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China blocks Clubhouse, app used for political discussion

Zeng Jiajun, a former tech worker, fell in love with social media app Clubhouse, a window through the ruling Communist Party’s pervasive censorship, after listening to a freewheeling discussion between members of China’s Uighur minority and Han majority that wound up lasting 12 hours. Thousands of Chinese flocked to the app, which allowed unfettered discussion […]

United: Small electric air taxis will zip people to airports

United Airlines said Wednesday it will buy up to 200 small electric air taxis to help customers in urban areas get to the airport. The airline said it will help electric-aircraft startup Archer develop an aircraft capable of helicopter-style, vertical takeoffs and landings. Archer hopes to deliver its first aircraft in 2024, if it wins […]

Biden backs off on TikTok ban in review of Trump China moves

The Biden administration is backing off former President Donald Trump’s attempts to ban the popular video app TikTok, asking a court to postpone a legal dispute over the proposed ban as the government begins a broader review of the national security threats posed by Chinese technology companies. A court filing Wednesday said the U.S. Commerce […]

Turkey unveils space program including 2023 moon mission

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan unveiled an ambitious 10-year space program for his country Tuesday that includes missions to the moon, sending Turkish astronauts into space and developing internationally viable satellite systems. Erdogan announced the program, seen as part of his vision for placing Turkey in expanded regional and global role, during a live televised […]

Huawei founder sees no end to US sanctions

The founder of Huawei said Tuesday he doubts President Joe Biden will remove U.S. sanctions that battered the telecom equipment giant’s smartphone sales but expressed confidence the company can survive. Speaking in the central city of Taiyuan, Ren Zhengfei said strong sales of network gear and other technology should make up for Huawei’s weaker handset […]

UN experts: North Korea using cyber attacks to update nukes

North Korea has modernized its nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles by flaunting United Nations sanctions, using cyberattacks to help finance its programs and continuing to seek material and technology overseas for its arsenal, U.N. experts said. The panel of experts monitoring sanctions on the Northeast Asian nation said in a report sent to Security Council […]

Profit at Japan's SoftBank zooms on lucrative investments

Japanese telecommunications and technology conglomerate Softbank Group Corp. reported Monday a whopping 1.17 trillion yen ($11 billion) profit for the October-December quarter as its investments rose in value. SoftBank’s profits were far better than what analysts had expected, zooming up 21-fold from the 55 billion yen profit recorded the previous year. The value of its […]

Dem. Senator Amy Klobuchar introduces sweeping antitrust laws

U.S. Senator, Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), now the lead Democrat on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Antitrust, Competition Policy and Consumer Rights, introduced sweeping new legislation late last week “to reinvigorate America’s antitrust laws and restore competition to American markets,” a statement from her office said. The Competition and Antitrust Law Enforcement Reform Act will give federal […]

Internet access restored as Myanmar coup protests grow

As enthusiastic crowds of tens of thousands marched through the streets of Myanmar’s biggest city on Sunday to protest last week’s coup ousting Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government, their spirits were lifted by the return of internet services that had been blocked a day earlier. Separate protests that began in various parts of Yangon […]

India restores 4G mobile internet in Kashmir after 550 days

India ended an 18-month-long ban on high speed internet services on mobile devices in disputed Kashmir, where opposition to New Delhi has deepened after it revoked the region’s semi-autonomy. The order late Friday lifted the ban on 4G mobile data services However, the order issued by the region’s home secretary, Shaleen Kabra, asked police officials […]