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July 06, 2025
 

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APPS

The TikTok logo is displayed on a mobile phone next to the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington on Friday.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 18, 2025
TikTok says it will go dark Sunday in U.S. without assurance from Biden
The statement came hours after the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law banning TikTok on national security grounds if its Chinese parent company does not sell it.
The prospect of a TikTok ban has already triggered some users to seek alternatives, with Chinese social media app RedNote gaining nearly 3 million U.S. users in one day earlier this week.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 17, 2025
TikTok's fight against going dark gains support from key U.S. lawmakers
A law passed in April mandates owner ByteDance to divest TikTok's U.S. assets by Sunday to a non-Chinese buyer, or be banned on national security concerns.
The TikTok ban results from an April law signed by President Joe Biden and is the first time the United States has attempted to shut down access to an app with such a large user base — roughly 170 million domestic users.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 17, 2025
How a TikTok ban would work — and why user workarounds won't
TikTok reportedly plans to shut down the service and will show users a message about the law and offer to let them download their personal data.
Elon Musk, the world's richest man, has expressed ambitions to build an "everything app," and adding TikTok to X, formerly Twitter, could bring him closer to that vision.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 16, 2025
Elon Musk won’t save TikTok
A Musk takeover of TikTok remains far from a done deal. It would require a wildly complex spinoff and it’s not immediately clear how he would fund a purchase.
The U.S. Supreme Court has signaled it's likely to uphold a law that would ban TikTok in the U.S. if it isn't sold by its Chinese parent company by Jan. 19. U.S. politicians in both major parties, however, are seeking ways to keep the video-sharing app accessible for Americans.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2025
TikTok allies close to Trump and Biden race to delay ban
The app, owned by China’s ByteDance Ltd., faces a deadline of Jan. 19 to find a U.S. buyer in order to continue operating in the country.
If it is banned in the United States, TikTok plans that users attempting to open the app will see a pop-up message directing them to a website with information about the ban.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 16, 2025
TikTok preparing to shut down app in U.S. on Sunday, sources say
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is reportedly considering issuing an executive order to suspend enforcement of a shutdown for 60 to 90 days.
In only two days, more than 700,000 new users joined Xiaohongshu, also known as RedNote, a person close to the company said.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 15, 2025
Over half a million ‘TikTok refugees’ flock to China's RedNote app
In only two days, more than 700,000 new users have reportedly joined Xiaohongshu, a popular networking app known for lifestyle content and product recommendations.
The TikTok logo is displayed outside the offices of the social media app's company offices in Culver City, California, in 2023.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 14, 2025
China discusses sale of TikTok U.S. to Elon Musk as possible option
Under one scenario that’s been discussed by the Chinese government, Musk’s X would take control of TikTok U.S. and run the businesses together.
The U.S. Supreme Court justices on Friday expressed skepticism about a challenge from TikTok and its Chinese parent company ByteDance.
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 13, 2025
What happens after the TikTok ban?
TikTok's future in the U.S. is uncertain as the Supreme Court weighs security concerns, with a potential ban or forced sale looming on Jan. 19. Here's how it could play out.
Many Japanese dating apps have ways to detail specific interests that can be as narrow as one particular TV show, game or an artist.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 7, 2025
Swiping in Japan: How Gen Z is changing the dating app game
The once-stigmatized apps are flourishing as a new normal for dating among Gen Z in Japan, albeit with a different approach to before.
Signage at the TikTok offices in Singapore, on Aug. 4, 2023
BUSINESS / Tech
Jan 7, 2025
TikTok ban thrusts Apple and Google into U.S.-China geopolitical fray
TikTok creators are posting videos promoting ways to get around a looming shutdown of the app in the U.S., which could spell trouble for companies required to enforce the ban.
Kenichi Tatsumi, 74, chairman of an association for people with visual impairment in the city of Ishinomaki in Miyagi Prefecture, speaks during an interview in November.
JAPAN / Society
Jan 2, 2025
App helping visually impaired in disasters gains traction one year on
The service, which uses the app to read out the names of evacuation centers and other necessary information, was launched in April this year.
A policeman stands near where people were killed by a man driving a truck in an attack during New Year's celebrations in New Orleans, Louisiana, on Wednesday.
WORLD / Crime & Legal
Jan 2, 2025
Trucks in New Orleans attack and Las Vegas explosion were rented using the same app
Renters of both vehicles had used Turo, a peer-to-peer app. Officials are investigating possible connections between the two cases.
International students and others participate in a disaster preparedness drill in Osaka City, where disaster information was conveyed in foreign languages.
JAPAN
Dec 26, 2024
Noto quake inspires more focus on getting disaster info to non-Japanese
The earthquake that struck the Noto Peninsula on Jan. 1 highlighted the need to help foreign nationals who do not speak Japanese be more informed.
The Japanese antitrust watchdog said that Google forced smartphone makers to preinstall its search app on their devices, sources say.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 23, 2024
Japan accuses Google of violating antimonopoly law
The Japanese antitrust watchdog said the U.S. company forced smartphone makers to preinstall its search app on their devices.
The rise of TikTok has drawn intense scrutiny, particularly over its links to China.
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
Dec 22, 2024
One billion users, but controversies mount up for TikTok
In Washington, the platform has been accused of espionage, while the EU suspects it was used to sway Romania's presidential election in favor of a far-right candidate.
U.S. companies Apple and Google are likely to be the primary targets of the new law to restrict activities of technology giants with at least 40 million users per month in Japan.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Dec 10, 2024
Japan to regulate tech giants with at least 40 million users
U.S. companies Apple and Google are likely to be the main targets of the law.
A TikTok creator and advocate wears a button showing support outside of the U.S. Court of Appeals on Sept. 16 in Washington, D.C.
BUSINESS / Tech
Dec 9, 2024
‘It’s for real this time’: TikTok creators react to potential ban
Many of TikTok’s users seemed to have only just begun to grasp that the app could be on its last legs in this country.
Timeleft uses an algorithm to match its users with five or six strangers in an effort to prompt “human connection” over dinner at a restaurant. It determines the attendees with the help of a simple personality quiz available when you sign up for the service.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Dec 2, 2024
Seven strangers and an algorithm: Can this new dinner app help you make friends?
An app called Timeleft hopes to combat big-city alienation through a simple meal with a diverse group of people.
A Nihon Kotsu Co. taxi departs one of the company's service offices in Tokyo.
JAPAN / Society
Nov 23, 2024
Japan to aid introduction of multilingual ride-hailing apps
With the number of inbound visitors rapidly increasing, rural areas are facing the urgent challenge of securing transportation options for tourists.
Japan braces for more quakes as authorities dismiss doomsday hype
Evacuees from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecuture, arrive at Kagoshima Port on Friday.
Hidden AI prompts in academic papers spark concern about research integrity
Waseda University is one of 14 institutions in eight countries found to have used hidden prompts in research papers.
A prophesied disaster (likely) won’t strike Japan this weekend
A viral manga prediction of a July 5 disaster has gripped Japan with anxiety and triggered an economic impact, but experts warn that while such dates are unreliable, the threat of a massive earthquake remains real. 
Residents of Tokara Islands begin evacuation as seismic swarm continues
Details about evacuations from Akuseki Island, located in the Tokara island chain in Kagoshima Prefecture, is seen written on a whiteboard in the city of Kagoshima on Thursday.
U.S. military apologizes over Okinawa sexual assault case
Col. Neil Owens (right), chief of staff for the 3rd Marine Division, bows in apology at the Okinawa Prefectural Government office in Naha on Thursday.
Ghibli’s Isao Takahata exhibit shows how beloved anime is made
“The man who planted Japanese animation” exhibition includes a variety of sketches, drawings and animation cels from Isao Takahata films such as color design for characters by Michiyo Yasuda from "Grave of the Fireflies."
Flag football facing challenges and opportunities ahead
Japan’s women’s flag football team at the 2025 International Bowl in Los Angeles in June. The sport is enjoying continued growth in the country.
From Hokusai’s Great Wave, shinkansen to One Piece: a cultural treasure box for Lego Japan
Michael Ebbesen, general manager of Lego Japan, says Lego bricks based on Japanese culture have a rich global appeal and are sellable around the world.
With farmed fish, RelationFish swims against the tide in fine dining
Chef Hideaki Matsuo (middle) and the staff of Oseto Suisan Fisheries prepare to check on their sustainably farmed fish.
As Southeast Asia heats up, a Japanese cooling giant sees a major opportunity
An employee of Daikin Cambodia explains the use of different tools during an air conditioner installation training session in Phnom Penh. Daikin is one of Japan’s oldest air conditioning companies, but as Japan’s population falls, the firm is keying in on overseas growth.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji
By Alex K.T. Martin

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