The world embraces contact-tracing technology to fight Covid-19

Singapore's contact-tracing smarthphone app called TraceTogether being demonstrated as a preventive measure against the Covid-19 coronavirus in the city-state. Although Singapore was among the first to roll out a contact-tracing app, its relatively low adoption rate meant the country still had to institute a strict lockdown. — AFP

Covid-19 has killed more than 200,000 people and triggered a severe recession. Governments want to get people back to work, and a key part of this is contact-tracing technology that helps authorities track the virus and warn citizens who may be infected to stay home or get tested.

Tech companies have jumped at the opportunity, with the highest-profile effort coming from Apple Inc and Google. These tech giants aren’t alone, though. Here’s a round-up of initiatives from around the world: