Flashing LED screens, the booming noises of arcade games, the low hum of cathode ray monitors. Most cities have a technology zone. In function, they may exist to sell and fix equipment; in practice they channel the rhythm of the cities that host them. Within these circles, in everyday moments, society and technology collide.
During the last six months, Rest of the World visited eight of these tech markets and regions around the world – from the sensory barrage of Akihabara in Tokyo to the bustling, rain-splattered SP Road in Bengaluru. What we found surprised us. Family businesses had readily moved to new platforms. Some had technology for sale that the original market traders could not have dreamed of. Others still feared the effects of the pandemic and the rise of e-commerce. But more remarkable were the ways in which cities and their needs have adapted, and the forms in which these districts have survived – even re-emerged.
