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North Korean leader Kim Jong inspects the training base of the special operation armed force of the Korean People's Army at an undisclosed location in the country on Sept. 11.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 18, 2024

North Korea fires off 'multiple' ballistic missiles in latest show of force

The Defense Ministry in Tokyo said the latest launches saw the missiles splash down into waters outside Japan's exclusive economic zone.
Phillies players celebrate after a win over the Marlins in Miami earlier this month.
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 18, 2024

DraftKings sued by MLB Players Union for using names and images

Revenue has expanded at DraftKings as it attracted more loyal bettors, even as it faced increased competition from online peers and legacy casinos.
Maritime Self-Defense Force explosive ordinance disposal technicians deploy a Remus 100 unmanned underwater vehicle to conduct mine hunting operations in Southern California during the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) exercise in July 2018.
JAPAN
Sep 18, 2024

Japan maritime drone tech to feature heavily in AUKUS tie-up

AUKUS leaders have stated the group’s intention to “leverage Japan’s deep technical expertise,” but provided no timeline as to when the tie-up begins.
Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Hiroshi Moriya speaks during a news conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Wednesday.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Sep 18, 2024

Japanese school student attacked in Shenzhen

Local authorities have taken the attacker into custody and are questioning him.
Tokyo Metro is expected to announce on Friday details of its initial public offering, with sources saying the firm is considering introducing shareholder benefits.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 18, 2024

Tokyo Metro considers a shareholder benefits program

The subway operator is expected to announce details of its IPO on Friday, which may value the company around ¥700 billion ($5 billion).
Health ministry officials inspect the Wakayama factory of Kobayashi Pharmaceutical in March after reports of health damage surfaced among people who took the firm's red yeast rice supplements.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Sep 18, 2024

Puberulic acid confirmed as source of beni kōji health issues

The substance produced by blue mold was the cause of kidney problems suffered by consumers of the Kobayashi Pharma supplements, the health ministry said.
A man reacts while holding a Hezbollah flag during the funeral of people killed after hundreds of paging devices exploded in a deadly wave across Lebanon the previous day, in Beirut on Wednesday.
WORLD
Sep 19, 2024

Israel cites ‘new phase’ in regional war after Lebanon blasts

More military resources will be deployed to the north of the country, where Israel has been exchanging rocket fire with Hezbollah militants for almost a year.
Defense Minister Wellington Koo (second left) inspects troops during a live fire exercise at the Fangshan training grounds in Pingtung, Taiwan, on Aug 26.
ASIA PACIFIC
Sep 19, 2024

Taiwan 'paying great attention' to Hezbollah pager explosions

Taiwan-based Gold Apollo said it did not manufacture the devices used in the attack in Lebanon.
Brad Smith, president of Microsoft, before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
Sep 19, 2024

Microsoft executive warns of meddling in final days of U.S. election

Brad Smith said lessons should be learned from certain other elections that have seen fake information circulated.
Comedian Yuriyan Retriever takes on the role of Japan’s most hated heel, Kaoru “Dump” Matsumoto, in “The Queen of Villains.”
CULTURE / TV & Streaming
Sep 20, 2024

Yuriyan Retriever is Japan's biggest heel — and proud of it

The comedian takes on the role of Kaoru “Dump” Matsumoto, a real-life rule-breaking brawler in women’s professional wrestling, in Netflix's “The Queen of Villains.”
Marina Tsukada got the idea for her anthology “Mitsuki, Sekai” from her acquaintance with the two young lead actors, whom she first met at a video workshop she conducted in Nagano Prefecture.
CULTURE / Film
Sep 20, 2024

Marina Tsukada lets local lives shape her work

The director’s latest, “Mitsuki, Sekai,” is part of an ongoing project that traces the lives of Nagano Prefecture-based children for a decade until they reach adulthood.
Red Bull's Max Verstappen speaks during a news conference in Singapore on Thursday.
MORE SPORTS / Auto Racing
Sep 20, 2024

Max Verstappen riled up by call for F1 drivers to swear less

Mercedes's seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton took issue with the FIA's comparison to rappers, saying there was a "racial element" at play.
“Patlabor: The Movie” keeps the fun and irreverence of the small-screen series while adding a more contemplative touch.
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
Sep 20, 2024

At 35, ‘Patlabor’ now looks awfully prescient

The robot-centric film is back in theaters across Japan in celebration of its 35th anniversary, and the future it paints looks mighty familiar.
A man holds a walkie-talkie device after he removed the battery during a funeral for those killed after hundreds of paging devices exploded in a deadly wave across Lebanon the previous day, in Beirut's southern suburbs on Wednesday.
WORLD
Sep 20, 2024

Exploding pagers attack shakes global trust in supply-chain security

While booby-trapped devices have been used in spycraft for years, the scale and violence of the attacks in Lebanon alarmed even some seasoned officials.
A smartphone running ChatGPT4o as it tries to solve a geometry problem in San Francisco on May 28.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 20, 2024

OpenAI unveils new ChatGPT that can reason through math and science

The new technology is part of a wider effort to build AI that can reason through complex tasks.
Scientists used a version of ChatGPT to challenge conspiracy theories and beliefs and found people more open to evidence than expected, contradicting the "post-truth" era idea.
COMMENTARY
Sep 20, 2024

AI can debunk conspiracy theories better than humans

Believers often invest huge amounts of time in researching their theories online. Maybe only LLMs can keep up.
Japanese radio equipment maker Icom director Yoshiki Enomoto shows its model IC-V82 device, which the company said they stopped production in 2014, during an interview at its headquarters in Osaka on Thursday.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Sep 21, 2024

Hack of Hezbollah devices exposes dark corners of Asia supply chains

Counterfeiting, surplus inventories and complex contract manufacturing deals can sometimes make it impossible to identify the source of a product.
Warships and fighter jets of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy take part in a military display in the South China Sea in April 2018.
ASIA PACIFIC / FOCUS
Sep 21, 2024

U.S. leans on shipbuilding prowess of allies to compete with China

America’s shipbuilding industry has virtually collapsed over the last generation, raising concerns amid its rivalry with China.
Smoke rises from Jabal al-Rihan in Lebanon amid ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces on Saturday.
WORLD
Sep 22, 2024

Israeli jets pound Lebanon after deadly Beirut strike

For nearly a year, Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon have traded fire with Israel in support of Hamas, whose Oct. 7 attack on Israel triggered war in Gaza.
A woman passes an "akichi" (vacant lot) in Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. The capital is littered with such small lots in part because of Japan's aging and shrinking population.
JAPAN / Society / Longform
Sep 21, 2024

Dealing with rising land vacancies as Japan shrinks

"Akichi," or vacant plots of land, are nothing new to the urban landscape. As the population decreases, however, the challenge is how to handle their steady increase.
A stranded car is seen on a mud-covered road following heavy rain in the city of Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, on Sunday.
JAPAN
Sep 22, 2024

Six dead and six more missing after 'unprecedented' rains in quake-hit Ishikawa

Authorities called for continued vigilance due to the risk of landslides and flooding in rivers and low-lying areas.
A closure order on the door to the Ramallah Al Jazeera office in the West Bank after the Israeli raid on Sunday
WORLD / Politics
Sep 22, 2024

Israel forces raid Al Jazeera TV in West Bank and order 45-day closure

The Israeli parliament passed a law in early April allowing the banning of foreign media broadcasts deemed harmful to state security.
Kishida thanked Khurelsukh at the meeting Sunday for Mongolia's cooperation over the issue of North Korea's abductions of Japanese nationals decades ago.
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 23, 2024

Japan and Mongolia leaders affirm defense equipment accord

The pact is designed to allow the two countries to export defense equipment and technologies to each other and to ensure their appropriate management after the transfers.
Intel has been working on an expensive plan to remake itself and bring in new products, technology and outside customers under Chief Executive Officer Pat Gelsinger.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 23, 2024

Apollo to offer multibillion-dollar investment in Intel

The development comes as San Diego-based Qualcomm floats a friendly takeover of Intel, raising the prospect of one of the biggest-ever M&A deals.
The powertrain of a Mercedes-Benz EQS 450 4Matic SUV. A Mercedes-Benz electric vehicle burst into flames in the South Korean city of Incheon in July, fueling public fear over the safety of battery-powered cars in recent months.
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 23, 2024

A Mercedes-Benz fire could cloud South Korea’s EV shift, or give it a boost

Seoul's push for battery-supplier transparency and parking lot safety could pave the way for a more resilient environment for EVs in the future.
Chevrolet Silverado 1500s and GMC Sierra 1500s make their way through an assembly line at the General Motors assembly plant in Fort Wayne, Indiana, on April 9.
BUSINESS
Sep 24, 2024

Biden administration proposes ban of Chinese and Russian car parts

The proposed ban is aimed at the sale and import of Chinese- and Russian-made hardware and software for connected vehicles.
Volunteers distribute food bags to people  in Rishon LeZion in central Israel on Aug. 21.
WORLD
Sep 24, 2024

Israeli economy struggles under weight of Gaza war

Mass protests against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's controversial judicial reforms had already weakened Israel's economy prior to the Hamas attack on October 7.
EV cars are pictured inside BYD's first electric vehicle (EV) factory in Southeast Asia, a fast-growing regional EV market where it has become the dominant player, in Rayong, Thailand, on July 4.
BUSINESS / Tech
Sep 25, 2024

Biden's car-tech ban is a powerful new weapon against Chinese EVs

The ban on Chinese hardware and software, announced by the U.S. Commerce Department, is the Biden administration's latest salvo.
Official Kinoko no Yama earphones by Meiji (right) next to a counterfeit product
BUSINESS / Companies
Sep 25, 2024

Meiji blocks import of counterfeit Kinoko no Yama earphones

The original mushroom-shaped wireless earphones, a quirky iteration of the famous sweet treat, debuted in March on a limited run and quickly sold out.
Economic security minister Sanae Takaichi, a candidate in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s presidential election, speaks during a debate in Tokyo on Sept. 14.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Sep 25, 2024

Does Sanae Takaichi have a real shot at becoming Japan's first female leader?

After failing to win the party presidency in 2021, Takaichi is trying her luck once again — and this time her chances of winning seem better than before.

Longform

Ayumi Matsuki, a priestess at Yoshiwara Shrine, shows off some "o-mamori" charms. She says visitors to the shrine have increased since the NHK drama “Unbound” began airing this month.
Tracing Tsutaya Juzaburo, Edo’s media maverick