News
Meet UpScrolled, the anti-censorship TikTok alternative
2+ hour, 2+ min ago (228+ words) The company's CEO says users are flooding the platform after the sale of TikTok in the U.S. Within hours of the deal for TikTok's U.S. operations being announced last week, Issam Hijazi noticed a big uptick in users to his social media…...
Iran’s internet blackout may become permanent, with access for elites only
5+ day, 6+ hour ago (705+ words) The regime is testing a two-tier internet where access becomes a vetted privilege. Its economic cost could be staggering. Iran's near-total communications blackout has entered its 16th day, but that's just a live test. Following a repressive crackdown on protests, the…...
Iran crippled Starlink and why the rest of the world should worry
2+ week, 19+ hour ago (596+ words) The service became synonymous with censorship-proof connectivity. Iran has just proved that assumption wrong. Iran is systematically crippling Starlink, the satellite internet service said to be almost impossible to jam. Military-grade GPS jammers deployed since January 8 have cut satellite internet…...
The day the cloud went out
3+ week, 2+ day ago (1101+ words) Entrepreneurs and tech workers from around the world describe how they navigated the many cloud outages in 2025. November 18 was supposed to be a routine workday for Rwanda-based entrepreneur Derrick Ikenga. But it turned out to be a nightmare he wasn't…...
How Starlink became the world’s internet alternative
1+ mon, 2+ week ago (122+ words) Rest of World is an international nonprofit journalism organization. We document what happens when technology, culture and the human experience collide, in places that are typically overlooked and underestimated. Elon Musk's satellite internet service has found fans globally thanks to…...
How TikTok cozied up to wealthy investors in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
2+ mon, 3+ week ago (443+ words) In her new book, Every Screen on the Planet: The War Over TikTok, journalist Emily Baker-White charts the Chinese app's rise to becoming a global juggernaut. Here is an excerpt on the company's courtship of the Gulf nations ahead of…...
China, Taiwan, and the vulnerable web of undersea cables
3+ mon, 1+ week ago (256+ words) In his new book, The Web Beneath the Waves, writer Samanth Subramanian examines big tech's role in subsea cables and growing geopolitical tensions around them. This is an excerpt on the threats that Taiwan faces from China. Tsung directed me…...
Out of space: Picturing the big, crowded business of satellite internet
6+ mon, 4+ week ago (590+ words) The idea of a space-based internet is almost as old as the internet itself. But thanks to a rush in technological advancements in the past decade, satellite internet has exploded in popularity, reaching areas where traditional land-based internet infrastructure is…...
iPhones were already losing ground in China. Then came Trump’s tariffs
9+ mon, 2+ week ago (585+ words) Joanna Chiu is the China Editor at Rest of World based in Vancouver, Canada. She has more than 15 years of reporting and editing experience. Before joining Rest of World, she covered national and international news for the Toronto Star, and…...
Starlink is coming to India. Here’s what to know
10+ mon, 2+ week ago (513+ words) Starlink has finally made its way into India. In an announcement on Tuesday, India's second-largest telecom firm, Bharti Airtel, said it has signed an agreement with SpaceX to bring Starlink to the country. Under the partnership, Starlink will help Airtel…...