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TikTok will comply with an under-16 ban in Australia on social media use. Photo: Shutterstock
Australia

TikTok will block under-16s in Australia to comply with ‘upsetting’ new law

Australia’s world-first legislation banning under-16s from social media platforms and websites comes into effect on December 10.

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Singapore

‘Better late than never’: Singapore parents laud curbs on phone use in schools

India

India scraps mandatory cybersecurity app on new phones after backlash

Australia

Fight’s over: YouTube becomes last major platform to accept Australia’s age rule

Despite agreeing to comply, YouTube maintains that it is still ‘fundamentally different’ from other social media services.

Six-year-old Enrique Navarro watches a show on YouTube at his home in western Sydney on October 30. Photo: AFP
Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

HK$60,000 fire subsidy only for Wang Fuk Court residents: Hong Kong minister

Home affairs minister Alice Mak issues clarification amid rumours of abuse, says no formal reports made so far.

Singapore

Singapore ‘sharenting’: where does openness end and overexposure begin?

While sharing children’s exam results may serve to document life’s journey, it may also expose them to danger, counsellors say.

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Wealth: Alternative Investments

Could investing in China’s AI industry prove more lucrative than the US’?

Amid US fears of an AI bubble, experts argue that China’s home-grown innovation offers robust growth opportunities for investors.

Supported by
BNP Paribas Wealth Management
Visitors watch robots fight at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai, in July. Photo: EPA
Hong Kong’s Tai Po fire tragedy

‘Feeling powerless’: Hong Kong internet users grieve over Tai Po blaze

As death toll rises, residents offer condolences to victims and call for support and blood donations.

Asia travel

Meet the quokka, the ‘world’s happiest animal’. Just don’t touch them, please

Famed for their perpetual smiles, quokkas are found on Australia’s Rottnest Island. But if you’re going there for a selfie, follow the rules.

Trending in Hong Kong

Video | Watsons executive saves woman from sea

Ed van de Weerd, CEO for Health & Beauty Continental Europe of AS Watson, was in Hong Kong for a visit when he jumped into Victoria Harbour to rescue a woman.

Watsons executive saves woman from sea
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Australia

Snapchat makes Australian teens verify age as social media ban looms

From December 10, social media platforms in Australia must remove users aged below 16 or face fines, in one of the strictest bans globally.

Bianca Navarro, 10, looks at a screenshot of herself using a Snapchat filter at her home in Sydney on October 30. Photo: AFP
Baidu

China’s Baidu posts 50% rise in AI revenue despite third-quarter slump

In spite of sluggish advertising, AI operations provide ‘a solid foundation for sustainable long-term growth’, Baidu CFO He Haijian says.

United States

ChatGPT and X among sites disrupted in worldwide Cloudflare outage

The company, whose network handles around a fifth of web traffic, says a fix has been deployed and services restored.

US-Asean relations

What US anti-scam ‘strike force’ means for Southeast Asia’s cybercrime fight

Analysts say the US initiative can serve as a coordination blueprint to push back against transnational criminal enterprises.

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US Attorney Jeanine Pirro points to a text message sent by a scammer as she announces the Scam Centre Strike Force in Washington on Wednesday. Photo: AP
China’s internet censorship

Are China’s stars leading fans to be more nationalist – or the other way round?

Study out of the US and Britain looks at how nationalism flows and influences others on Chinese social media.

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Researchers from universities in the US and Britain used “vector autoregression” to assess how Chinese celebrities and fans influence each other through their social media posts, specifically on Weibo, over time. Photo: AFP
Artificial intelligence

Alibaba’s wholesale platform empowers merchants with AI tool to source products

Alibaba.com, which serves more than 200,000 merchants worldwide, will make its new AI Mode search tool available next month.

Video gaming

Forget apps and consoles, video game players are returning to websites

Web games are surging in popularity as players experiencing app fatigue seek quick, free access to fun without the high console costs.

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Louvre

Video | Mystery ‘Fedora Man’ in Louvre heist solved

The ‘Fedora Man’, photographed in a striking vintage suit next to police on the day of the Louvre heist, enjoyed reading wild theories about himself.

Mystery ‘Fedora Man’ in Louvre heist solved
Technology

‘Western tech dominance fading,’ Web Summit CEO says at ‘Davos for geeks’

Paddy Cosgrave says that situation is clearer ‘this year, more than any year before’, which is evidence of a multipolar tech industry.

France

Louvre’s ‘mystery detective’ is a suburban teen, not a Paris sleuth

The ‘Fedora Man’, photographed in a striking vintage suit next to police on the day of the Louvre heist, enjoyed reading wild theories about himself.

Alibaba

Alibaba doubles down on ‘super-scale’ computing infrastructure for AI sector

Alibaba’s ‘super AI cloud’ will have the required technology to meet the industry’s massive computing demand, CEO Eddie Wu Yongming says.

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Alibaba Group Holding CEO Eddie Wu Yongming speaks at the opening of the World Internet Conference Wuzhen Summit on Friday. Photo: Reuters
China-France relations

Shein wants dialogue with French government over website suspension

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu’s shock decision came on same day the fast-fashion giant opened its first permanent store in Paris.

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Chinese fast-fashion retailer Shein opens its first permanent store at the Paris department store BHV. Photo: Reuters
Malaysia

Roblox vows to step up monitoring after Malaysian boy stabs brother in dispute

Malaysia’s youth and sports minister says the company has agreed to improve safety through AI and human monitoring.

E-commerce

Alibaba boosts instant commerce drive with US$281 million convenience store plan

A network of Taobao-branded partner convenience stores is expected to roll out in more than 200 cities across the mainland.

Malaysia

Meta disagrees with Malaysia’s social media licensing framework, proposes talks

Malaysia says its licensing rules are aimed at curbing scams, online gambling and child pornography.

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Meta’s three social media platforms, Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, on a mobile phone. The firm has been criticised over content that is harmful to young people on its platforms. Photo: Shutterstock
Quantum computing

How quantum computing puts Asia’s financial systems at risk

Uneven security safeguards leave the region vulnerable to quantum disruptions that could destabilise trust in digital finance, experts warn.

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Quantum computing has the potential to break public-key cryptography or security systems of digital tokens such as bitcoin. Photo: Shutterstock
United States

Elon Musk launches Grokipedia to rival ‘left-biased’ Wikipedia

The website’s content is generated by artificial intelligence and generative AI assistant Grok.

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France

10 stand trial in France for alleged sexist harassment of Brigitte Macron

The eight men and two women stand accused of making false claims online about the French first lady’s gender and sexuality.

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