The Download: AI obstructions for humanoids and portable rubber dams

This is today’s edition of The Download our weekday newsletter that supplies a day-to-day dosage of what’s going on the planet of innovation.

AI developments in robotics will not alter your life at any time quickly

The buzz around humanoid robotics is reaching fever pitch. Much of it originates from the concept that the very same AI advances behind ChatGPT and Claude might allow robotics to mimic human motion the method chatbots mimic human language. Numerous scientists are doubtful.

They argue that such presumptions decrease the difficulties of utilizing an intelligence constructed on language and images to master the unlimited irregularity of the real world. They likewise mention that conflating humanoids with so-called generalist devices is misguiding.

Throughout robotics laboratories, stress have actually emerged over whether present types of AI are all that’s required to best versatile humanoids or whether a totally brand-new course is needed.

Check out the complete story on what it will require to develop genuinely general-purpose robotics.

— Jamie Condliffe

This story is a partnership in between MIT Technology Review and Aventinea non-profit research study structure that produces and supports material about how innovation and science are altering the method we live.

10 Climate Tech Companies to Watch: WaveSave and its portable rubber dam

WaveSave is among MIT Technology Review’s10 Climate Tech Companies to Watch 2026offered specifically to customers

As water level increase and flood threats get worse, WaveSave has actually emerged with an ingeniously basic tool: a portable rubber dam that’s fast to set up when flooding begins.

Anybody can unfurl the SlamDam on the ground along a riverbank or coastline and pump it filled with water till it swells into location. And there it stands, approximately 1.3 meters high, protecting neighboring residential or commercial property or structures from damage as waters increase.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the web to discover you today’s most fun/important/scary/ interesting stories about innovation.

1 Scientists in Austria and China have actually developed the very first nuclear clocks
They might end up being the world’s most exact timekeepers. (NYT $)
+ They might likewise assist researchers look for dark matter. (Reuters $)
+ China’s nuclear clock is 6 times more steady than Austria’s. (SCMP
+ An area clock might assist determine Earth. (MIT Technology Review)

2 Three fired OpenAI scientists wish to secure AI thinking tracking
They alert that AI business might lose an essential security tool. (WSJ $)
+ OpenAI fired them for presumably sharing delicate info. (Gizmodo
+ Don’t be tricked– LLMs do not factor. (MIT Technology Review)

3 Samsung has actually anticipated the greatest quarterly revenue ever for a tech company
The AI chip boom has actually sent its predicted earnings to $80 billion. (CNBC
+ Can AI laboratories ever make a profit? (Reuters $)
+ What even is the AI bubble? (MIT Technology Review)

4 OpenAI’s mathematics developments point beyond mathematics
AI is advancing into significantly specialised fields. (Axios
+ OpenAI is overtaking Anthropic on coding. (WSJ $)
+ A brand-new AI tool might accelerate mathematics research study.(MIT Technology Review)

5 A 194-year-old tortoise has actually had its genome sequenced
His durability might expose methods to extend human life expectancy. (Guardian
+ Jonathan is the world’s earliest recognized land animal. (404 Media
+ His younger mitochondria might assist fix DNA. (New Scientist $)

6 A scammer who utilized AI to outstream Taylor Swift has actually been imprisoned
He utilized AI-generated tunes and bots to make $8 million. (NYT $)
+ But district attorneys stated he took royalty payments. (Ars Technica

7 TikTok apparently provided kids phony security functions to study engagement
The tests determined time invested and advertisement income. (Reuters $)

8 Burglars might be recognized from DNA drifting in the air
Thanks to a brand-new gadget that gathers air-borne hereditary product. (Economist $)

9 Pioneers of mirror-image particles have actually won the chemistry Nobel
Their work has actually ended up being a crucial tool in establishing medications. (Guardian

10 California has actually stated a human-vs-robot battle prohibited
The state’s combat-sports laws were never ever composed for devices. (NYT $)

Quote of the day

Cybersecurity We grew a mind.”

— David Robinson, who recently stopped his task as OpenAI security openness lead, informs The New York Times that his previous business has actually developed designs that establish abilities their developers did not clearly style.

Another thing

We require a moonshot for calculating

The United States federal government is arranging itself for the next age of computing. Eventually, it has one huge option to make: embrace a conservative method that intends to maintain its lead for the next 5 years– or orient itself towards real computing moonshots.

There is no lack of prospects, consisting of quantum computing, neuromorphic computing and reversible computing. And there are a lot of unique products and gadgets. These possibilities might even be integrated to form hybrid computing systems.

The National Semiconductor Technology Center can drive these concepts forward. To be effective, it would succeed to follow DARPA’s lead by concentrating on moonshot programs. Check out the complete story.

— Brady Helwig & & PJ Maykish

We can still have good things

A location for convenience, enjoyable, and interruption to cheer up your day. (Got any concepts? Drop me a line)

+ A speculative set of contact lenses can fix themselves with UV light
+ Meet Rich, the saved squirrel who checks out the female who conserved him every day
+ Reminisce about the lost happiness of music piracy with this wistful reflection on a time before streaming.
+ What would rainbows appear like on Tatooine? Randall Munroe, a previous NASA roboticist, has the response