Best of restofworld.org on Kiwi News
Most upvoted by Kiwi News readers
40 stories from restofworld.org have been shared on Kiwi News since 2 August 2023, with 62 upvotes and 10 comments in total. The latest was shared on 26 January 2026. They are listed below, most upvoted first.
Text under a title is an AI summary of the linked article.
- Myanmar residents struggle to overcome severe internet blackouts with Starlink
Myanmar residents are struggling with severe internet blackouts after the junta banned VPNs in late May, with many turning to Starlink despite its lack of a license in the country. Wai Phyo Myint, Myanmar lead at Access Now, said the VPN blocks have severely affected small businesses, students, aid groups, and journalists. The Myanmar Internet Project estimates there may be more than 3,000 Starlink dishes in use, and David Eubank of Free Burma Rangers said the system has greatly improved his group's humanitarian work.
- Iran’s internet blackout may become permanent, with access for elites only
Iran's government is building a system called Barracks Internet that would give web access only to security-vetted elites while confining most of the country's 90 million citizens to an intranet, according to confidential planning documents obtained by Filterwatch. Government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani confirmed that international access will not be restored until at least late March, and Filterwatch cited government sources saying access will "never return to its previous form." Georgia Tech's Internet Intelligence Lab called the current blackout "the most sophisticated and most severe in Iran's history," and measured about 3% connectivity persisting. Kaveh Ranjbar, former chief technology officer at RIPE NCC, calls the plan a "digital airlock" that cannot fully seal a modern economy.
- Brazil rules that social media platforms are responsible for users’ posts
Brazil's Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that digital platforms are responsible for users' content, requiring companies including Google, X and Meta to monitor and remove hate speech, racism and incitement to violence. The ruling goes into effect within weeks, and companies that can show they took steps to remove such content expeditiously will not be held liable, according to the justices. Platforms can now be held liable upon mere notification, and the decision introduces a concept of systemic failure. Industry lobby groups said in a December statement that the shift imposes strict liability regardless of prior notice, while Google said it remains open to dialogue.
- China’s biggest AI model is challenging American dominance
- Inside the collapse of Builder.ai: Was it even an AI company?
Builder.ai, a London-based startup that marketed itself as an AI platform for building apps, relied largely on human developers, according to former employees interviewed by Rest of World. Ex-employees said the company used AI for relatively basic tasks while outsourced developers in countries including India and Ukraine did most of the work, and that delivery timelines often ran longer than clients expected. The company, once valued at $1.5 billion, was reported by Bloomberg to have inflated revenues before it filed for bankruptcy in the U.S., and its CEO at the time of its collapse, Manpreet Ratia, denied that the company misled people about its technology.
- Worldcoin is surging in Argentina thanks to 288% inflation
Worldcoin's iris-scanning program has grown rapidly in Argentina, where about half a million people have given their biometric data to the project amid 288% inflation and rising unemployment. Rest of World reports that a network of intermediaries earning commissions per scan has recruited many participants, while experts warn about the risks of handing over biometric data in a country with weak privacy laws. Nearly 60 Orb centers have opened across Argentina in under a year, mostly in working-class areas around Buenos Aires. Two provinces are pursuing legal investigations, and Worldcoin says it responds promptly to requests and aims to be transparent about its practices.
- You can’t play on both sides of the Great Firewall
The U.S. is close to banning TikTok, with the House having passed a bill and the Senate vote still pending, and the author argues that the logic behind a ban reflects a drift toward digital mercantilism, with private companies used as resources in great-power conflicts. Lawmakers' core concern is that ByteDance runs social networks in both China and the U.S., and there is no guarantee that Chinese censorship and legal access procedures for Douyin won't spill over onto TikTok. The article notes that Google's abandoned Chinese search project, revealed by a whistleblower in 2018, suggests it is difficult for online services to operate on both sides of the Great Firewall.
- The AI job interviewer will see you now
Companies are increasingly using AI avatars and large language models to conduct job interviews, a trend the article says is spreading from the U.S. to China and India. Floria Tan, an applicant for an internship at Meituan, said her first video interview felt like a written exam rather than a conversation. Talently.ai founder Qasim Salam says his service can save clients as much as 80% of the work hours needed to fill a role and argues AI interviewers are less biased than humans. Hilke Schellmann, who studies algorithmic bias with the Pulitzer Center, says the lack of transparency is the most alarming aspect and wants clearer technical reports before such systems are used.
- Rest of World’s 2024 AI elections tracker
- Why are people lining up for Worldcoin eyeball scans? “Easy $50”
Rest of World reporters visited Worldcoin sign-up booths in Nairobi, Bengaluru and Hong Kong and found that interest was driven mainly by sign-up bonuses rather than the project's goals. Worldcoin's official launch on July 24 brought crowds, including in Nairobi, where people were offered 25 WLD tokens, roughly $50. Regulators responded: France's privacy regulator called the strategy "highly questionable," and Kenya's data protection commissioner urged public vigilance while assessing its legality. Worldcoin did not respond to a request for comment.
- Argentina’s OnlyFans stars are coaching a new generation of performers
Argentine OnlyFans creators who have become paid coaches are teaching newer creators how to earn income on the platform, as economic hardship drives more women to join. Maybel Delvalle, 25, runs a course starting at about $25 and says she receives 50 to 60 new students per month. Antonella Gularte, who charges over $300 for courses that include sessions with a nutritionist, yoga instructor, English teacher and accountant, reports about 200 clients last year. Economist Camila Baron told Rest of World that since President Javier Milei took office in December and ordered female-centric social programs cut, women have shown greater desperation to make quick money.
- Starlink is now cheaper than leading internet provider in some African countries
Rest of World's analysis found that in at least five of the 16 African countries where Starlink operates, its monthly subscription costs less than the leading fixed internet provider, not counting upfront hardware costs. The countries identified are Kenya, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and Cape Verde, based on prices as of January 9, 2025. Starlink prices range from $10 in Kenya to $50 in Eswatini, and most African countries' cheapest plans cost between $28 and $34 per month. Nitinder Mohan, a computer science professor at Delft University of Technology, raised concerns that a single dominant provider could leave customers vulnerable to price hikes.
- Companies in Mexico embrace AI to resurrect the dead
Several companies in Mexico launched AI campaigns that create animated images of deceased relatives ahead of Day of the Dead, raising concerns about misuse and data protection. Cerveza Victoria started its campaign before the November celebrations, and J. García López, a funeral home, ran a campaign called "You're still here" that received over 15,000 requests for AI-generated videos, according to CEO Óscar Padilla. Luis Osorio of Inetum said Mexico's data protection law does not cover these practices, leaving no legal clarity on how photos of dead people may be used. Padilla said files are deleted after being sent to users, while Cerveza Victoria's terms state it is not accountable for risks of AI-generated images.
- How Singapore became the ideal testing ground for self-driving cars
Singapore has become a testing ground for self-driving vehicles, deploying more autonomous vehicles on public roads than many countries, with a focus on labor shortages and land scarcity. The Robobus, launched in June by China's WeRide, is the first autonomous vehicle open to the public and runs a 1.2-kilometer loop with four stops on Sentosa. Singapore ranked first among 30 countries on KPMG's Autonomous Vehicles Readiness Index, and it has clear AV safety, testing and deployment guidelines. Transport Minister Chee Hong Tat said the focus will be on simpler bus routes and logistics vehicles, and that the government wants to move faster but safely.
- Chinese startups supported by Microsoft and Google worked with police
Rest of World reports that Microsoft and Google have supported Chinese tech startups that provide censorship and policing technologies, through their incubator programs. Data Grand sold censorship software before joining Microsoft's program in 2017 and later developed automation tools for Chinese police. DeepGlint, a facial recognition firm that joined in 2013, worked with police in Xinjiang and was sanctioned by the U.S. government in 2021. Microsoft did not respond to requests for comment, and Google declined to comment.
- Digital Divinity
Religious believers around the world are using new technologies in their daily worship, prayer and practice, according to an illustrated storybook from Rest of World. Its introduction says 6.75 billion people consider themselves religious and that technology is changing how they worship, pray and commune with the divine, from Seoul to Lagos. The examples include Hindu temples made with 3D printers and priests who dance on TikTok, with trends ranging from the unique and unexpected to the artificial and financial.
- How AI reduces the world to stereotypes
Rest of World found that Midjourney's image generator produces highly stereotyped depictions of national identities. In an analysis of 3,000 images generated from prompts such as "a person," "a woman," "a house," "a street," and "a plate of food" across China, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Nigeria, and the U.S., "an Indian person" was almost always an old man with a beard, and 99 of 100 "a Mexican person" images featured a sombrero or similar hat. Amba Kak, executive director of the AI Now Institute, said that flattening descriptions into particular stereotypes could be viewed negatively. Researchers attributed the patterns to likely bias in training data.
- Pakistan’s China-style firewall is rattling its tech industry
- Quiz: The world’s favorite apps
A Rest of World quiz tests readers on how people around the world use popular apps such as WhatsApp, Signal and Zello. Its answers note that more than 93% of Brazilian internet users use WhatsApp, and that WeChat has 1.3 billion monthly users. Kenyan internet users spend an average of three hours and 55 minutes a day on social media, more than any other country. Pakistan announced plans on August 2, 2024, to strongly limit VPN use, according to the chairperson of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, after VPN providers reported that downloads jumped 130%–400% when X was blocked in February.
- Musk said he’d eliminate bots from X. Instead, influence campaigns running wild
Researchers say influence campaigns on X are spreading largely unchecked since Elon Musk took over and cut the platform's trust and safety team, with flagged networks often left online. A Clemson University team found more than 460 accounts apparently coordinating in support of Rwandan president Paul Kagame before the July 15 election, and X took no action after they reported it. Global Witness found that more than 610,000 posts from "bot-like accounts" appeared around the U.K. election on July 4, and X sent only an automated reply. According to DFRLab's Andy Carvin, the platform laid off 80% of its trust and safety team.
- Indonesian fishermen are using a government AI tool to find their daily catch
Indonesian fisherman Dedi Arianto says the NN Marlin app, a government AI tool developed by the National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), has made his daily fishing more certain and efficient. The app uses satellite data and remote sensing to locate dense fishing grounds based on sea surface temperature and chlorophyll levels. Hundreds of fishermen use it, and each pays 1.2 million rupiah ($73) for a tablet with an internet subscription. Dedi says the fee is too high for some fishermen and that the app does not provide information on fish types.
- Worldcoin may not be legal in Colombia, but that’s not stopping it
- Indian students raging against celebrity YouTube teachers
- Can a church exist exclusively on the internet?
- Bangladesh’s internet blackout immobilizes its booming tech industry
Bangladesh's technology industry has been brought to a near standstill by a nationwide internet blackout that entered its third day, causing financial and reputational losses for thousands of companies. Internet services were shut on July 18 after violent clashes between police and student groups protesting a policy that reserves a portion of government jobs for descendants of 1971 war veterans. Russell T. Ahmed, president of the Bangladesh Association of Software and Information Services, called the blackout's reputational damage the most harmful part. Minister of state Mohammad A. Arafat blamed "arsonists" for the shutdown, while Robi, a mobile operator, said the government had suspended mobile internet services.
- Bhutan’s first AI startup is seven college kids in a dorm
- Kenya’s biggest protest in recent history played out on a walkie-talkie app
Zello, a walkie-talkie app developed by U.S. engineer Alexey Gavrilov in 2007, became the main tool protesters used to communicate, mobilize and coordinate during Kenya's June 2024 "GenZ protests." Six protesters told Rest of World the app helped them find meeting points, evade police and warn each other of danger. Zello was downloaded over 40,000 times on the Google Play store in Kenya between June 17 and June 25, according to company data, and it ranked third on Apple's App Store in Kenya from June 19 to 24, per Sensor Tower. Political analyst Herman Manyora said protesters turned their phones into walkie-talkies, and President William Ruto acknowledged the app's role on July 2.
- Microsoft Bing’s censorship in China is even more extreme than Chinese companies
Citizen Lab research shared with Rest of World found that Microsoft's Bing censors translation results in China more extensively than major Chinese services such as Baidu Translate and Tencent Machine Translation. In testing, Bing returns a blank output whenever the input mentions President Xi Jinping, while Baidu, Tencent and NetEase silently omit only the triggering sentences. The report analyzed 10,000 censorship applications across five translation services, and Citizen Lab also found that Bing's China search engine blocks more website domains than Baidu. Microsoft did not respond to requests for comment.
- The most important news from Apple isn’t about AI
- Why China still runs on Windows
- What the AI boom is getting wrong (and right), according to Hugging Face’s head
Irene Solaiman, Hugging Face's head of global policy, says the AI industry is behind in handling consent, bias and low-resource languages, and that these problems need to be addressed at the level of the whole system. She describes Hugging Face as advising regulators from the U.S. to the European Union while leading its own work on bias assessment and watermarking. On language, she says training and generating non-English text costs more per token, though OpenAI's GPT-4o launch and Cohere's Command R have cut tokenization costs for many languages. She also describes Hugging Face's work with the Indian government's Bhashini program on a Hinglish model and an evaluation leaderboard launched in Arabic and Korean.
- How Modi and the BJP turned WhatsApp into an election-winning machine
Rest of World reports that the BJP has built an extensive WhatsApp campaigning operation that shapes political messaging in India's elections, with its reach documented in detail in the small town of Mandi. Its analysis of activity in BJP-affiliated groups there found a network of more than 400 WhatsApp groups run by party volunteers, organized by location, profession, religion, caste and other demographics. The report also found that the closed nature of the platform blurs the line between party messaging and personal speech, making it hard for voters to tell which messages come from the BJP. Unnamed party leaders told the Deccan Herald that the BJP operates at least 5 million WhatsApp groups in India.
- Writers, publishers Singapore reject government plan to train AI on their work
- The TikTok ban is bigger than just ByteDance
The U.S. has passed a law requiring ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a ban, and the author expects its consequences to extend well beyond one company. The bill passed Congress with overwhelming support on Tuesday as part of a broader foreign aid package and was signed by President Biden on Wednesday morning. TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew said the company will keep fighting in the courts, and the article expects a legal challenge to take at least two years. The piece argues that Chinese companies such as drone maker DJI face similar security concerns, and that TikTok marks a new front because it targets a platform for public information and ideas rather than physical goods.
- Inside TSMC’s struggle to build a chip factory in the U.S. suburbs
TSMC's chip plant in the Phoenix suburbs has fallen well behind schedule amid tension between Taiwanese and American staff, according to Rest of World. The plant, originally set to begin operating in 2024, is now slated to start production in 2025, and about 2,200 people work there, roughly half deployed from Taiwan. American engineers described rigid hierarchies, while Taiwanese veterans said their American counterparts lacked the dedication and obedience they see as key to the company's success. G. Dan Hutcheson, an analyst at TechInsights, told Rest of World that the company "tried to make Arizona Taiwanese" and that "it's just not going to work." TSMC did not respond to the outlet's questions.
- AI “deathbots” are helping people in China grieve
AI "deathbots" that imitate deceased loved ones have become a popular application of generative AI in China, where entrepreneurs sell chatbots with cloned voices and appearances resembling the dead. Yancy Zhu said a bot made from her late father on the Glow platform helped her feel she was speaking to him again, while Arthur Wu, a Beijing product manager, has attracted about 2,000 users, including 100 paid customers. Ting Guo of the Chinese University of Hong Kong said limited public bereavement resources made online fortune-telling and AI chatbots accessible means of consolation. Experts quoted in the article, including Nathan Mladin of Theos, warned that the bots could stop people from resuming their lives.
- Want to stop livestreaming? That’ll be $42,000
Chinese livestreamers who quit their contracts often face large penalties from talent agencies, according to a Rest of World investigation. Calligraphy teacher Liu Fengyang, 58, says a Dalian agency that promised him fame and income never provided equipment or training, and then sued him for 200,000 yuan ($28,104) for breach of contract. Songqin, who streamed on Huya, was ordered to pay 100,000 yuan ($14,051) after a prolonged lawsuit, and China Judgements Online recorded at least 23 livestreaming contract judgments in December 2023 alone.
- The Taliban’s curious love of SIM cards - Rest of World
The Taliban's free SIM card distribution to Afghans deported from Pakistan is seen by two sources as a way to collect biometric data and track people. Mohammad Najeeb Azizi, former chairman of the Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority, said the move seems driven by the government's interest in centralizing biometric data for identification, tracking, and surveillance, and Tolo News journalist Attaullah Omar said it was probably to keep track of refugees. Omar reported that families could receive up to four SIM cards, available to women as well, while Azizi said all five national operators reported positive growth despite regulatory uncertainty. The text claims that the Taliban values tracking women and girls more than the risk of giving them access to the wider world.
- What’s in a domain name?
Several memorable web domains belong to small island nations and territories, including Tuvalu's .tv, Guernsey's .gg and the British Indian Ocean Territory's .io, and these countries often earn significant revenue from selling them. Anguilla's .ai domain, which Vincent Cate of DataHaven.Net Ltd says earns around $3 million per month, reportedly accounts for about a third of the government's monthly budget and rose sharply after ChatGPT launched on November 30, 2022. Tuvalu's .tv deal with GoDaddy reportedly could bring in $10 million per year, one-sixth of its GDP, according to some reports.
- Why thousands of young Chinese people use a pink dinosaur as their alias
Most discussed
- You can’t play on both sides of the Great Firewall
- Myanmar residents struggle to overcome severe internet blackouts with Starlink
- Argentina’s OnlyFans stars are coaching a new generation of performers
- Iran’s internet blackout may become permanent, with access for elites only
- China’s biggest AI model is challenging American dominance