14:25

Virtual Currency

The invisible seizure: The quiet rise of state power over the global crypto economy

Global market valuation of virtual currencies has surged to an unprecedented $2.73 trillion, approaching half the value of the world’s gold reserves. Yet for many investors, the promise of decentralisation is overshadowed by a growing concern: digital assets may be seized without prior warning.

19:50

CHINESE ECONOMY

China unveils 15th Five-Year Plan to accelerate high-tech industrial growth

China’s top leadership has unveiled a new push to turn advanced technologies into large-scale industrial priorities as part of the country’s upcoming 15th Five-Year Plan, which will guide economic and social development from 2026 to 2030.

10:23

UN meeting

Melania Trump leads UN meeting on children affected by conflict

U.S. first lady, Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on children and education in conflict on Monday (2 March), a move criticised by Iran as hypocritical following U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered a UN warning about risks to children.

18:54

Google Maps

South Korea approves full Google Maps data exports after 20-year standoff

South Korea will soon cease to be one of the few countries where Google Maps does not function fully, after its security-conscious government reversed a two-decade-old policy and approved the export of high-precision map data to overseas servers.

15:40

View from Kazakhstan

Kazakhstan plans Central Asia’s largest data centre campus

Kazakhstan has launched a major project to build Central Asia’s largest data centre campus in Ekibastuz, aiming to position the country as a regional hub for digital infrastructure with a planned total energy capacity of up to 1 GW.

16:28

China

China's Spring Festival spending reveals changing consumer landscape

As the 2026 Spring Festival draws to a close, fresh data suggests China’s holiday spending boom reflects more than peak consumption. It points to a deeper structural transition, as consumers shift from buying more goods to buying in different ways.

16:47

India- Brazil

India and Brazil sign mining agreement as Modi aims for $20 billion trade by 2031

India and Brazil signed a mining and minerals cooperation pact on Saturday (21 February), as Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the two countries aim to increase bilateral trade to more than $20 billion within five years.

12:24

Technology

ByteDance to strengthen safeguards on AI tool Seedance 2.0 after claims of copyright infringement

ByteDance will take steps to prevent the unauthorised use of intellectual property on its artificial intelligence (AI) video generator Seedance 2.0, the Chinese technology firm said on Monday.

03:30

Technology

BMW recalls hundreds of thousands of cars due to fire risk

BMW is recalling a mid six figure number of vehicles worldwide after identifying a potential fire risk linked to the starter motor.

17:48

View from UK

UK chipmaker Fractile invests £100 million to expand AI chip production in Bristol

British chipmaker Fractile will invest £100 million over the next three years to expand its artificial intelligence hardware operations in the UK, opening a new engineering facility in Bristol as it ramps up production of next-generation AI systems.

16:57

Technology

With 1.125 billion internet users, AI is becoming everyday tech in China

China’s internet user base has climbed to about 1.125 billion people, highlighting the country’s vast digital reach and creating fertile ground for the rapid spread of generative artificial intelligence across daily life, work and business.

02:49

SpaceX acquires xAI

SpaceX acquires Musk’s xAI in push to build space-based AI ecosystem

Elon Musk’s rocket company SpaceX has acquired his artificial intelligence firm xAI, as the billionaire moves to bring more of his technology businesses under one structure.

20:18

Web Summit Qatar 2026

Web Summit Qatar 2026 opens as Doha positions itself as rising global tech hub

Web Summit Qatar 2026 opened in Doha on Sunday, drawing tens of thousands of founders, investors, policymakers and technology leaders to what organisers describe as one of the region’s largest digital economy gatherings.

09:47

Morning Brief

AnewZ Morning Brief - 28 January, 2026

Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief: here are the top news stories for the 28 January, covering the latest developments you need to know.

12:48

AI Race

Will the AI Race Integrate or Fragment Central Asia?

The post-pandemic period marked a turning point in global debates over politics, economics, and governance. In late 2022, the release of ChatGPT accelerated the shift from abstract discussions of artificial intelligence to its everyday relevance.

10:55

Azerbaijan - Israel ties

Israel and Azerbaijan deepen strategic alliance as Gideon Sa'ar meets President Aliyev

The strategic axis between Israel and Azerbaijan has been significantly reinforced this week as President Ilham Aliyev received Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar in Baku.

21:06

AI in Education

Kazakhstan to make ChatGPT Edu the backbone of its education system

Kazakhstan has joined the first international education programme launched by OpenAI and plans to introduce the specialised artificial intelligence (AI) system, ChatGPT Edu, into its national education framework.

20:56

Social Media

Elon Musk’s X back online after global outage

Tens of thousands of users were left unable to access Elon Musk’s social media platform X on Friday, with outages reported across multiple countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.

02:33

AI integration

Apple partners with Google to upgrade Siri

Apple will use Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence (AI) models for its revamped Siri voice assistant later this year, in a multi-year deal that strengthens the tech giants’ partnership and boosts Alphabet’s position in the race against OpenAI.

19:55

Uzbekistan green news

Uzbekistan to lift electric vehicle share to 10% by 2030 amid air quality concerns

Uzbekistan plans to significantly expand the use of electric vehicles (EVs), targeting a 10% share of all passenger cars by 2030.

16:46

X-AI deepfakes

UK regulator investigates X over AI tool Grok and sexualised imagery

The UK’s media regulator Ofcom has launched a formal investigation into the social media platform X, owned by US billionaire Elon Musk, over concerns that its artificial intelligence tool Grok has been used to generate sexualised images of women and children.

09:00

China-U.S.

China closing the technological gap with the U.S., AI Researchers say

Despite facing challenges in chip manufacturing, Chinese artificial intelligence (AI) researchers are optimistic about narrowing the technological gap with the United States, driven by an increasing culture of risk-taking and innovation.

11:25

Elon Musk's X

UK and EU pressure X as Indonesia bans Grok over deepfake abuse

Governments in Europe and Asia are stepping up pressure on X and its Grok chatbot after AI-generated sexualised images sparked regulatory action, with Indonesia becoming the first country to block access to the tool.

15:19

power grid technology

From darkness to power in a blink - China sends grid shield abroad

China has begun exporting a rapid blackout recovery technology designed to restore electricity in just 0.1 seconds, offering power grid protection to 12 countries facing rising risks of outages and instability.