Ukraine has helped the tech industry, but Big Tech hasn't helped Ukraine

There is a source of the Android Central.

Legislation targeting major tech companies hosted in a few countries like the U.S., China, and Korea is the focus of the discussion. It isn't the right place to discuss the current Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Forbes Ukraine tech editor's recent thread opened my eyes to how much impact the Ukrainian people have had on the tech world.

Without any malice or conscious bias, I never thought of Ukraine as a tech country, or that many of the apps, games, and tech we use daily stem from Ukrainian innovation and ingenuity. With that realization, I wanted to use this week's Editor's desk to highlight and honor the brands and people who have impacted our lives and happiness without us realizing it.

Hey, world, this war is not about Ukraine. It's about all of you. Let me – as a tech editor at Forbes Ukraine – explain it to you in the most direct way, by naming products and technologies with Ukrainian roots.

Also asking for RT

The thread highlights two major apps that everyone knows about: WhatsApp and PayPal. The Readdle mostly makes Apple apps, but did make a popular app for the phone. The AC editors use an artificial intelligence-based editor to catch most of our typos.

He notes how Ukrainians have worked behind the scenes on the technology behind Ring cameras that protect your home, as well as someSnapchat filters.

The surface was only scratched by Sapiton. I did not know that a Ukrainian developer co-founded GitLab, an open-source repository developer tool. Many major tech companies have offices in Kyiv.

GSC Game World.

Ukrainian-based companies give hours of entertainment to console and mobile game players. S.T.A.L.K.E.R 2: Heart of Chernobyl is currently being developed by GSC Game World, and they recently asked fans to support the Ukrainian armed forces. Russia's recent occupation of Chernobyl isn't something the developers expected.

Windows Central highlighted a long list of other studios based in Ukraine, including 4A Games, Frogwares, Wargaming, and Plarium. Hidden City is one of the most popular hidden object games on the Play Store, with over a million reviews.

Tech is political, whether we like it or not

The satellite feed shows Russian troop movements.

Even if they are not based in Ukraine, the decisions of the most well-known tech companies will have a significant impact on the nation.

In order to combat misinformation, block cyberattacks and provide free ads for aid for Ukraine, Google has a strategy. It also recently promised to demonetize and stop recommending Russian state-run channels on YouTube, as well as reports that Russia frequently bought ads for its videos to reach a wider audience. Business Insider reported that people used real-time tracking to follow Russian troops hours before Putin announced the attack.

Meta, which has faced criticism for its moderation efforts in the past, refused to stop fact-checking Facebook posts in Russia. Russia was blocked from running its ads on Facebook by Meta.

The same likely applies to most social media and news aggregate sites, as Russia aims to block its citizens from seeing pro-Ukrainian content.

Ordinary Russians are using @Meta's apps to express themselves and organize for action. We want them to continue to make their voices heard, share what's happening, and organize through Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger. pic.twitter.com/FjTovgslCe

— Nick Clegg (@nickclegg) February 25, 2022

Major cellular companies offered free long-distance calls to Ukraine to contact loved ones after the invasion of Russia.

Ukrainian politicians want tech companies like Apple to block their services in Russia. Ukrainian Vice Prime Minister Mykhailo Fedorov said that he had asked Tim Cook to block the App Store.

In most instances, the Big Tech companies have started to help Ukraine by either giving away free services or reversing policies that enabled Russia for years. When Putin claims that he is invading Ukraine, he could use a couple of websites to spread the word.

Unless political forces in the United States or the European Union force companies to burn their bridges with Russia, it is unlikely that they will do so. Up until now, they have accepted operating within the confines of different countries, most notoriously evidenced by Apple's secret $275 billion deal with China.

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has brought an unflattering spotlight onto tech companies that allow regimes. The autocrats want companies to give them the tools to push their propaganda and block the free flow of information as a cost of admission. Companies comply by cutting back on enabling and profiteering now that the public eye is on them.

Focusing on people, not businesses

In times like this, I find it hard to give a shit about the business and politics driving tech companies actions, as they scramble to look principled in some territories and compliant in others to avoid threatening their assets. It is too late for the Ukranian people to change their policies.

I can't help but think of all the people who worked on the apps and services I use every day when I watch the news from Ukraine. The companies that profited from Russian ads had satellite offices. Techies are taking up machine guns or hunkering down in shelters.

It kills me that there is nothing I can do to help those men and women. Hope is against hope that their lives will return to normal soon.

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Michael is a former ebook developer turned tech writer who has written about everything from virtual reality to gaming guides. A Bay Area native, he loves sports teams that are bad and tormenting his friends as the D&D and Star Wars campaign director.