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Rest of World
Type of site
Technology News
Available inEnglish
Country of originUnited States
Area servedWorldwide
OwnerRest of World Media Inc.
Founder(s)Sophie Schmidt
EditorAnup Kaphle (Editor in Chief)
Key people
Employees30
URLrestofworld.org
AdvertisingNo
CommercialNo
RegistrationOptional
Launched2020 (4 years ago) (2020)
Current statusActive

Rest of World is an American nonprofit publication covering technology stories outside western countries.[1][2][3] Launched in 2020 by Sophie Schmidt, Rest of World focuses on the impact of technology in "glossed over" emerging consumer markets outside the developed West.[4][5] The publication is primarily funded by Schmidt Family Foundation.[4]

History

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Rest of World was first announced in May 2019 by Sophie Schmidt, daughter of former Google CEO, Eric Schmidt, and Wendy Schmidt, as a publication about the impact of technology on the non-Western world, particularly in Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The news website is operated by Rest of World Media Inc., an American private operating foundation established in April 2019.[6] The organization's operations are funded through multiple sources, including grants from foundations such as the Schmidt Family Foundation, donations and sponsorships.[7]

Rest of World was launched in May 2020.[8] That year, Anup Kaphle, a journalist who previously worked for The Washington Post, BuzzFeed News and The Kathmandu Post, joined Rest of World as its founding executive editor.[4] As of September 2020, Rest of World had 30 employees, with about 20 being full-time staffers.[2]

Operation

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News operation

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Rest of World's office is located in New York City, while most of its reporters are in Berlin, Hong Kong, Bangalore and other international locations.[8] They also rely on a network of freelance journalists from around the globe.

Rest of World Media, Inc.

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Rest of World Media, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) private operating foundation established in April 2019 and incorporated in the state of Delaware as a nonprofit, charitable corporation. The foundation has one subsidiary, Rest of World Media International, LLC, formed in January 2020 and registered in Kenya as a foreign company. Its purpose is to employ editorial staff.[6]

Rest of World has received numerous grants from notable organizations such as the Schmidt Family Foundation, Ford Foundation, Henry Luce Foundation, and Luminate – an entity operated by the Omidyar Group.

Sophie Schmidt said in September 2020 that she would be spending $60 million on Rest of World over the next decade, with no plans to sell advertising or to use a subscription model. She said she might bring in another investor.[2]

Coverage

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Schmidt said in September 2020, "There are three or four billion people who live in markets that are deemed not important enough to address, so there is just a huge gap in understanding what is going on in the rest of the world."[2]

Rest of World has extensively covered the electric vehicle revolution, the gig economy, Chinese technology companies, and artificial intelligence in global markets.[9][10][11][12] The publication won a 2024 National Magazine Award in the design category, for articles on innovative non-western companies, Chinese shopping platforms, and how AI stereotypes different nationalities.[13][14][15][16]

In 2024, Rest of World launched an AI Elections Tracker to examine the role AI plays in elections worldwide.[17]

Founder

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Sophie Schmidt (born 1986 or 1987[2]) is an American technology publisher, best known for launching Rest of World. She is the daughter of former Google CEO and Alphabet executive Eric Schmidt and his wife and Wendy Schmidt (née Boyle). She holds an MBA from Stanford University and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University.[2]

In January 2013, Schmidt visited North Korea with her father; she subsequently described the trip as consisting of "highly staged encounters, tightly-orchestrated viewings and what seemed like genuine human moments", and the country itself as "like The Truman Show, at country scale."[18][19] Prior to founding Rest of World in 2019, Schmidt held international technology and policy roles across Asia, Africa, and the Middle East, including positions at Afghanistan's Moby Media Group and Xiaomi in Beijing, China.[2][20]

Schmidt has maintained that Rest of World represents her "life's project," emphasizing its mission to understand technology's impact in markets typically deemed "not important enough to address."[2] In 2024, she was named a Young Global Leader by the World Economic Forum.[21][20]

In the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, Schmidt was ill with COVID-19 for three months.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Perlberg, Steven (November 15, 2021). "Inside Sophie Schmidt's Rest of World, the new tech publication from Eric Schmidt's daughter that launched with big ambitions but has hit early growing pains". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 2024-04-01. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Alpert, Lukas I. (September 27, 2020). "Eric Schmidt's Daughter Has Tech Ambitions—Just Not in Silicon Valley". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  3. ^ Bernstein, Joseph (2019-05-01). "A Google Scion Is Starting A New Publication With A Focus On International Tech Issues". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on 2024-04-15. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  4. ^ a b c Ingram, Mathew (March 8, 2023). "Q&A: Anup Kaphle on Rest of World, three years in". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on 2023-03-25. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  5. ^ "Podcast 269: What tech is like in "Rest of World" - Stack Overflow". stackoverflow.blog. 2020-09-15. Archived from the original on 2024-02-28. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  6. ^ a b Rest of World Media, Inc. Consolidated Financial Statements. (2023). Clark Nuber. Retrieved July 25, 2024, from https://restofworld.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/2022-1231-rest-of-world-media-fs-1.pdf
  7. ^ "Grant Database - 144571 - Rest of World Media International, LLC". Ford Foundation. 2023. Retrieved 2024-07-27.
  8. ^ a b Margalit, Ruth (December 1, 2020). "Out of Nowhere". Columbia Journalism Review. Archived from the original on 2024-09-24. Retrieved 2024-10-04.
  9. ^ Ovide, Shira (2021-09-22). "These Apps Deliver Food and Misery". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  10. ^ "Why production of Apple iPhones has been moving from China to India". PBS NewsHour. 2023-12-03. Archived from the original on 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  11. ^ "TikTok sues the US over potential ban, citing freedom of speech". Semafor. 2024-05-07. Archived from the original on 2024-05-11. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  12. ^ Fink, Kathryn (March 4, 2024). "How some companies hope to bring China's livestream shopping trend to the U.S." National Public Radio. Archived from the original on May 13, 2024. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
  13. ^ "AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MAGAZINE EDITORS ANNOUNCES NATIONAL MAGAZINE AWARDS 2024 WINNERS". asme.memberclicks.net. Archived from the original on 2024-05-13. Retrieved 2024-05-13.
  14. ^ "40 trailblazing companies that are beating the West". Rest of World. 2023-10-05. Archived from the original on 2024-05-14. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  15. ^ "China, the World's Shopping Cart". Rest of World. 2023-11-14. Archived from the original on 2024-05-14. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  16. ^ "How AI reduces the world to stereotypes". Rest of World. 2023-10-10. Archived from the original on 2024-05-14. Retrieved 2024-05-14.
  17. ^ "How Rest of World is tracking AI use around elections worldwide | Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism". reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 2024-05-21. Retrieved 2024-05-21.
  18. ^ "Eric Schmidt's daughter reports on creepy North Korea trip, says the country is like 'The Truman Show'". The Verge. January 21, 2013. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  19. ^ Schmidt, Sophie (January 2013). "It might not get weirder than this". Rest of World. Retrieved November 10, 2024.
  20. ^ a b "Sophie Schmidt". Rest of World. 2024-09-25. Retrieved 2024-10-25.
  21. ^ Schmidt, Sophie (2024-10-24). "Sophie Schmidt – Rest of World". LinkedIn.


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