Category Archives: All regions

From South Korea to Norway, our honeymoon with COVID-19 apps is already over

Since China’s contact tracing system went live in February, around 30 countries have released official contract tracing apps. An evolution of traditional contact tracing systems, what seemed a few months ago to be a daunting yet exciting technological innovation has already reached a turning point. A range of privacy rows have ensued, and according toContinue reading “From South Korea to Norway, our honeymoon with COVID-19 apps is already over”

From national security concern to self-destruction: when techno-nationalism goes wrong

Techno-nationalism has long been a tool to joust for supremacy, but now the old rulebook has been thrown out of the window, and the China-US trade war is on a path to create unmerited polarisation in the world. In 2020, restraint is urgently needed to prevent us from pulling apart our globalised world. Techno-nationalism takesContinue reading “From national security concern to self-destruction: when techno-nationalism goes wrong”

India bans 59 Chinese apps: what developers need to do to avoid the same fate

At the heart of the Chinese app ban lies a problem with the way we build applications. Only by developing systems which hand control of data back to users can we curb the growing concerns around data sovereignty.  On June 15, 20 Indian soldiers and an undisclosed number of Chinese soldiers were killed in hand-to-handContinue reading “India bans 59 Chinese apps: what developers need to do to avoid the same fate”

Is data ownership just a fantasy? Why it will take much more than a startup to bring about significant change

We don’t need statistics to tell us that most people have a trade-off between convenience and privacy. Despite concerns over data use, Facebook revenues continue to soar, and Google’s search engine market share has consistently held at around 90% over the past decade. But the “privacy paradox,” the inconsistency between privacy concerns and actual behaviour,Continue reading “Is data ownership just a fantasy? Why it will take much more than a startup to bring about significant change”

The European Union must provide a clear regulatory framework for blockchain

Two years on since the implementation of the GDPR, the EU’s data protection law, some significant fines have been handed out to the likes of Google, British Airways, and Marriott. Despite this, the regulation has only begun to scratch the surface of its broader goals of improving data protections for all. Last year was theContinue reading “The European Union must provide a clear regulatory framework for blockchain”

These Asian tech startups have been raking up millions in investments during the pandemic

Economic statistics cannot keep up with the rate at which people are losing jobs all over the world as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The tech industry has been no different, as we have seen mass layoffs, especially in companies whose operations have been severely curtailed by lockdown measures, such as ride-hailing applications. However,Continue reading “These Asian tech startups have been raking up millions in investments during the pandemic”

Why the two most popular manufacturing alternatives to China aren’t as flawless as the media makes them out to be

Vietnam and India have long been touted as manufacturing alternatives to China. This year, their governments have been welcoming foreign investment consideration relocation from China. However, the two countries aren’t quite the exemplary options that some make them out to be. The world has long relied on Chinese factories and firms to provide all kindsContinue reading “Why the two most popular manufacturing alternatives to China aren’t as flawless as the media makes them out to be”

Tech in Asia weekly briefing︱June 2nd

Covering Mainland China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam, India, and Pakistan.