 Rojak is a colloquial Malay word for “eclectic mix,” and is the name for a Javanese dish that typically combines sliced fruit and vegetables with a spicy dressing. What you seek is what you get The US hysteria over the sudden ascendance of Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek reveals more about American anxieties than Chinese reality. DeepSeek immediately became a geopolitical bogeyman as US investors feared China was making advanced AI models at a fraction of the cost of American ones, while OpenAI called for the US to ban the “state-controlled” startup. But “American AI nationalism appears even more direct and exaggerated than China’s version,” the Concurrent newsletter, about Chinese tech and culture, argued. The US shock, awe, and alarm over DeepSeek reflects how the West often mischaracterizes the distinctively Chinese approach to technological development: The state doesn’t so much directly control tech, but orchestrates and endorses it in a way that “creates powerful connections,” Concurrent wrote, as exemplified by DeepSeek’s recent integration with tech giant Tencent. The US reaction, then, underscores how China “functions as a mirror” for the West: “China has become the screen onto which Americans of all stripes… project their anxieties and aspirations.” Bye bye, kawaii This year marks a decade since a shift in Japan’s cultural image transformed music, fashion, and tourism. In the early 2010s, “kawaii” — meaning “cute” — was the word that defined Japan on the world stage. Tokyo’s Harajuku area embodied the adorable aesthetic that was adopted by American pop stars like Gwen Stefani and Lady Gaga, becoming a huge tourist draw. Tokyo-based writer Patrick St. Michel pointed to 2015 as the year that Japan’s global image began to move away from kawaii: “The hyper cute idea gave way to ‘calm Japan,’” St. Michel wrote in his newsletter Make Believe Mailer, focused on Japanese music. Organizing consultant Marie Kondo and the reality show Terrace House are prime examples of the more subdued Japanese aesthetic, which prioritizes neatness and serenity. And playful and bright music that defined the kawaii era “would fade as J-pop inched towards something darker for the next decade.” Glazed and confused Donuts are the latest treat to be ensnared in the complex Indian bureaucracy. Earlier this year, India’s tax officials came under fire for their three-tiered system for taxing different types of popcorn. Now, a tax dispute is playing out over whether donuts are classified as a restaurant dish or a bakery good. The government argues that delicacies sold by an Indian donut chain constitute a bakery product — because they are prepared in a central kitchen and only garnished and dipped in chocolate before being sold — and therefore should be taxed at a higher rate. The company says it should be taxed at a lower rate as a “restaurant service” because it does much more than just putting finishing touches. A legal back-and-forth over a dessert seems silly, but “it’s a first-of-its-kind case that could have far-reaching implications” for both bakeries and restaurants, the progressive think tank Bridge India wrote in its newsletter. | 
