A Chinese city that failed to attract people has become a sandbox for machines. Ordos, a coal-rich northern Chinese city that never took off after prices crashed in 2012, has...
TO GO WITH AFP STORY 'China-economy-society-property,FEATURE' by Allison JacksonA driver approaches an intersection in Kangbashi, a district on the outskirts of Ordos, in China's Inner Mongolia on April 20, 2011. Kangbashi district offers residents "new modern" living, with tree-lined streets, shiny apartment buildings, vast parklands, restaurants and even a motor racing track. But seven years after construction workers broke ground on the arid plateau, most of the apartments appear empty and the wide streets are almost deserted -- earning Kangbashi the tag of "ghost city". AFP PHOTO/Frederic J. BROWN (Photo credit should read FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images)
Zuhrotul Aprilia enjoys rambling on for hours about kitchenware from a studio in the Indonesian port city of Surabaya. Most days, she turns on her iPad and peddles pots and...
The runaway success of Chinese artificial intelligence models such as DeepSeek and Qwen has spurred every industry, from health care to agriculture to education, to integrate AI. Adoption of AI...
This story is adapted from writer Emily Wither’s recent Rest of World feature, Syria’s quest to build its own Silicon Valley. For the first time in a long time, Syrian...
China’s battery giants have pulled the plug on South Korea’s dominance in powering electric vehicles. South Korea’s three top EV battery makers — LG Energy Solution, SK On, and Samsung...
In the fierce global war over workers skilled in artificial intelligence, the United Arab Emirates is luring researchers with a custom-built AI university that offers what many scientists dream of:...
China flooded the world with electric cars. Its next target is freight trucks. BYD, the Chinese automaker that overtook Tesla in sales of electric cars last year, now ships electric...
Brazil’s judicial system — among the most litigious in the world — is turning to artificial intelligence for help. Judges are using AI to clear their dockets at a faster...
China’s long-standing efforts to bring back talent are starting to pay off at a time when its tech and science rivalry with the U.S. has intensified. According to a Stanford...
Argentina is known for its beef and soy exports. Now, in the age of artificial intelligence, it is also shipping talent overseas. Last year, Agustín Martínez, a researcher focused on...
It’s been a turbulent week for the global tech industry. On September 19, U.S. President Donald Trump announced a $100,000 fee for new applicants of H-1B visas, which allow highly...
The launch of Bangladesh’s first satellite sparked an explosion of national pride and a mini space race in the country’s colleges seven years ago. Now, the local engineers who control...
The United Arab Emirates’ digital revolution has an unlikely architect. Khazna, a specialized real estate company that builds and rents out data centers, has quietly become the UAE’s AI infrastructure...
Barred from many Western markets by U.S.-led restrictions, Huawei is doubling down on developing countries for its cloud and artificial intelligence businesses. The move has put Huawei on a collision...
A view of a Huawei retail store shows the company's logo and a large advertisement featuring a foldable smartphone on September 9, 2025, in Chongqing, China.
As the Léon Thévenin eased into Cape Town port last month, Shuru Arendse was ready to rush home to his family. He had a month off and a laundry list...
At the end of November, Hamza Hourani’s phone rang. It was a cloudy morning in Damascus, and some Syrians were quietly stocking their cupboards as rebel fighters marched south toward...
Behind a miles-long gray wall in the central Mexico town of Colón, a Microsoft data center portends the future for other data centers in the country. Unable to plug into...
Every government aiming for sovereign artificial intelligence has roughly the same mantra: build their own ChatGPT, leapfrog into AI leadership, and be free of foreign dependence. It’s a compelling narrative,...
Bashir Ahmad sold his wife’s gold jewelry to buy an electric three-wheeler that would revolutionize his apple business in Kashmir. Until winter arrived and killed it. On a freezing morning,...
A boy pushes an e-rickshaw in a snowbound area of Rafiabad, Jammu and Kashmir, India, on January 19, 2025. (Photo by Nasir Kachroo/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
A Vietnamese military-owned company has quietly become one of the most ambitious state-backed technology firms in the world. Viettel, launched by Vietnam’s Ministry of National Defense in 1989 to build...
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