A few months ago, I was lost in the endless rabbit hole of TikTok’s “For You” feed, sipping my coffee and soaking in the algorithm’s attempt to decode me. It was a mix of book recommendations, tear-jerking podcast clips, and, oddly enough, Taylor Swift concert footage (not complaining about that last one). But one afternoon, the algorithm decided to inundate me with AI content — videos with bold titles like, “Use These Three AI Tools to Make $10,000 a Month!” or “The Best Passive Income Hack No One Talks About.”

After upgrading to a more spacious electric vehicle, Yin decides to forgo renting a flat, saving 2,500 yuan (US$350) a month on rent

A 38-year-old programmer working in Beijing, who spends weekdays sleeping in his car and returns to his home in nearby Tianjin every Friday, has gained significant attention on mainland social media.

The man, known as Yin, typically departs from Tianjin at 5.30am on Monday, driving 130km along the highway to reach his workplace in Beijing. He returns home after finishing work on Friday afternoons.

Americans are struggling financially, grappling with debt and the rising cost of living, and are blaming the Trump administration and corporate interests for worsening economic outlooks for working families, according to a new poll.

Six out of 10 Americans place blame on the Trump administration for driving up their cost of living, according to a poll conducted by Morning Consult for the Century Foundation, which asked 2,007 Americans how they are managing the high cost of living in the US economy, who they think is to blame and what are the solutions.

Public trust in institutions, capitalism, and even the value of hard work continues to erode in 2025, according to the latest Edelman Trust Barometer, now in its 25th year. The survey of more than 30,000 respondents across 28 countries highlights widening divisions between elites and the broader public, a growing crisis of legitimacy for capitalism, and deep fears about job security in an age of technological disruption.

The story of Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a resident of the United States who was incorrectly deported to El Salvador and later became a symbol of the Trump administration’s strict immigration policy, has taken another unexpected turn.

• Kilmar Abrego Garcia, a US resident, was initially deported to El Salvador and later faced legal challenges in Tennessee.
• ICE allegedly issued Abrego Garcia the ultimatum of pleading guilty or being deported to Uganda.
• Prosecutors had previously proposed deportation to Costa Rica contingent on a guilty plea and compliance with penalties.
• Abrego Garcia, married to a US citizen, declined these agreements, raising concerns over coercion and indefinite detention.

The world’s five richest men have more than doubled their wealth to $869 billion (£681.5bn) since 2020, while nearly 5 billion people—the poorest 60% of the global population—have seen their wealth decline, according to a new report by Oxfam.

The study, released ahead of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, warns that inequality is accelerating. If current trends continue, the world could see its first trillionaire within a decade, and global poverty may persist for another 229 years.

U.S. wholesale inflation surged unexpectedly in July, with the Producer Price Index rising 0.9% monthly and 3.3% annually—the sharpest increases since June 2022 and February 2025, respectively. The Bureau of Labor Statistics report released Thursday far exceeded economists’ forecasts of a 0.2% monthly gain and 2.5% annual increase.