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AdvertisementArtificial intelligenceThis Week in AsiaLifestyle & CultureAs Asia faces falling birth rates, AI’s rise distracts couples from building familiesAI is putting pressure on Asian workers to upgrade their skills, while the technology also provides ‘cheap fun’ diversions
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPBiman MukherjiPublished: 4:42pm, 11 Feb 2026As Asia grapples with falling birth rates, analysts warn that the rise of artificial intelligence is worsening the problem, with the technology putting pressure on workers to upgrade their skills and posing a distraction to families after office hours.Fertility rates have fallen across the region to some of the lowest levels in the world, well below the generally accepted replacement rate of 2.1 children per woman needed to keep a population stable over time.
The drop in fertility rates was due to financial pressures and career demands faced by people in their thirties and forties when they should be starting families, James..

AdvertisementHong Kong's national security lawHong KongLaw and CrimeHong Kong fugitive Anna Kwok’s dad guilty of trying to cash out HK$88,000 policyKwok Yin-sang attempted to deal with financial assets of US-based Anna Kwok, despite knowing daughter is wanted activist with HK$1 million bounty on her head
Reading Time:3 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPBrian WongPublished: 4:42pm, 11 Feb 2026Updated: 4:45pm, 11 Feb 2026The father of a wanted Hong Kong activist has been convicted under the city’s domestic national security law for trying to cash out an insurance policy worth more than HK$88,000 in his daughter’s name.West Kowloon Court on Wednesday convicted Kwok Yin-sang of attempting to deal with the financial assets of US-based activist Anna Kwok Fung-yee, despite knowing authorities had classified her as an absconder under the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance.
The 69-year-old defendant is the first person to be found guilty of a non-sedition-related offence under the ordinan..

Dubai's Global Village passport lets visitors collect pavilion stamps, turning one evening into a world tour/Representative Image At first glance, it looks like a real passport. In reality, the Dubai’s Global Village passport is a playful souvenir that turns a night out into a miniature journey around the world. Sold inside Global Village, the booklet has become a favourite among families, children, and anyone who enjoys collecting memories rather than magnets.So what exactly is it, and why do so many visitors make it part of their visit?A souvenir designed like a world tour
The Global Village passport is a small, themed booklet created as a keepsake for guests exploring the park’s more than 30 international pavilions. Each pavilion represents a different country or region, and each has its own custom stamp. As visitors move from one pavilion to the next, they can add a stamp to their booklet, slowly filling the pages with colourful impressions.The idea is simple. Walk, explore, s..

Dubai’s new property resale rule 2026: What UAE residents and expats should know before participating Long known for its dynamism, transparency and global investor appeal, Dubai’s property market has taken another step toward modernisation and liquidity with the rollout of a new resale rule aimed at activating the secondary property market. This rule, part of the Dubai Land Department’s (DLD) real estate innovation agenda, has the potential to reshape how residents and expatriates invest, sell and trade real estate in the emirate.At its core, the rule targets the secondary market where off-plan or newly built units are resold to buyers and is tied to Dubai’s broader digital transformation and tokenisation efforts in real estate.What is the new resale rule in Dubai?
The recently announced rule, coming in Phase 2 of Dubai’s property tokenisation project, aims to activate resale activity in the secondary market by enabling the resale of millions of digital property tokens linked to real e..

AdvertisementSouth KoreaAsiaEast AsiaInside Seoul’s ‘closet’ homes: YouTube tour reveals reality of gosiwon livingYouTuber Drew Binsky tours Seoul’s US$250-a-month micro-flats, sparking conversation on urban housing and South Korea’s hidden pressures
Reading Time:2 minutesWhy you can trust SCMPThe Korea TimesPublished: 4:43pm, 10 Feb 2026When Drew Binsky stepped into a gosiwon in Seoul, the doorway alone offered a clue to the life inside. The entrance measured barely 61cm (24 inches) across – narrow enough to require a slight turn of the shoulders to pass through.Binsky, an American travel YouTuber with millions of subscribers, documented his experience in his video “Inside Korea’s smallest apartment,” posted on February 1. The video tours several gosiwon facilities across Seoul and drew more than 1.9 million views within days of its release, bringing renewed international attention to one of the city’s least visible forms of housing.“Behind the bright lights and advanced technology, m..