Dispatches from Rest of World: September 25

Here are this week's biggest stories in tech from the regions that we cover. For more exclusive content, sign up for Rest of World's weekly global newsletter .

Image source: Quiz: How much do you know about money?

Africa

Digital Realty Nigeria, a global data platform, has said that Nigeria does not have enough infrastructure to support its massive AI aspirations. For instance, the data center capacity in the country is just 5% of what it needs given the size of the economy, population, and the government’s digital ambition, Ikechukwu Nnamani, CEO of Digital Realty Nigeria, said. “We’re just at the beginning stages of what needs to be done to achieve a truly digital economy,” Nnamani said.

—? dámiláre dòsùnmú from Lagos

China?

I got to play the role of a researcher this summer, working with University of British Columbia computer scientist Nguyen Phong Hoang on the first project based on his new GFWeb platform that can pinpoint the dates the Chinese government blocked websites. Previously, this was impossible to do at scale. Rest of World independently analyzed the patterns and timing of Beijing’s blocking of popular AI websites like ChatGPT, Hugging Face, and Perplexity, and created a custom interactive graphic for readers to explore the data we uncovered. Check it out here , and let us know what else you would like to find out about China’s internet controls.??

—? Joanna Chiu in Vancouver?

Latin America

Ride-hailing apps like Uber, Didi or InDriver are not recognized by the law in Ecuador, but the country’s Constitutional Court has ruled that fining taxi drivers for using these platforms is unconstitutional. Ride-hailing apps have operated in Ecuador for at least seven years now, however, they are considered illegal in the country. This means drivers are forced to pay a fine of up to $920 or risk getting their cars impounded if they are caught seeking passengers through these apps. The legal status of the apps is still dicey but gig workers in the country celebrated the court’s decision as a positive sign.

—? Daniela Dib in Mexico City

South Asia

India’s commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal has launched the Bharat Startup Knowledge Access Registry (BHASKAR), a centralized platform that aims to connect the country’s over 146,000 startups with investors, service providers, mentors, and government bodies. “We should bring all the separate elements onto one platform,” Goyal said at the launch , so that the youth in smaller cities are not left behind in terms of knowledge.

—? Ananya Bhattacharya in Mumbai

Southeast Asia

Indonesia is drafting a regulation on the use of AI to ensure equality and fairness, and minimize any potential harms, according to the IT ministry. The regulation will have clear ethical guidelines for transparency in data use, and ensure that any AI-generated information is reliable and accountable. It will emphasize the importance of data and user security, inclusivity and non-discrimination. There is growing concern in the region on AI’s impacts, with Singapore already having a national strategy on AI.

— Rina Chandran in Bangkok