Tard’s takeover bid for Seven & I already faces a potential funding problem, but the yen's recent rise puts another hurdle.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 5, 2024

Strong yen adds to challenge for Couche-Tard’s Seven & I bid

The buyout already faces questions in terms of potential funding and the target’s efforts to seek government protection.
A polygraph machine sits on a table in an office of AO Eurasian Bank in Almaty, Kazakhstan, in 2013.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 6, 2024

AI-powered lie detectors can help tell if you’re lying on a Zoom call

CyberQ is just one of a crop of new companies looking to build AI-powered lie detectors that could be used during work-related online meetings.
 Atsushi Ukawa
BUSINESS
Sep 8, 2024

Japanese bank seeks to help regional economy with bus business

The company is in talks with around 10 municipalities. Senshu Ikeda plans to expand operations possibly to neighboring Hyogo Prefecture.
Portable power supply devices at a Bic Camera electronics store in Tokyo
JAPAN
Sep 8, 2024

Sales of portable power supply devices surge amid heightened disaster preparedness

Jackery, a U.S.-based major portable power supply solution firm, saw a sharp climb in sales in Japan after the possible Nankai Trough quake alert issued on Aug. 8.
Debbie Wu tests her pair of sunglasses made from plastic waste at Trash Kitchen in Taipei.
ENVIRONMENT / Sustainability
Sep 6, 2024

Taiwan workshop turns trash into sunglasses

Taipei's Trash Kitchen allows customers to create fashion out of plastic waste.
An Nvidia Quantum-X800 InfiniBand Platform designed for artificial intelligence on display in Taipei in June
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 9, 2024

Nvidia-backed Sakana AI eyes strategic partnerships in Japan

Growing geopolitical risks are heightening interest in the Tokyo-based startup.
The European Court of Justice is set to give a ruling on Irish tax breaks to U.S. company Apple on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 10, 2024

D-Day for Apple and Google as EU court to rule on major cases

The Apple case has been one of several investigations in the previous decade into sweetheart tax arrangements between major companies and several EU countries.

Longform

Koichi Tagawa’s diary entry from Aug. 9, 1945, describes the day of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki.
The horrors of Nagasaki, in first person