

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

Oct 25, 2019 • 23min
Indian call centre scam shut down
We follow Indian cyber police in the city of Kolkata as they raid a call centre suspected of scamming people in the US and UK. Plus, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg defends the Libra digital currency project. And how robots could help more patients in India's hospitals receive the surgery they need. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC reporter Szu Ping Chan, and special guest Izabella Kaminska from the Financial Times.(Image: Stock photo of a man entering banking details into his computer, Credit: iStock/ Getty Images Plus).

Oct 18, 2019 • 23min
Google Pixel 4 boasts radar
The latest handset from Google introduces a new way to control a phone without touching it. Is it actually useful, or an interesting gimmick? And the company's hardware chief Rick Osterloh tells us why he would warn a house-guest about the presence of smart devices. Plus, Nir Eyal, author of the new book "Indistractable" shares his strategies to help us all be less distracted by our gadgets. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield, and special guest Charlotte Gee from the MIT Technology Review.(Image: The new Google Pixel 4 smartphone displayed during a Google launch event in New York City, Credit: REUTERS/ Eduardo Munoz).

Oct 11, 2019 • 23min
US and China battle over tech
In a week of rising tension between US and China over trade we hear how some of China's biggest tech firms are caught in the cross-fire. And Rory Cellan-Jones asks why Apple has decided to take down a Hong Kong mapping app? As Ada Lovelace Day spreads around the world to celebrate women in science and tech, the BBC's Zoe Kleinman asks its founder whether conditions have actually improved since the movement was first launched a decade ago? And Rory asks UNICEF why it is getting into the controversial world of cryptocurrency? Rory is joined by technology writer Jamillah Knowles and by Mark Ward from the BBC tech desk(Picture:A woman holds her mobile phone as a group of masked protesters run past in the Diamond Hill station in the Kowloon district of Hong Kong on October 7, 2019. CREDIT: PHILIP FONG/AFP via Getty Images)

Oct 4, 2019 • 24min
The rise and rise of TikTok
Why the Chinese video-sharing app seems to have Facebook worried. Plus, a leading AI researcher in Ghana tells us why algorithms used in Africa but trained on data from elsewhere could make biased decisions. And how a common definition of online abuse could help to tackle it more effectively. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield, and special guest Parmy Olson, tech reporter from the Wall Street Journal.(Image: Stock photo of a woman on a beach making a smartphone video with her dog, Credit: iStock/ Getty Images Plus).

Sep 27, 2019 • 23min
Amazon reveals Alexa glasses
The tech giant takes its Alexa smart assistant out of the home. Plus, are neural interfaces the next big thing in how we control computers? And, the Facebook-backed Libra digital currency has met with opposition from governments. Can the project get back on track? Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Chris Fox, and special guest, Caroline Carruthers, business author and data consultant.(Image: Eyeglass frames with voice-activated digital assistant Alexa at Amazon's headquarters in Seattle, Credit: Glenn Chapman/ AFP/ Getty Images).

Sep 13, 2019 • 23min
Has gig-working had its day?
California gave birth to the "gig economy" - working for app-driven services such as ride-hailing and food-delivery. But now the state has drafted a law to make “gig workers” employees and give them more rights. Is it the end for this way of working? Plus, will Apple's iPhone maintain its loyal following without 5G? And we visit Europe's largest data centre to consider our thirst for cloud storage. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Zoe Kleinman, and special guest Dominic Sunnebo, Director of Consumer Insights at market research firm Kantar.(Image: Ridesharing drivers protest for better rights outside the Uber HQ in San Francisco, California. Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

Sep 6, 2019 • 23min
Who cares about facial recognition?
Two new surveys suggest cautious public attitudes in the US and UK towards the tech. Plus, the autumn mobile device launch season is upon us. We check out the news from the IFA electronics show in Berlin and look forward to the wave of new handsets set to be released in the coming weeks. And, would you report to your employer a colleague who you suspected was stealing company data? Presented by Zoe Kleinman, with BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield, and special guests Stuart Miles from Pocket-lint and Marta Pinto from research firm IDC.(Image: Stock photo of a woman using facial recognition on a smartphone, Credit: iStock/ Getty Images Plus).

Aug 30, 2019 • 23min
Tech's trade war
Is the trade dispute between the US and China hurting both nations' tech industry? Artificial intelligence (AI) and 5G telecoms are key sectors in which the superpowers are vying to be the leader. Special guests Calum Chace, author of "Surviving AI", and Emily Taylor, CEO of Oxford Information Labs, join Chris Fox to examine the effects of the trade dispute between Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping.(Image: Composite image of Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping, Credit: Reuters).

Aug 23, 2019 • 23min
What Facebook knows about you
The social giant will reveal what it knows about your internet activity off of its platform. Will its users appreciate the transparency or be horrified? Plus, Twitter and Google take down accounts indicating co-ordinated posting relating to the Hong Kong protests. How has that gone down in China? And, 3D printing was meant to democratise manufacturing. It hasn't quite worked out like that, but we see one example of a 3D printed consumer product - a new type of bike helmet. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Jane Wakefield, and special guest Isobel Asher Hamilton from Business Insider.(Image: Stock photo of a couple on a sofa making an online purchase on a tablet computer, Credit: Hispanolistic/ Getty Images).

Aug 16, 2019 • 23min
Are you being watched?
How privately-operated facial recognition in public places threatens privacy, according to campaigners. Plus, why is the shared-office firm WeWork valued at $47bn when it lost $1.6bn last year and has no idea when or whether it will ever deliver a profit. And how the kids' comic The Beano developed its digital strategy. Presented by Rory Cellan-Jones, with BBC tech reporter Zoe Kleinman, and Madhumita Murgia, European technology correspondent at the Financial Times.(Image: Stock image of a security camera against a skyscraper background, Credit: Getty Images Plus).