#andrew deck

[biglisbonnews]

Global TikTok creators depend on US viewers. A TikTok ban would be devastating Without Americans on the app, advertising dollars are at risk. https://restofworld.org/2023/global-tiktok-creators-us-ban/

[biglisbonnews]

“Sushi terrorism”: viral pranks have caused an all-out panic in Japan Twitter antics have led to three arrests, and fears over the end of the sushi train tradition. Here's how the terror escalated so fast. https://restofworld.org/2023/japan-sushi-pranks-lead-to-arrest/

[biglisbonnews]

Days after a promised refund, some FTX Japan users are still waiting for their money Some Japanese FTX customers are being told they're ineligible for withdrawals. https://restofworld.org/2023/some-ftx-japan-users-still-waiting-for-money/

[biglisbonnews]

This Japanese manga artist–turned-politician is taking on AI art Lawmakers have floated policy responses to protect artists, but some question whether they can follow through. https://restofworld.org/2023/generative-ai-japanese-politicians-manga/

[biglisbonnews]

Anime artists are panicking over Netflix’s AI experiment Background illustrators worry they’re being automated out of a job. https://restofworld.org/2023/netflix-anime-ai-artists/

[asmallexperiment]

A Healthcare App of a Different Kind

To survive, China’s biggest gay dating app became a pharmacy:

From its Beijing headquarters, BlueCity has quietly built China’s largest internet company geared toward LGBTQI people, an online dating empire that rivals competitors like the U.S.-based Match Group. Its main app is Blued, a location-based dating and livestreaming service for gay and bisexual men, with over 60 million registered users worldwide, bypassing Grindr last year in India, Vietnam, the Philippines, South Korea, and China. After going public on the NASDAQ exchange in 2020, BlueCity expanded by acquiring Lesdo, one of the largest lesbian dating apps in China, and Finka, a social network for younger gay and bisexual men.

While it’s best-known for its dating services, BlueCity has succeeded domestically, in part, by positioning itself as an entertainment platform and sexual health company. Since its founding, BlueCity has operated an HIV-focused nonprofit and slowly embedded itself in the state’s public health initiatives to combat the virus. Now, it’s expanding into health care technology more formally, by launching a digital pharmacy and internet hospital for Chinese men.

I feel like there is a potentially dangerous cleverness to this, especially given the recent approach of Beijing to tech, but for now, it’s an intriguing case story.