Plus: NASA unveiled plans for three uncrewed missions to the Moon this year.
*This is today's edition of * The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.
Stay on top of what’s going on in AI this summer
Here at MIT Technology Review, we understand exactly how relentless the pace of news from the world of artificial intelligence feels. New models and capabilities crop up as fast as we can cover them, and the ripple effects they send through tech and wider society are never far behind.
Our unique strength lies in cutting through the day-to-day noise to help you understand what’s really happening, and what lies around the corner.
That’s why we created our list of 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now, unveiled at our flagship AI event EmTech AI a few weeks back (check the list out if you haven’t already!) And it’s why we publish so many stories dedicated to explaining how AI works, and what's coming next. We also regularly run live subscriber-only Roundtables events—you can still catch up on last week’s session, where we explored how AI might enter the physical realm via world models.
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MIT Technology Review Narrated: what’s next for IVF
IVF has brought millions of babies into the world over the last four decades. But the process can still be slow, painful, and expensive—and far from guaranteed to work. Now, a wave of new technologies aims to change that.
Researchers are using AI to identify promising sperm and embryos, developing robotic systems that could automate parts of the IVF process, and even exploring controversial genetic editing techniques designed to prevent inherited disease.
The technologies could make IVF more effective and accessible. But they’re also raising difficult ethical questions about how far reproductive medicine should go.
—Jessica Hamzelou
This is our latest story to be turned into an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we publish each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released.
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 NASA unveiled plans for three uncrewed missions to the Moon this year
They’re part of preparations for a crewed landing in 2028. (The Verge)+ And steps to build the first lunar base at the Moon’s south pole. (NBC News)+ Jeff Bezos’s Blue Origin will lead the first uncrewed mission. (WP $)+ NASA is building the first nuclear reactor-powered spacecraft. (MIT Technology Review)
2 Samsung’s largest unions have approved a landmark bonus scheme
The deal averts a massive strike at the world’s largest memory-chip maker. (WSJ $)+ Chip workers will get an average bonus of about $340,000. (Bloomberg $)+ The dispute centered on who profits from the AI boom. (BI)+ Resistance to AI is growing. (MIT Technology Review)3 Elon Musk accused the Pentagon of misusing Starlink for drones
He says military use of the system violates SpaceX rules. (Ars Technica)+ The DoD is disputing a Starlink price hike during the Iran war. (Reuters $)+ Stratospheric internet could take off this year. (MIT Technology Review)
4 China has overhauled the world’s biggest surveillance network with AI
Beijing is pushing law enforcement towards predictive policing. (FT $)+ Police use of smart glasses is also booming in China. (Gizmodo)*+ LLMs could supercharge mass surveillance. *(MIT Technology Review)
5 Space Force is awarding SpaceX $2 billion for a military data network
It will connect military sensors and weapons platforms worldwide. (Reuters $)+ The contract comes amid concerns about SpaceX’s AI business. (WSJ $)*+ Speculation is growing around a possible SpaceX-Tesla merger. * (CNBC)6 Taiwan suspects Nvidia chips were smuggled to China via Japan
To circumvent US restrictions. (Bloomberg $)+ Is China about to win the AI race? (MIT Technology Review)7 Booming AI chip demand has created two new $1 trillion companies
South Korea's SK Hynix and the US’ Micron have hit the landmark. (BBC)8 AI has sparked a surge in demand for cybersecurity experts
Thanks to a glut of new code and alarm over powerful models. (NYT $)+ AI is making online swindles easier. (MIT Technology Review)
9 Internet is coming back in Iran after a three-month blackout
Although it isn’t clear if the reconnection is permanent. (Wired $)10 Physicists are rethinking the role of gravity in quantum mechanics
There’s a new theory for how our everyday world emerges. (New Scientist $) Quote of the day
**“AI and its capabilities represent something analogous to the Second Coming.” **
—Jeremy Nixon, the cofounder of AGI House and a former Google Brain researcher, tells the New York Times how Silicon Valley’s innovations could affect the pope.
One More Thing
Inside the experimental world of animal infrastructure
Inside the experimental world of animal infrastructure
In the mid-2000s, toads were meeting a gruesome end near Ede, a leafy old town in the Netherlands. Residents responded by building wildlife tunnels beneath the road to help them reach their breeding ponds safely.
The crossings became popular. But a few years later, researchers found the local toad population had crashed from more than 10,000 to fewer than 1,000.
The case reflects a wider global push to build wildlife crossings and other forms of “animal infrastructure.” But do they actually help animal populations recover? Read the full story to find out.
—Matthew Ponsford
We can still have nice things
A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.)
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This deep dive into instant coffee reveals the extraordinary engineering effort behind making it vaguely drinkable.
Deep Dive
The Download
The Download: DeepSeek’s latest AI breakthrough, and the race to build world models
Plus: China has blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus.
The Download: introducing the 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now
Plus: An unauthorized group has reportedly accessed Anthropic’s Mythos.
The Download: supercharged scams and studying AI healthcare
Plus: DeepSeek has unveiled its long-awaited new AI model.
The Download: inside the Musk v. Altman trial, and AI for democracy
Plus: the Pentagon has struck sweeping AI deals for classified work.
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