Host Joey Chou kicks off his first episode of Reporter’s Notebook with TaiwanPlus reporter Leslie Liao, diving into one of Taiwan’s biggest tech stories of the year — a former TSMC executive accused of taking company secrets to Intel.

Social Media News Editor Sara Conway walks us through the top-performing Instagram reels from the past two months, and one moment stood out. In eastern Taiwan, our crew captured a man being pulled from deep mud after flooding — a reel that drew nearly two million views. Sara shares the back story behind the shoot and how our crew called for help.

Reporter John Van Trieste looks at why accidents on Taiwan’s fishing boats remain so common, with nearly half of recent marine incidents involving the fleet and most deaths tied to fishing vessels. For World Fisheries Day, he speaks with survivors, advocates, and safety inspectors about the biggest risks on board — from dangerous wiring to missing life jackets — and what authorities say they’re doing to make these boats safer.

Tech reporter Chris Gorin brings us inside Google’s launch of its new Taipei R&D office — now the company’s largest AI infrastructure engineering hub outside the U.S. The move marks a major investment and underscores a growing trend of American tech giants expanding in Taiwan as its central role in the global AI supply chain becomes increasingly clear.

Reporter Sandy Chi sits down with Taiwanese boxer Lin Yu-ting, who made history by winning Taiwan’s first Olympic boxing gold at the 2024 Paris Games. Sandy first met her during pre-Olympics athlete profiles and quickly saw the qualities that define her: stubbornness, bravery and open-mindedness.

Reporter Alan Lu examines Taiwan’s growing concerns over the security risks posed by Chinese-made AI models like DeepSeek. Analysts warn these tools can harvest far more than search queries—potentially collecting data that reveals political leanings or even biometric identifiers such as fingerprints and facial features. Testing the model himself, Alan found it echoed Beijing’s stance on Taiwan’s status and refused to give accurate information on events like the Tiananmen Square massacre.

In today’s Reporter’s Notebook, producer Alec MacDonald shares highlights from two recent field episodes of Zoom In Zoom Out: Taiwan’s move to end dolphin performances and an exclusive sit-down with Olympic boxer Lin Yu-ting. He also talks about future plans which will take the program back to Hualien to investigate the plight of farmers affected by recent flooding and year-plans to bring the production team to an undisclosed European country at Christmastime.

Alec MacDonald, producer and occasional host of Zoom In Zoom Out, reflects on how he built the show’s network of expert voices — and why thoughtful interviews deepen our understanding of Taiwan’s interconnected stories. Alec also looks back on his first on-location interview, a return to his National Dong Hwa University campus where he once witnessed a building burn after the 2024 earthquake.

Reporter Tiffany Wong discusses her takeaways from a visit to Malaysia covering Taipei’s New Southbound policy to strengthen ties with partners in South and Southeast Asia. Her series of reports included historical connections, food and travel, agricultural cooperation, education links and of course the world of tech.

TaiwanPlus reporter Bryn Thomas steps into the world of NTW — Taiwan’s up-and-coming professional wrestling league — where athleticism meets theater. Drawing on his own background in Greco-Roman and Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Bryn explores how local wrestlers bring storytelling and character work to the ring. He talks about a rare opportunity to interview Japanese wrestling legend Jaguar Yokota, once hailed as one of the best in the world, during her trip to Taiwan. Tune in to hear Bryn’s thoughts on why fans are drawn to the drama, choreography, and heart behind Taiwan’s uniquely homegrown scene.