

Tech Life
BBC World Service
Tech Life discovers and explains the ways technology is changing our lives, wherever we are in the world. We meet the people with bright ideas for rethinking the way we work, learn and play, and get hands-on with the products they dream up. We hold tech giants to account for their huge power to affect our lives, and ask who wins, and who loses, in the technology transformation. Tech Life is your guide to a future being made, and remade, at lightning speed in front of our eyes.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Feb 19, 2021 • 24min
Facebook blocks Australia’s news
The social giant takes down news content ahead of a new law that would force it to pay media publishers. Plus, are digital vaccine certificates or passports essential for a return to normal life or a bad idea that could entrench inequality? And yet more evidence that the global auto industry is racing to electric vehicles. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter David Molloy. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Credit: Getty Images).

Feb 12, 2021 • 24min
Bitcoin’s energy cost
The buzz around the cryptocurrency grows after Elon Musk’s Tesla reveals it has bought $1.5bn worth of Bitcoin. But what’s its impact on global energy use? Plus how people in China have been using the Clubhouse audio social app to discuss usually banned topics. And new figures on the performance of the Covid-19 contact tracing app used in England and Wales. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC senior tech reporter Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: Representation of a Bitcoin plugged into a power outlet. Credit: Getty Images).

Feb 5, 2021 • 24min
A tale of two ecommerce giants
Jeff Bezos's Amazon and Jack Ma's Alibaba report bumper profits, but both online shopping giants face challenges. Rory Cellan-Jones speaks to the BBC's Asia business correspondent Karishma Vaswani about Jack Ma's run-in with Chinese regulators, while BBC technology reporter Jane Wakefield assess the impact of Jeff Bezos's decision to step away from day-to-day running of Amazon. Plus we hear from Eliot Higgins, founder of online investigators Bellingcat, about how the internet has changed intelligence gathering. And Leo Kelion speaks to social networking pioneer Michael Birch about his plans to relaunch the social network platform Bebo.(Photo: Amazon’s Jeff Bezos and Alibaba’s Jack Ma, Credit: EPA/ Reuters)

Jan 29, 2021 • 24min
Robert Downey Jr. on backing green tech
The Iron Man star tells us how he wants to help tackle the climate crisis. Plus, how small investors on a Reddit forum took on Wall Street and won - for now at least. And have your shopping habits changed in the last year? A retail expert tells us how the pandemic has shown which brands have managed to adapt to the online revolution. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones with BBC senior tech reporter Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: Robert Downey Jr. against a pink and yellow gradient background, Credit: Getty Images).

Jan 22, 2021 • 24min
Biden’s plan for big tech
Will the new US President bring a new era in relations with the tech giants? Plus, as schools remain closed in many places, how online learning is helping educate children. And why a global semiconductor shortage is hitting carmakers. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with senior BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: President Joe Biden against a pink/ yellow gradient background, Credit: Getty Images).

Jan 15, 2021 • 24min
Amazon gives Parler the boot
The social platform favoured by Donald Trump supporters loses its online home after Amazon Web Services withdraws its cloud hosting. Plus, how the pandemic has fired the imagination of gadget-makers exhibiting at CES. And why the tech behind apps to help women track their menstrual cycles is leaving many users disappointed. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC Online tech team Chris Fox, Leo Kelion, and Zoe Kleinman. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: Composite image of Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and the Parler logo. Credit: BBC).

Jan 8, 2021 • 24min
Facebook and Twitter block Trump
Social giants act after the President praises supporters who broke into the US Congress building. Plus, how Singapore’s Covid-19 contact tracing data may be accessed by police despite earlier assurances it would only be used to control the pandemic. And we look ahead to next week’s CES, the biggest annual tech event. Can it deliver in a virtual format? Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC senior tech reporter Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.(Image: Donald Trump rallies supporters to march on the US Capitol to protest against the certification of the election result. Credit: Getty Images).

Jan 1, 2021 • 23min
Tech Trends for 2021
Rory Cellan-Jones and guests on how tech will shape the coming twelve months. Featuring BT innovation researcher Dr Nicola Millard, and BBC senior tech reporter Jane Wakefield. With contributions from remote working consultant Dave Coplin, futurist Peter Schwartz, and Kate Bevan, editor of Which? Computing. Produced by Jat Gill.Image: Stock photo of a woman runner checking and logging health data. Credit: Getty Images.

Dec 25, 2020 • 24min
Tech Quiz of the Year 2020
Test your knowledge of the year’s biggest tech stories with Rory Cellan-Jones and the Tech Tent team. With BBC tech reporters Chris Fox, Zoe Kleinman, David Molloy, and Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.Image: Stock photo of a man sitting outdoors in front of a festive background, listening to earphones. Credit: Getty Images.

Dec 18, 2020 • 24min
Hackers breach US government
Key government agencies are among thousands of organisations believed to have been hit using compromised network software from SolarWinds. Plus Facebook goes to war with Apple over its plans to restrict the targeting of iPhone users by advertisers. And the man whose school photograph became a viral meme without him knowing it. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield. Produced by Jat Gill.