Selected Features & Investigations

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How Shein Beat Amazon at Its Own Game — And Reinvented Fast Fashion (Rest of World)

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The End of Foreign-Language Education (The Atlantic)

 

TikTok's Secret Plans for an Online Shopping Empire in the US (Semafor)​

 

How Starbucks Uses Dubious ‘Connection Scores’ to Evaluate Its Workforce (NBC News)

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China

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Amazon Suppliers Linked to Forced Labor in China (NBC News)

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How the West Got China’s Social Credit System Wrong (Wired)​

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The Absurdity of Believing China’s Great at Protecting Kids Online (The Atlantic)

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China Is Home to a Growing Market for Dubious “Emotion Recognition” Technology (Rest of World)

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On YouTube, China is Always About to Collapse (Semafor)

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​ByteDance’s Baby Bump: Why Did the TikTok Parent Buy a Chain of Birthing Centers? (The Information)

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E-Commerce

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These Trump Socks Went Viral—and a Nightmare on Amazon Began (Wired)

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The Influencers Getting Paid to Promote Designer Knockoffs From China (Wired)

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Chinese Shopping Sites Encroach on Amazon's Turf (Semafor)

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Chinese Fast-Fashion Giant Shein Enters DC's Crosshairs (Semafor)

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Shein Calls for Makeover of US Trade Rule That Critics Used Against It (Semafor)

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TikTok​

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A TikTok Whistleblower Got DC’s Attention. Do His Claims Add Up? (Wired)

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Does TikTok Really Pose a Risk to US National Security? (Wired)

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The Sneaky Way TikTok Is Connecting You to Real-Life Friends (Wired)

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Behind Bars, but Still Posting on TikTok (Wired)

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Asian and Middle Eastern Users Tilt TikTok Balance Toward Palestinians (Semafor)

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Artificial Intelligence

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Startups Are Using ChatGPT to Meet Soaring Demand for Chatbot Therapy (Semafor)

 

White House Could Force Cloud Companies to Disclose AI Customers (Semafor)

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The New Think Tanks Influencing AI Policy in Washington (Semafor)

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The 26-year-old CEO Who Became Washington’s AI Whisperer (Semafor)

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Essays & Oddities

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Mackenzie Bezos and the Myth of the Lone Genius Founder (Wired)

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Why I Love My Teeny-Tiny Knockoff Nokia (Wired)

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At an Outback Steakhouse Franchise, Surveillance Blooms (Wired)

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What Would Really Happen If Russia Attacked Undersea Internet Cables (Wired)

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Why So Many People Make Their Password ‘Dragon’ (Wired)

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