A substantial portion of the world’s trade is done in United States dollars, creating problems for businesses in countries with a dollar shortage. Blockchain startup XREX was launched to help cross-border businesses in emerging markets perform faster transactions with products like a payment escrow service and crypto-fiat exchange platform. The Taipei-headquartered company announced today it has […]
Apple launches a new iOS app, ‘Siri Speech Study,’ to gather feedback for Siri improvements
Apple recently began a research study designed to collect speech data from study participants. Earlier this month, the company launched a new iOS app called “Siri Speech Study” on the App Store, which allows participants who have opted in to share their voice requests and other feedback with Apple. The app is available in a […]
‘Law and order collapsed’: Hong Kong artist Kacey Wong on finding freedom in Taiwan
A familiar face at pro-democracy rallies in the city, Wong felt forced to flee after being named in a hit list of cultural undesirablesFor much of the last year Kacey Wong was waking up in Hong Kong and checking social media to see if friends had been …
Is Taiwan Next?
“Nancy had given up her career to help Hong Kongers in exile. She wanted to protect Taiwan’s own nascent democracy, but she wasn’t sure where that had really gotten her. Still, she was happy she had.”
In Taipei, young people watched as the Hong Kong p…
AppWorks closes third fund with $150M for Taiwan and Southeast Asia startups
AppWorks, the Taipei-based venture capital firm focused on Taiwan and Southeast Asia, announced today it has closed its oversubscribed third fund, raising $150 million. AppWorks Fund III’s limited partners include Taiwan Mobile, Axiom Asia Private Capital, Fubon Life, TransGlobe Life, Hongtai Group, Wistron, Cathay Life, Phison Electronics and Taiwan’s National Development Fund. Many of these […]
China recalls Lithuania ambassador in Taiwan diplomatic office row
Plan for representative offices draws angry response from Beijing amid heightened tensions with TaipeiBeijing has recalled its ambassador from Lithuania and asked Vilnius to do the same, over plans by the European country and Taiwan to establish recipr…
Will Taiwan’s Olympic win over China herald the end of ‘Chinese Taipei’?
Victory in Tokyo has reignited debate over a decades-old compromise with the island’s goliath neighbourIn the hours between Taiwan winning gold and silver in Olympic badminton on the weekend, local courts in Taipei were packed with enthusiastic young p…