Marvie Basilan

Scarborough Shoal, 11 years after a 10-week standoff between Philippine and Chinese warships, is again at center of a territorial dispute between China and the Philippines.

The layoffs will reportedly happen in the customer experience unit. Twitch last reduced its workforce in March after its parent company Amazon announced it was eliminating around 9,000 roles.

The Philippine Coast Guard said three Filipino fishermen died after a foreign commercial vessel "rammed" into a Filipino fishing boat early Monday around the vicinity waters of Scarborough Shoal.

Malaysia blamed forest fires in the islands of Sumatra and Kalimantan in neighboring Indonesia for the worsening air quality in parts of the country. Indonesia denied it, saying there was "no transboundary haze."

TikTok parent ByteDance was, at one point, valued at $400 billion. The short-form video hosting service has been banned by various Western governments amid cybersecurity concerns and questions over its alleged links to Beijing.

The SAMASAMA joint naval exercises have kicked off in the South China Sea as the Philippines continues to strengthen alliances with the U.S. and other countries amid escalating tensions in the disputed Scarborough Shoal.

North Korea said the IAEA was a "paid trumpeter" of the U.S. and has walked away from its mission of maintaining impartiality. The IAEA has not had access to the reclusive country since 2009.

Beijing is not sitting idly by after the U.S. State Department released a new report accusing China of a global information manipulation drive, saying it was Washington that has been spreading lies.

The U.S. State Department released a new report accusing Beijing of utilizing "information manipulation" through various means such as suppressing critical information that contradicts its narratives and controlling Chinese-language media.

Taiwan unveiled its first home-grown submarine Thursday, and China, which claims the self-governed island as part of its territory, sent warplanes as well as anti-submarine warfare aircraft near the island the next day.

"Hyenas," the Creative Assembly title that recently concluded its beta, has been canceled, Sega said Thursday. The studio has since confirmed that the title's cancelation may result in layoffs.

So far, the two countries have only been exchanging words after the Philippine Coast Guard accused the Chinese maritime militia of installing the 300-meter "floating barrier."

News of the layoffs came on the same day the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) said it would revive an internal case regarding Microsoft's bid to acquire the gaming behemoth.

Snapchat's parent company Snap said Wednesday it was shutting down its six-month-old ARES business. CEO Evan Spiegel said the company could no longer invest in the unit at this time.

Talkdesk was valued at $10 billion in mid-2021 after it secured $230 million in funding. But amid a wider tech reckoning, the software provider has implemented three rounds of workforce cuts since August 2022.

Arnel Satam, a Filipino fisherman who circled a Chinese Coast Guard 3105 ship, was a trending topic on Twitter Tuesday. His near-collision with a Chinese speed boat and circling of a much larger vessel is deemed a show of bravery amid escalating tensions at Scarborough Shoal.

Philippine senators appear to be getting fed up with China's "bullying" of the PCG and Filipino fishermen, but none of them want to go to war, demonstrating how high the stakes are should an armed conflict arise from escalating tensions at Scarborough Shoal.

Dunzo, backed by Google and billionaire Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries, is reportedly cutting staff again after multiple layoff rounds earlier this year. The online delivery platform has been grappling with a funding crunch that reportedly delayed salary payments.

Lucid Software will also undergo other cost-cutting measures like reducing in-person company events and streamlining purchases, CEO Dave Grow told employees Monday.

China now may have the computing power at its disposal to match, or even overtake, technology leaders like the United States in several areas that could be key to becoming the dominant economic and military power in the world.

Beijing has developed multiple de-risking plans in recent years such as the Made in China 2025, the dual circulation model and the government's self-reliance strategies, said Jens Eskelund, president of the European Union Chamber of Commerce in China.

Thailand's Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin was in New York last week to attend the UN General Assembly. He says he expects at least $5 billion in investments from three of the world's tech titans in the coming years.

Malaysia's KUL/KLIA is Asia's most internationally connected airport, and it is also the world's top low-cost flight provider. The Philippines's MNL/NAIA jumped 14 spots from 2019 to be in the global ranking's Top 15.

Experts say Taiwan should understand the similarities between its situation and Ukraine, but also the differences, as the latter offer the most valuable operational lessons.

Its parent company, Delivery Hero, is in the early stages of discussions to sell a part of its delivery business in Southeast Asia. The exact number of employees and the specific locations that will be affected by the layoffs is unknown.

The Philippines has fallen down in the World Talent Rankings, taking the 60th spot globally and the second-to-the-last spot in Asia Pacific. The Southeast Asian nation also dropped four spots in this year's World Competitiveness Ranking.

The Philippines is considering the possibility of filing a new arbitral case over Chinese maritime militia's alleged illegal harvesting of corals and degradation of coral reefs in disputed waters, but Beijing says Manila has no "factual basis" over its allegations.

As Hong Kong's economic freedom declines due to the Chinese government's restraints on tenets that affect Hong Kong's economy, Singapore's improvements in government and regulations have allowed it to blow out HK's 53-year candle.

The American chip giant had previously reduced its U.S. workforce, particularly in its San Diego headquarters.