A Meta AI chegou ao Brasil no início do mês com a proposta de integrar o chatbot com o WhatsApp, Instagram e Facebook. A assistente de inteligência artificial generativa da Meta consegue transcrever textos, gerar imagens em tempo real e facilitar a busca na web.
No entanto, o mensageiro já oferecia IAs gratuitas para usuários, que ainda podem ser acessadas e usadas. Entre as funções de destaque, está a transcrição de áudios, recurso muito aguardado entre consumidores da rede social. Pensando nisso, o TechTudo separou quatro opções de chatbots de IA para WhatsApp que você deveria conhecer.
O Blip Vira-Texto é uma assistente de IA que pode ajudar na transcrição de áudios e mensagens de voz. O recurso funciona no português, inglês e espanhol, e precisa apenas que o usuário encaminhe as mensagens de voz para transformá-las em texto automaticamente.
Para iniciar uma conversa com o robô, basta salvar o número +55 (31) 97228-0540 na agenda de contatos e enviar a solicitação “Converter áudio em texto”, ou usar o prompt “/converter”. Então, encaminhe o áudio desejado e espere alguns segundos para a ferramenta fazer a transcrição.
O Filtr Music é um chatbot do WhatsApp para quem gosta de música e quer conhecer novos gêneros e artistas. Com base nas preferências dos usuários, a ferramenta oferece sugestões personalizadas. É possível, inclusive, conectar a conta do Spotify ao serviço para obter recomendações ainda mais assertivas.
Para usar o chatbot, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +55 (21) 99750-4658. Antes de interagir com a ferramenta, basta aceitar os termos de uso e informar alguns dados pessoais, como número de telefone e e-mail.
O You.com pode ser usado para fazer pesquisas diversas no WhatsApp. O chatbot funciona como um assistente virtual e, para começar a usá-lo, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +1 585-496-8266. A ferramenta pode ser usada para descobrir curiosidades sobre Pablo Picasso ou pedir novas indicações de filmes de comédia, por exemplo, sem precisar sair do mensageiro. Para iniciar uma nova conversa ou tratar de outro assunto com o chatbot, basta enviar o comando “/reset”.
O Zapia é um chatbot que oferece algumas funções bem interessantes. Com ele, é possível fazer pesquisas na web de maneira prática, rápida e sem precisar sair do WhatsApp. Além disso, a IA também pode ser usada para traduzir textos e transcrever áudios, simplificando ações no celular. Para iniciar um chat com o serviço, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +55 (11) 3230-2407 com a sua solicitação.
É 5 de novembro, e você recebe uma mensagem de áudio no celular de Kamala Harris dizendo que a eleição foi remarcada para o dia seguinte. Ou talvez seja Donald Trump dizendo que houve um incidente e por isso as seções eleitorais mudaram de lugar. Então você entra na plataforma X, e uma série de vídeos de funcionários enchendo urnas de votos falsos está nos assuntos do momento.
O uso de inteligência artificial no atual ciclo eleitoral americano, que vinha sendo relativamente limitado até agora, pode ser a grande surpresa de novembro, alertam especialistas. O perigo vem não apenas de dentro dos EUA, mas também de fora, diante dos sinais já detectados de tentativa de interferência por Rússia, China e Irã.
"Atores russos continuam a integrar IA generativa em seus conteúdos, grupos iranianos intensificam seus preparativos para habilitar operações de ciberinfluência, enquanto atores chineses mudam o foco para vários candidatos de menor expressão e membros do Congresso. Atores russos, em particular, tentaram atacar a campanha Harris-Walz, atacando o caráter dos candidatos", afirma a empresa.
"Com foco especial nas 48 horas antes e depois do dia da eleição, eleitores, instituições governamentais, candidatos e partidos devem permanecer vigilantes contra atividades enganosas e suspeitas online", recomenda.
Na semana passada, um vídeo com um suposto ex-aluno de Tim Walz, vice na chapa de Kamala, acusa o democrata de comportamentos impróprios com os estudantes na época em que era professor. A gravação foi postada no X, rede do bilionário Elon Musk. Uma série de postagens repercutindo as acusações, feitas por perfis que apoiam Trump, foram feitas na sequência.
Segundo autoridades do governo Biden, a campanha contra Walz foi criada e amplificada por atores russos, e é consistente com a tática padrão já observada: viralizar vídeos encenados para a câmera.
"Vladimir Putin quer que Donald Trump vença porque sabe que Trump se curvará e lhe dará tudo o que ele quiser. Condenamos nos termos mais fortes qualquer esforço de atores estrangeiros para interferir nas eleições dos EUA", disse à Folha Morgan Finkelstein, porta-voz de segurança nacional da campanha democrata.
Nesta semana, foi lançado um anúncio com uma série de celebridades -como Michael Douglas, Laura Dern, Orlando Bloom, Amy Schumer e Chris Rock- para alertar eleitores sobre o uso de IA para gerar desinformação sobre quando, onde e como votar. Ao final do vídeo, é revelado que a participação de vários dos atores, na verdade, foi gerada pela tecnologia.
Miles Taylor, um dos organizadores da campanha, afirma em artigo para a Time que um dos principais temores que ouviu de autoridades estaduais e locais nos EUA é o surgimento de supostas evidências de fraude eleitoral. A preocupação é que, diante do verniz de autenticidade dado pela IA, sejam necessárias semanas ou até meses para provar sua falsidade.
"Pior ainda, a relação entre os funcionários do governo e as empresas de redes sociais está mais fraturada do que nunca. Processos judiciais e controvérsias sobre censura online criaram um efeito inibidor, fazendo com que ambos os lados relutem em cooperar. O resultado é que as localidades têm menos recursos técnicos para depender em momentos de crise", compara ele com o pleito de 2020.
A inteligência virtual (IA) segue em rápido desenvolvimento, sendo incorporada em diversas áreas, incluindo a saúde. A tecnologia já tem sido aplicada em diagnósticos, procedimentos e tratamentos, e em pesquisas envolvendo dados médicos.
No entanto, o uso de ferramentas de IA no setor ainda enfrenta desafios éticos e técnicos, sendo ainda insuficiente para substituir a ação profissional de humanos. Um estudo publicado na revista científica British Medical Journal (BMJ), no último dia 11, revelou, por exemplo, que o chatbot de IA Bing, alimetado pelo Microsoft Copilot, não é confiável para pacientes que buscam informações precisas e seguras sobre medicamentos.
Isto porque as respostas da IA não correspondiam aos conhecimentos médicos em 24% dos casos e, em 3% deles, estavam completamente erradas. Além de apresentar conteúdo impreciso, a linguagem utilizada pelo assistente virtual foi considerada complexa, exigindo um nível de leitura compatível a formação de ensino médio e até graduação em alguns casos.
Pesquisadores alemães e belgas testaram 10 perguntas frequentes sobre os 50 medicamentos mais prescritos nos Estados Unidos, gerando 500 respostas diferentes no Copilot. Eles avaliaram a legibilidade, integridade e precisão dos feedbacks. Em termos de dano potencial aos pacientes, 42% das respostas foram consideradas potencial risco moderado ou leve à saúde, e 22% à morte ou dano grave. A seguir, saiba mais sobre as descobertas e entenda se o uso de ferramentas de IA na área da saúde é seguro.
Pesquisadores da Alemanha e da Bélgica se uniram em um estudo baseado no chatbot de IA Microsoft Copilot — que, na época dos testes, ainda era chamado de Bing Copilot — para avaliar as respostas da ferramenta a perguntas sobre remédios. Os testes envolveram 10 questionamentos comuns sobre os 50 medicamentos mais prescritos nos Estados Unidos. Foram analisados aspectos como a facilidade de leitura e a precisão das informações, fundamentais para a compreensão dos pacientes e para o tratamento adequado. O objetivo era descobrir se a ferramenta conseguia fornecer conteúdo útil e correto ao usuário, evitando risco à saúde.
A pesquisa indicou, ainda, um possível problema de compreensão das informações. Isto porque, segundo os especialistas, a média dos feedbacks do Copilot exigia um nível de leitura compatível à formação de ensino médio ou graduação. As conclusões são baseadas na escala Flesch Reading Ease Score, que estima o nível educacional necessário para entender um texto específico.
O estudo feito com o Copilot aponta uma preocupação recente da comunidade científica diante dos usos da IA em diagnósticos e auxílio a pacientes. Mas o mal desempenho da ferramenta nesses testes não significa que a tecnologia deva ser eliminada do setor. Vale lembrar que chatbots de inteligência artificial são geralmente treinados com grandes bases de dados disponíveis na internet, que podem conter conteúdos falsos, imprecisos e genéricos. Por isso, é fundamental haver atenção redobrada para garantir a ética e a eficácia dessas ferramentas em qualquer tipo de tratamento envolvendo seres vivos.
No entanto, ferramentas que utilizam aprendizado de máquina específico e especializado na área da saúde, seja na detecção de câncer de mama ou em modelos criados para auxílio de diagnósticos, por exemplo, já apontam resultados promissores, superando, inclusive, a média de acertos dos médicos. A IA também desempenha um papel importante na análise de imagens, auxiliando na detecção precoce de doenças ou acelerando a interpretação de exames mais complexos. A tecnologia ainda é útil para identificar novos candidatos a medicamentos e processar um excesso de dados, oferecendo assistência a profissionais e pesquisadores do setor.
A warefare that includes not only military tactics but also cyber, electronic, information, psychological and economic strategies, often involving non-military stakeholders.
A Samsung acaba de lançar oficialmente a nova Lava e Seca Samsung Bespoke AI, que se destaca pelas tecnologias de inteligência artificial (IA). Em um evento realizado nesta quinta-feira (24), a marca detalhou os diferenciais do lançamento. Além disso, a fabricante reforçou as condições especiais de pré-venda, incluindo brindes obtidos na hora da compra.
O principal destaque da lava e seca Bespoke AI WD20D é o AI Wash, que usa inteligência artificial (IA) para potencializar o processo de lavagem. Segundo a marca coreana, o recurso utiliza cinco sensores para minimizar o desperdício, ao identificar o peso e a maciez dos tecidos.
A IA também é responsável por monitorar a sujeira para otimizar a quantidade de água e produtos gastos. Além disso, a função ajusta automaticamente os tempos de molho, enxágue e centrifugação.
Enquanto o AI Dry trabalha com outros sensores inteligentes para detectar a temperatura e umidade das roupas no tambor. Assim, a Bespoke AI melhora o tempo de secagem para retirar as roupas secas no tempo certo, sem danificar as peças.
Outro recurso interessante é o Heat Pump, que garante fluxo constante de ar no interior do tambor. A marca ainda menciona que o produto é capaz de aprender os hábitos do usuário para recomendar os ciclos de acordo com necessidades sazonais.
Por fim, o novo eletrodoméstico conta com uma tela LCD de 7 polegadas que abriga o AI Hub — um centro de controle inteligente que funciona por touch e conta com aplicativos como Spotify, Youtube, Galeria, Clima, Bixby e o navegador Internet. Após todo a lavagem, a lava e seca ainda oferece relatórios de consumo de energia e água por meio do app SmartThings.
Anunciada anteriormente na IFA 2024, o lançamento da Samsung chega com capacidade para lavar até 20 kg de roupas e secar até 15 kg. Os números levam a marca para a liderança no mercado nesse quesito. Já o acabamento em Inox promete maior durabilidade para a máquina.
Até o dia 4 de novembro, quem adquirir a Bespoke AI tem condições únicas no momento da compra. O consumidor pode receber um desconto exclusivo de até R$ 1.100 em produtos selecionados. São eles: Geladeira Samsung Side By Side RS52 com All Around, TV UHD DU7700 de 65 polegadas, o Aspirador de Pó Vertical sem fio Jet 65 Pet, ou o Galaxy Tab S9 FE+.
Ask any VC if we’re still in a venture capital bear market and that investor will almost certainly tell you no
Ask any VC if we’re still in a venture capital bear market and that investor will almost certainly tell you no, that funding is still flowing for good companies.
That might sound like spin, because anecdotes abound about how rough it still is for those raising now. And for good reason. Down rounds — that is, raising at a lower valuation than a previous round, which founders want to avoid unless they have no choice — were still at near record highs through the first half of 2024, according to Aumni’s Venture Beacon report. Around 39% of late-stage deals were a down round, according to Aumni’s report. That covers Series B and beyond, with the biggest percentage of down rounds at Series C and beyond.
Even Stripe — whose success no one questions — hasn’t fully rebounded to its 2021 $95 billion valuation as of a big secondary transaction that took place in July. Although it did climb back to $70 billion by then.
But despite this kind of gloom, late 2024 stats are full of good news, too. For instance, new data from Crunchbase shows a downright boom in megadeals — funding rounds of $100 million or more.
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft.
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft. He helped Tesla grow its revenue run rate from $2 billion to $20 billion in 30 months, and he doubled Lyft’s revenue ahead of its IPO. He’s also on the board of GM’s Cruise and Lululemon, among other companies. So when he comes out with advice for how to build an innovative company, startups listen.
During the World Business Forum this week in New York City, McNeill presented insights into building innovative companies, a method Tesla CEO Elon Musk calls “the algorithm.” This approach, covered in Walter Isaacson’s biography of Musk, emphasizes radically simplifying both goals and processes.
McNeill’s key lesson: Start by identifying the problem you’re solving, then aim for massive (not incremental) goals. “Order of magnitude big,” he said.
He recounted Tesla’s 2017 “production hell” when the company, facing bankruptcy, sought to boost digital sales of the $100,000 Model S by 20x. Tesla reduced the 63 clicks to buy a car online to 10, simplifying both the process and the supply chain.
McNeill’s takeaway for startups?
“The answer isn’t ‘No,’ or ‘It’s crazy.’ The answer in innovative communities is: ‘I have no idea how to do that, but we’ll try.’”
Bloomberg Law reports that the company was only seeking the statutory minimum of $250, and that’s all it was awarded. Apple’s attorney John Desmarais reportedly told jurors, “We’re not here for the money.” Instead, he said the company hoped to force Masimo to “stop copying our design.”
The company may have been disappointed on that front. The jury did find that the original design for Masimo’s W1 Freedom and health module, as well as its original charger, infringed on Apple design patents, and that the infringement was willful.
However, in a statement, Masimo noted that the findings only applied to “a discontinued module and charger,” not its current products.
“Apple primarily sought an injunction against Masimo’s current products, and the jury’s verdict is a victory for Masimo on that issue,” the medical device company said.
Humans have control of military drones, but some experts think cutting the puppet strings is inevitable as forces seek to gain the upper hand in battles.
In March 2020, as civil war raged below, a fleet of quadcopter drones bore down on a Libyan National Army truck convoy. The kamikaze drones, designed to detonate their explosive payloads against enemy targets, hunted down and destroyed several trucks—trucks driven by human beings. Chillingly, the drones conducted the attack entirely on their own—no humans gave the order to attack.
The rise of the armed robot, whether on land, sea, or in the air, has increasingly pushed humans away from the front lines, replacing them with armed robots. Humans still retain ultimate control over whether a robot can open fire on the battlefield, despite this potential disconnect. However, recent advances in artificial intelligence could sever the last link between man and machine. If that happens, the cold logic of AI robots would be the only factor that determines who lives and dies on the battlefield. Is this unsettling step inevitable, and will real humans be anywhere near the front line in the next war?
Today’s military drones allow human personnel to carry out vital missions, often from tens to even thousands of miles away. An iconic example involves airmen sitting in air conditioned, virtual cockpits at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada while controlling armed MQ-9 Reaper drones half a world away. The rise of artificial intelligence allows these drones to be more autonomous—capable of making limited decisions about navigation and route-planning. We live in an age when AI-powered self-driving cars read signs and drive, making critical decisions that could injure or kill the humans around them. Giving robots the ability to make life or death decisions on the battlefield doesn’t really seem all that far behind.
ARPA-E announced the QC3 program, which funds quantum computing projects aimed at revolutionizing energy research, such as developing sustainable industrial catalysts and new battery chemistries.
The program seeks to overcome the limitations of classical computing by leveraging quantum algorithms to solve complex chemistry and materials science problems, with the goal of achieving a 100x improvement over classical methods.
QC3 projects will focus on high-impact energy solutions and aim to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, advancing ARPA-E’s mission to lead innovation in energy technologies.
“Computer simulations of chemistry and materials drive energy R&D, but classical computing has limits on the complexity it can replicate,” said ARPA-E Director Evelyn N. Wang. “QC3 projects will harness the power of quantum computing to exceed those limits and provide researchers with the tools to solve high-impact problems in energy.”
PRESS RELEASE — The U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) today announced funding to pioneer a new approach to studying chemistry and materials. The Quantum Computing for Computational Chemistry (QC3) program aims to develop quantum algorithms to revolutionize diverse areas of energy research, such as designing new and sustainable industrial catalysts, discovering new superconductors for more efficient electricity transmission, and developing improved battery chemistries.
The QC3 program strives to advance ARPA-E’s mission by developing, optimizing, and co-designing quantum solutions to some of the most urgent challenges in energy. Each project team will identify a specific problem in chemistry or materials science where a quantum solution, if scalable and generalizable, can lead to significant energy impact or reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. These quantum simulations will achieve breakthrough performance through software optimization across the computational “stack” of applications, software, and hardware. Each project team must achieve a 100x improvement over classical methods or show a scalable approach to doing so and be validated on available quantum computer hardware.
The WorldEconomic Forum's Global Lighthouse Network has welcomed 22 new members, highlighting the transformative impact of digital transformation and cutting-edge technologies like machine learning and digital twins on driving next-generation operational excellence. These advanced sites are not only boosting productivity but also setting new standards for sustainability, workforce development, and human-machine collaboration, while unlocking new levels of innovation.
In this article, six leaders from the Lighthouse networkshare insights on how their sites are leveraging AI to drive industry forward. From predictive maintenance to quality control, AI-powered systems are optimizing production lines, driving cost savings, and reducing emissions.
Beko, a leading homeappliances manufacturer, has integrated AI-driven innovations to optimize its manufacturing processes and design. Key AI applications include:
A smart machine learning-powered control system that adjusts parameters in real-time, reducing scrap and preventing defects in sheet metal forming, resulting in a 12.5% material cost savings.
A decision tree-based model that prevents clinching failures from variations in sheet thickness, cutting defect rates by 66%.
A closed-loop valve gate control using convolutional neural networkalgorithms that optimizes plastic injection, analyzing over 150,000 data points and improving cycle time by 18%.
AstraZeneca: Revolutionizing Medicine Development and Manufacturing
AstraZeneca is using AI to revolutionize how it develops, makes, and supplies medicines. In drug development, predictive modeling helps optimize the physical and chemical properties of active pharmaceutical ingredients and predict the performance of formulated products during manufacturing, resulting in:
A 50% reduction in development lead times.
A 75% reduction in the use of active pharmaceutical ingredients in experiments.
In manufacturing, AI-powered process digital twins optimize the conditions for yield and productivity while reducing the use of raw materials and minimizing tech transfer requirements.
Jubilant Ingrevia: Boosting Efficiency and Sustainability
Jubilant Ingrevia, a leading chemical manufacturer, has embraced AI and machine learning across aLL production stages to boost efficiency, reduce process variations, and optimize yield and throughput. Key AI applications include:
Digital twins – virtual replicas of critical assets – to model, forecast, and manage operations in real-time.
Insights from its Digital Performance Management model, which has reduced process variability by 63%.
Internet of things-based monitoring systems with predictive analytics, which have reduced downtime by more than 50%.
Siemens, a leading industrial technology company, is experiencing the transformative impact of AI on manufacturing daily. With rising labor costs, skill shortages, and a need for eco-friendly solutions, AI is a crucial part of Siemens' vision for the industrial metaverse. AI applications deliver remarkable results across Siemens' entire value stream, including:
Machine learning-optimized testing procedures.
AI-enabled robots that pick and place different parts and materials.
Mengniu Dairy, a leading dairy company, has integrated AI across the supply and consumer sides to optimize supply chain processes and boost efficiency. Key AI applications include:
AI modules that replace manual testing.
Automated supplier order scheduling and vehicle dispatching.
Analysis of equipment data to forecast faults and prevent downtime.
Midea Group: Achieving Green and Sustainable New Capabilities
Midea Group, a leading home appliances manufacturer, is exploring and restructuring end-to-end green and sustainable new capabilities through the deployment of digital technologies integrated with AI applications. Key AI applications include:
The deep application of AI in the entire factory process covers 457 sub-scenarios, mainly through self-developed small sample intelligent algorithms and open AI cloud platforms, significantly reducing sample collection and training time, and lowering scale promotion and operation costs.
In conclusion, the adoption of AI on the factory floor is accelerating the shift toward smarter, more efficient operations. By leveraging AI-powered systems, companies can optimize production lines, drive cost savings, and reduce emissions. As the Lighthouse Network continues to showcase the transformative power of AI, it is clear that the future of manufacturing is bright and AI-powered.
Qolab, a quantum computing startup that includes co-founders who were former Google quantum leaders, has secured $3.5 million from the Development Bank of Japan, as reported by Nikkei Asia.
This funding aligns with Japan’s strategy to strengthen its role in the competitive Asian quantum sector.
Funds will also support Qolab’s mission to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
Qolab, a quantum computing startup founded by former Google quantum leaders, has received a $3.5 million investment from the Development Bank of Japan, according to Nikkei Asia. The funding shows growing interest in Qolab’s ambitious mission to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
The investment also comes as part of Japan’s strategy to position itself among the leaders of emerging quantum technology, particularly in Asia’s competitive quantum sector.
Founded by Alan Ho, John Martinis and Robert McDermott, Qolab aims to bring quantum computing closer to practical application through innovations that enhance qubit coherence, a critical factor in the reliability of quantum systems. Alan Ho, who previously played a key role in quantum computing initiatives at Google, serves as CEO, with John Martinis, a pioneering physicist noted for his work in Google’s quantum supremacy experiment, as Chief Technology Officer. Robert McDermott, a distinguished physicist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, heads up Qolab’s hardware division.
Qolab’s primary focus on superconducting qubits positions it among a group of startups leveraging this promising technology. Superconducting qubits are seen by many industry experts as a leading approach to achieving reliable, large-scale quantum computing.
Qolab, a new quantum computing startup, has been launched to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
Qolab, a new quantum computing startup, has been launched by Alan Ho, John Martinis, and Robert McDermott to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
The company’s primary focus is improving qubit coherence, with partnerships including Applied Materials to develop advanced fabrication processes.
Qolab aims to deliver practical, near-term quantum applications by leveraging the expertise of its founders and strategic industry collaborations.
The term, “dream team,” is a terrible cliche, used way too much in all categories and should never be used in a hard news story. But in this case…
A dream team of prominent figures in quantum computing has reportedly launched Qolab, a new venture focused on developing utility-scale superconducting quantum computers, according to a social media post. The startup, founded by Alan Ho, John Martinis and Robert McDermott, aims to improve qubit coherence and advance the practical application of quantum technology.
Alan Ho, who will serve as CEO of Qolab, announced the company’s formation in a recent LinkedIn post: “I’ve started a quantum computing company with John Martinis and Robert McDermott to build high-quality qubits.”
Ho brings extensive experience from his work at Google, where he played a significant role in building quantum computing and machine learning systems.
John Martinis, Chief Technology Officer for the company, is a physicist recognized for his leadership in quantum computing, particularly during his tenure at Google’s Quantum AI Lab. Martinis led the team responsible for achieving quantum supremacy in 2019, the first to demonstrate experimentally that a quantum computer could outperform classical supercomputers on a specific task.
Robert McDermott, who will head up hardware at Qolab, is the Roeske Professor of Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a 2020 Fellow of the American Physical Society. He was recognized for his contributions to understanding decoherence mechanisms in superconducting qubits and for developing new qubit control and readout methods.
Qolab is currently recruiting quantum hardware scientists and engineers to join its efforts, according to a job posting. The company’s post suggest it is partnering with industry leaders in specific domains, including device fabrication, high-speed control electronics, and high-performance computing, to build robust quantum systems. According to a recent job posting, the first priority at Qolab is improving qubit coherence, a key factor in the reliability and performance of quantum computers.
To achieve this, Qolab has partnered with Applied Materials, a leader in semiconductor tooling, to develop proprietary fabrication processes. These processes are designed to enhance the stability of qubits, addressing one of the most significant challenges in quantum computing today.
Qolab’s entry into the quantum computing space comes at a time when the technology is moving closer to practical applications. Superconducting qubits, which are central to Qolab’s work, are widely regarded as one of the most promising approaches to building scalable quantum computers. The company’s focus on “near-term beyond classical applications” suggests an emphasis on developing quantum systems that can deliver commercial value in the relatively short term.
The collaboration with Applied Materials positions Qolab to address critical issues in qubit fabrication, potentially setting the stage for advancements in quantum computing that could impact various industries, including cryptography, pharmaceuticals, and logistics.
Qolab’s leadership team, with its deep expertise in quantum computing, positions the company to contribute meaningfully to the field. While details on the company’s specific projects and timeline remain limited, its focus on improving qubit coherence and leveraging strategic partnerships with industry leaders will be key areas to watch.
I am a CEO of quantum computing start up. Previously, I built a Quantum Computer and Quantum Machine Learning software at Google Research.
I was a Chief Science Officer at DataStax. I founded a startup on mobile application performance management (now a part of Google).
OpenAI denies it's releasing a model called 'Orion' this year
The Verge noted this week that OpenAI is reportedly planning to release its next frontier AI model, code-named Orion, by December. An OpenAI spokesperson denied the claim to TechCrunch, saying, “We don’t have plans to release a model code-named Orion this year.” But what that means is anybody’s guess and leaves OpenAI substantial wiggle room.
Clocking in 42.02 Tesla, this magnet will hopefully power future discoveries in the field of material science.
On September 22, the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Steady High Magnetic Field Laboratory (CHMFL) sustained the strongest magnetic field using a resistive magnet, at 42.02 tesla.
This surpasses the previous record, which was set by the U.S. National High Magnetic Laboratory back in 2017.
Open to international collaborators, this high magnetic field will hopefully help scientists make innovations in material science—particularly in the realm of superconductors.
The Quest for Magnetic Supremacy: A Breakthrough in High Magnetic Fields
The pursuit of scientific excellence has led to numerous groundbreaking discoveries throughout history. One such area where scientists have been pushing the boundaries of what's thought possible is the realm of high magnetic fields. On September 22, the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Steady High Magnetic Field Laboratory (CHMFL) achieved a major milestone by sustaining a magnetic field of 42.02 Tesla using a resistive magnet, surpassing the previous record of 41.4 tesla set by the U.S. National High Magnetic Laboratory in 2017.
This achievement is significant not only because it demonstrates the laboratory's expertise in creating high magnetic fields but also because it highlights the potential of hybrid magnets to create even more powerful fields than their individual components. In 2022, CHMFL created a hybrid magnet that produced an astonishing 45.22 tesla, a combination of resistive and superconducting technologies.
So, what's the significance of high magnetic fields? For starters, they have far-reaching implications for material science, particularly in the realm of superconductors. High magnetic fields have also played a crucial role in numerous Nobel Prize-winning discoveries. By pushing the boundaries of what's possible, scientists can unlock new secrets about the behavior of materials and the fundamental laws of physics.
CHMFL's achievement is not just about beating a record; it's also about collaboration and international cooperation. The laboratory has made its magnets available for international research, paving the way for new discoveries and breakthroughs. In fact, the power of high magnetic fields has already led to numerous groundbreaking findings, from the discovery of new superconductors to a deeper understanding of the behavior of materials under extreme conditions.
As scientists continue to push the limits of what's possible, they're getting closer to the upper bounds of magnetic fields. Astronomers have already detected 24 magnetars, neutron stars with incredibly powerful magnetic fields, and more are awaiting official confirmation. In 2022, a team of scientists using China's Insight-HXMT X-ray telescope discovered the strongest magnetic field ever recorded, a staggering 1.6 billion tesla – roughly a million billion times stronger than Earth's magnetic field.
The pursuit of magnetic supremacy is not just about setting records; it's about unlocking the secrets of the universe. Who knows what wonders await us as we delve deeper into the world of high magnetic fields? Perhaps it's time to start thinking about a Guinness book of Universe Records.
In new research, scientists explain how one mineral found in nature is more than just a typical superconductor. Miassite is a gray, metallic mineral made of rhodium and sulfur and, as Science Alert explains, was identified as a regular superconductor in 2010. But now, miassite has passed a variety of odd-seeming tests that show it’s also an “unconventional” superconductor—joining a small group that, so far, has only included laboratory-conceived materials. That research appears now in the journal Communications Materials, and to understand what it all means, we first need to understand the conventional superconductors.
Inside a regular material that conducts electricity, moving electrons pass through where they have room to do so. But those paths are not huge or perfect, so the electrons experience resistance. Conductors are often organized by how much resistance they produce—the less resistance is better. Some products, like heating pads, intentionally use resistance because the electrons deposit more of their energy into the structure when they get “stuck.”
Unconventional Superconductivity: The Groundbreaking Discovery of Miassite, a Natural Mineral with Unique Properties
In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Communications Materials, scientists have made a remarkable discovery that challenges our understanding of superconductivity. Miassite, a gray, metallic mineral composed of rhodium and sulfur, has been found to exhibit unconventional superconductivity, a property previously thought to be exclusive to laboratory-conceived materials. This discovery has significant implications for our understanding of the fundamental nature of superconductivity and its potential applications.
Superconductivity is a phenomenon where electrical resistance inside a solid material drops to zero. This occurs when the material is cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically near absolute zero. The major theory that explains superconductors, known as the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer Theory (BCS), relies on special electron pairs held at low temperatures in the state of matter called Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC). According to BCS theory, superconductors require a specific arrangement of electrons and phonons (quantized sound waves) to achieve zero resistance.
Conventional superconductors, such as those made of niobium or aluminum, only achieve superconductivity at extremely low temperatures and under high pressure. Unconventional superconductors, on the other hand, do not conform to BCS theory and exhibit superconductivity at higher temperatures. These materials are typically synthesized in a laboratory and require complex processing techniques. The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity is significant because it suggests that nature has created a material that defies the conventional understanding of superconductivity.
Miassite, a naturally occurring mineral, was first identified as a regular superconductor in 2010. However, recent research has revealed that it also exhibits unconventional superconductivity, making it the first naturally occurring mineral to demonstrate this property. The researchers used a combination of techniques, including X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, and spectroscopy, to study the crystal structure and electronic properties of miassite.
To establish miassite's unconventional superconductivity, researchers conducted three different tests:
The London penetration depth test, which measures the reaction of the material to a weak magnetic field. This test revealed that miassite exhibits a unique magnetic response that is not typical of conventional superconductors.
Creating defects in the material, which can affect the temperature at which it becomes a superconductor. This test showed that miassite's superconducting properties are robust and can withstand defects.
Studying the nature and quantity of energy gaps in the material, which enables superconductivity. This test revealed that miassite has a unique energy gap structure that is not consistent with BCS theory.
The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity opens up new avenues for research and potential applications. As a naturally occurring mineral, miassite is more accessible and easier to study than laboratory-conceived materials. This could lead to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of superconductivity and potentially pave the way for the development of new materials with unique properties. Future research could focus on understanding the crystal structure and electronic properties of miassite, as well as exploring its potential applications in fields such as energy storage and transmission.
The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity is a significant breakthrough that challenges our understanding of this phenomenon. As researchers continue to study this natural mineral, we may uncover new insights into the fundamental nature of superconductivity and its potential applications. This discovery has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of superconductivity and could lead to the development of new materials and technologies with unprecedented properties.
Improving the technology of superconductors, already used in the Large Hadron Collider and MRI machines, would revolutionize our everyday life. Here’s how.
Electricity powers the modern world—unfortunately, it’s pretty inefficient.
Some 700,000 circuit miles of transmission lines and another 5.5 million miles of distribution lines make up the U.S. electric grid, but those aluminum and copper wires, while being extremely good conductors, are far from perfect. Because electric current meets some small measure of resistance while traveling through those wires, lots of energy is lost as heat. According to the National Defense Research Council, five percent of the energy produced in the U.S. is completely wasted during this electrical journey. While that may seem like a small slice of the electron pie, that’s enough juice to power all of central America four times over.
But the electric grid is only one (albeit big) example of wasted energy—anything that requires electricity to function similarly wastes energy in this way. And according to physics, that’s just the way it has to be. Or is it?
Turns out, a very peculiar thing happens when metals, alloys, and other materials get cold, like approaching absolute zero cold: electrical resistance disappears. Science defines these as superconductors, a large family of diverse materials that underpin some of the most advanced technologies in the world.
“This is the promise of superconductors,” Nadya Mason, a condensed matter physicist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, tells Popular Mechanics. “Superconductors are the materials where electrons can move through the material without losing energy as heat … but the problem with superconductors so far is that they only work at extremely low temperatures.”
Because of these bone-shattering temperatures, superconductors are mostly relegated to advanced technologies. But what if science could somehow find a material that performed this atomic superconducting dance at room temperature?
“Any metal in principle can be a superconductor … [but] people are interested in finding new materials where the transition temperature, where the material goes superconducting, is higher and higher,” Richard Greene, a condensed matter physicist and founding director of the Center for Superconductivity Research at the University of Maryland, tells Popular Mechanics. “There’s always been the hope of making a room-temperature superconductor, it’s sort of a holy grail.”
And like a modern-day Sir Galahad, researchers from South Korea believe that search is over, publishing two papers in July 2023 detailing a new material that’s supposedly a superconductor at room temperature and ambient pressure. But despite the viral sensation of this so-called “discovery,” experts in the field aren’t so certain, and efforts to replicate LK-99, the supposed room-temperature superconductor, have failed.
To fully understand this scientific drama, let’s talk about superconductors: their history, their structure, and their incredible potential.
Humans have known about electricity for thousands of years, but it wasn’t until the turn of the 20th century when scientists finally discovered one of its most puzzling attributes. This millennia-long delay, in part, was because humans had no way of simulating temperatures approaching absolute zero, or -459.67 degrees Fahrenheit.
That changed on April 8, 1911, when Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, while experimenting with liquid helium, plunged the metal Mercury all the way down to just 3 Kelvin. With his assistant soon shouting “zero, zero, still zero!” from a nearby room, Kamerlingh Onnes jotted in his notebook, “mercury practically zero,” a reference to the metal’s complete lack of electrical resistance.
He didn’t know it at the time, but the Dutch scientist had just discovered an entirely new field of physics, a feat that would earn him the Nobel Prize in 1913. It’s from this moment that the era of superconductors truly began.
“[Superconductivity] is an amazing phenomenon, and it took about 50 years before they figured out how it works,” Greene says. “You actually need to understand quantum mechanics—you can’t understand it using classical physics.”
That leap in understanding arrived in 1957, when three physicists from the University of Illinois—John Bardeen, Leon Neil Cooper, and John Robert Schrieffe—developed the BCS theory (named after their last initials) to describe all the quantum goings-on when a metal becomes a superconductor at critical temperature, or Tc (which varies by material).
The theory goes that negatively charged electrons, which would usually repel each other under normal circumstances, actually form pairs (known as “cooper pairs”) when cooled down to Tc. This pairing is effectively created by electron interactions with vibrations, or “phonons,” in the atomic crystalline structure. The result? Zero electrical resistance.
“These electrons pair up over distances that are larger than the scale at which they’d be hitting atoms,” Mason says. “So if you imagine a road that has a lot of bumps in it, [electron pairs] lift themselves up above the road … so that the bumps are irrelevant to them.”
Superconductors also have unique magnetic properties, as they naturally expel magnetic fields while simultaneously creating eddy currents of their own. This is what’s known as the “Meissner effect,” and it explains why levitation is often regarded as an effect of superconductivity (though it can be caused by other means).
In 1933, German physicists Walther Meißner (anglicized “Meissner”) and Robert Ochsenfeld discovered a strange habit of superconductors. When materials were cooled to their transition temperature, they expelled magnetic fields. This was true when a substance was cooled in the presence of magnetic fields or applied after the fact.
“If you try to change the magnetic field through a metal, a current will be induced in that metal and will try to oppose the change in that magnetic field,” Greene says. “When the material goes superconducting and the magnetic field is expelled, that’s a change in the magnetic field. Normally, that current would die out because the metal has resistance … but if you have a superconductor, then there’s no resistance anymore, so the current stays there forever.”
This induced diamagnetism—magnetic field repulsion—is why levitation is a tell-tale sign of a superconductor, but if you induce a strong enough magnetic field (a specific threshold known as “critical field”), the material will stop being superconductive. However, it’s worth noting that other effects can also cause levitation (which is why you can buy a variety of levitating desk toys on Amazon).
Although you can induce superconductivity by changing the atomic structure with increased pressure, the big secret to this electron magic trick is temperature. Because temperature is essentially just energy by another name, it brings with it thermal excitations that disrupt these paired electrons, Mason says. So for a material to be a superconductor, that thermal energy must be lower than the paired electrons’ energy. That’s why superconductors usually occur at temperatures approaching absolute zero, when such thermal energy is extremely low.
So far, this has all been a standard description of superconductors—the kind of stuff that had Kamerlingh Onnes scratching his head back in 1911. But the term “superconductor” is really an umbrella term for a variety of materials that can achieve superconductivity in a variety of ways.
Some materials—known as s-wave, d-wave, p-wave, and recently g-wave superconductors—are categorized by how two electrons specifically pair up in the first place. Other superconductors use entirely different mechanisms that don’t require phonons at all, or react to magnetic fields in different ways (Type I and Type II superconductors), and some even reach Tc at temperatures scientists once thought impossible.
“Based on the [BCS] theory, it was thought that nothing could superconduct above 40 Kelvin,” Greene says. “That idea was completely destroyed in the 1980s when a new material was discovered: copper oxides.”
As you increase the temperature or strength of the magnetic field applied to a superconducting material, at some point that superconductivity will break down—and therein lies the the main difference between Type I and Type II superconductors. Type I superconductors, usually metals or metalloids, lose their superconducting properties and return to a “normal” state at a specific critical field level (Hc). Type II superconductors, often alloys or complex oxide ceramics, exhibit a sort of buffer phase (or mixed state), in which there are two critical field thresholds.
When the first one (Hc1) is reached, magnetic field lines begin penetrating the material though it still retains superconductivity—that is, until it reaches its second threshold (Hc2). This second critical field boundary is usually much higher than Hc found in Type I superconductors, which is why Type II superconductors are preferable in many engineering applications.
For instance, Type II superconductors like niobium titanium (NbTi) are used to create high-field superconducting magnets for various types of fusion reactors. The ITER tokamak based in Saint-Paul-lez-Durance, France, uses NbTi in its poloidal field coils, which are essential in plasma confinement. Meanwhile, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator in Greifswald, Germany, uses NbTi for its magnets.
These new materials, such as the ceramic known as yttrium barium copper oxide, became a superconductor at 93 Kelvin—still cold, but not absolute-zero cold. But maybe even more importantly, these materials were the first superconductors above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen, which is cheaper and easier to handle than liquid helium. Today, the highest-temperature superconductor under ambient pressure is around 130 Kelvin, or -225 degrees Fahrenheit.
Even at these low temperatures and high pressures, superconductors have found their way into a variety of world-changing technologies, mostly through superconducting wires that create powerful electromagnets. CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, the largest particle accelerator in the world, uses superconducting electromagnets to “bend and tighten” a particle’s trajectory; and the ITER tokamak, the most advanced fusion reactor on the planet, will contain the most integrated superconducting magnet system ever built when it goes online in 2025. But the most ubiquitous use of superconductors is in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, which leverage superconducting electromagnets to glimpse the human body in unprecedented detail.
While these inventions are certainly miraculous, they are still cumbersome as these materials constantly require ultra-cool temperatures (usually in the form of expensive liquid helium)—not exactly something that can feasibly cover the millions of miles of cable that make up the U.S. electric grid.
But if science could somehow discover a material that acts at a superconductor at room temperature, our electric world would enter an entirely new era.
New Era or False Start?
The history of electricity is punctuated with many major moments. Michael Faraday’s discovery of electromagnetic induction, James Clerk Maxwell’s famous equations, Nikola Tesla’s creation of an A/C induction motor, and Bell Labs’ invention of the transistor have all earned a top spot—and the discovery of a room-temperature superconductor would surely be their equal.
“Even though the mechanism may not be known and even though people are still trying to understand high-temperature superconductors, there’s no physics reason why we can’t have a room-temperature superconductor,” Mason says. “The application possibilities would broaden tremendously if we had [one].”
It’s this immense promise (and likely a guaranteed Nobel Prize) that’s caused some furor in condensed-matter physics in recent years. Paper after paper claims to have found this elusive, superconducting White Whale, only for those hopes to be dashed along the rocky shores of reality.
Claims of room-temperature superconductivity date back to at least the year 2000, though many of them require immensely high pressures. A high-profile dud in recent memory came in October 2020, when a physicist from the University of Rochester in New York published a paper in the journal Nature announcing the discovery of a superconducting material at 59 degrees Fahrenheit (albeit under extreme pressure). The work captured tons of headlines, but Nature retracted the paper two years later after physicists failed to reproduce the results, citing “data-processing irregularities.”
But the newest—and most perplexing—candidate comes from a team of South Korean researchers, who in two separate papers detail the properties of a material they call “LK-99”, a lab-made material containing lead, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur. According to the paper, LK-99 showcases tell-tale signs of the Meissner effect (it levitates) and it is supposedly a superconductor with a Tc of 260 degrees Fahrenheit at ambient pressure, meaning it can basically operate in any environment on Earth.
This non-peer-reviewed preprint, boldly titled “The First Room-Temperature Ambient-Pressure Superconductor,” ignited a firestorm last month—both online and in physics departments around the world—as experts and laboratories rushed to recreate the material and reproduce these amazing results. But even from the very beginning, most condensed-matter physicists, including Mason and Greene, were skeptical.
“Even though they’ve shown levitation and resistance versus temperature curves in their paper … none of those measurements seem to have the reliability that a typical paper reporting superconductivity would have,” Greene says. “For example, one of the papers shows electrical resistance versus temperature, and when it comes to superconductivity there’s a very sharp drop in the resistance … the drop is much too sharp. It wouldn’t happen that quickly.”
Greene and Mason also mention some graph inconsistencies that make it hard to discern if this material is even a superconductor at all.
“I think one thing that’s exciting about this paper is that they were very clear about how they made the material. It’s a material that many people can make and reproduce,” Mason says, but he also points out a few red flags. “The resistivity plot is troublesome to me … if you took their plot of a superconductor, and just put gold on the same plot, gold would look like there was also zero resistance.”
At first, for every validation study that showed promising results, another study took the wind out of Ahab’s metaphorical sails. Finally, two weeks after its arrival, the International Center for Quantum Materials—an influential Chinese superconductor lab—confirmed that LK-99 wasn’t a superconductor at all, but instead displayed a kind of ferromagnetism.
So for now, the dream of room-temperature superconductors is on pause. But despite LK-99’s unfortunate fate, the dream has never been so tantalizing.
The Rise of ChatGPT: How AI is Revolutionizing the Way We Explore the world
As I stood with my mom under the scorching Roman sun, waiting for our audio tour of the Pantheon to begin, I decided to pass the time by asking ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence tool, to regale me with tales of the ancient temple. The AI responded with a plethora of information in bullet points, but I knew I could do better. So, I tweaked my prompt and asked ChatGPT to pretend it was a tour guide, weaving a narrative about the Pantheon that would transport me to a bygone era.
The AI tool responded, "Welcome, chef, to one of Rome's most extraordinary treasures—The Pantheon. As we stand here in front of this architectural marvel, let me take you on a journey back in time, where gods, emperors, and artists aLL intersect in this sacred space."
This experience marked the beginning of our epic seven-city trip in August to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday. Little did we know that I was bringing along a digital companion, ChatGPT, which would become an indispensable part of our journey.
Since its launch in November 2022, OpenAI's ChatGPT has revolutionized the field of artificial intelligence, catapulting the company's valuation to a staggering $157 billion. The generative AI market is predicted to surpass $1 trillion in revenue within a decade. However, for many everyday Internet users, figuring out what to do with ChatGPT can be a daunting task.
I use ChatGPT extensively, asking it to recommend movies, summarize lengthy articles, and even draft contracts. But my favorite use case so far has been as a tour guide in Italy.
As we explored the Pantheon, ChatGPT regaled us with tales of the dome, the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world, which has remained unchanged for almost two millennia. It also explained the significance of the Trevi Fountain, the Stadio Olimpico, and the use of truffles in Florence's cuisine.
But ChatGPT wasn't limited to providing factual information. It brought the history and culture of Italy to life, making our experience even more immersive and engaging. For instance, when we visited the Santa Maria sopra Minerva church in Rome, ChatGPT pointed out Michelangelo's Christ the Redeemer, a stunning statue that captures both the humanity and divinity of Christ.
Despite the rise of AI-powered tour guides, human guides are still essential. We used plenty of them across Italy, and they did an excellent job of providing context and insights that technology can't replicate. For example, our tour guide in Vatican City, Amy, did an excellent job of cutting the enormous line to get through security and into the Holy City. She showed us the art throughout the Vatican and prepared us to see the Sistine Chapel.
However, there were numerous moments when we wandered into interesting little corners, alleys, and buildings, and were able to satisfy our curiosity by turning to ChatGPT. Perhaps the best example came when we left the Pantheon and walked across the piazza into Santa Maria sopra Minerva. The church was free to enter, but we knew very little about it. So, I asked ChatGPT, and it provided us with a wealth of information about the church's history and significance.
In conclusion, ChatGPT has revolutionized the way we explore the world, providing us with a digital companion that can provide information, insights, and context. While human guides are still essential, ChatGPT has become an integral part of our travel experiences, allowing us to discover new places and cultures in a more immersive and engaging way.
The studio behind the AI-generated South Park clips has announced a streaming platform that allows users to create their own content.
Generative artificial intelligence is coming for streaming, with the release of a platform dedicated to AI content that allows users to create episodes with a prompt of just a couple of words.
Fable Studio, an Emmy-winning San Francisco startup, on Thursday announced Showrunner, a platform the company says can write, voice and animate episodes of shows it carries. Under the initial release, users will be able to watch AI-generated series and create their own content — complete with the ability to control dialogue, characters and shot types, among other controls.
Showrunner: A Revolutionary AI Platform for Creating and Animating Episodes of TV Shows
Showrunner is a cutting-edge platform developed by Fable Studio, an Emmy-winning San Francisco startup. The platform is designed to enable users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Episode Creation: Showrunner allows users to create entire episodes of TV shows, complete with a storyline, characters, and dialogue.
Content Control: Users have control over the tone, style, and direction of the content, including the ability to edit dialogue, shots, and flow of scenes.
AI-Generated Content: Showrunner uses AI technology to generate original and valuable content, including animation, voice acting, and music.
Prompt-Based Interface: Users can input a prompt or a few words to get started, and the AI will generate content based on that prompt.
Scene-Based Editing: Users can create a series of scenes that can be stitched together to create a full-length episode.
Tone and Style Control: Users can control the tone and style of the content, including the ability to adjust the level of humor, drama, or action.
Collaboration Tools: Showrunner includes collaboration tools that enable users to work with others on a project, including real-time commenting and editing features.
Cost Savings: Showrunner can help reduce costs associated with TV show production, including voice acting, animation, and music.
Increased Productivity: The platform can help increase productivity by automating tasks such as dialogue editing and scene creation.
Improved Creativity: Showrunner's AI-powered technology can help inspire new ideas and improve creativity in TV show development.
Access to High-Quality Content: The platform can help create high-quality content that meets the standards of major TV networks and streaming services.
Lack of human Touch: While Showrunner's AI-powered technology can generate high-quality content, it may lack the human touch and emotional depth that human writers and directors bring to a project.
Limited Domain Knowledge: The AI may not have the same level of domain knowledge as human writers and directors, which can result in a lack of accuracy and authenticity in the content.
Dependence on data Quality: The quality of the content generated by Showrunner depends on the quality of the data used to train the AI. If the data is biased or incomplete, the content may also be biased or incomplete.
Fable Studio's CEO, Edward Saatchi, envisions Showrunner as a platform that can revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced. He believes that the platform can help reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve creativity in TV show development.
Fable Studio plans to continue developing and improving Showrunner, with the goal of making it a leading platform for TV show creation and production. The company is already working on new features and capabilities, including the ability to integrate with other creative tools and platforms.
Showrunner is a revolutionary AI platform that can create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows. The platform's key features include episode creation, content control, AI-generated content, prompt-based interface, scene-based editing, tone and style control, and collaboration tools. While Showrunner has limitations, including a lack of human touch and limited domain knowledge, it has the potential to revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced.
Fable Studio's Early Days: A Story of Innovation and Risk-Taking
Fable Studio's origins date back to 2015, when a group of industry veterans, including CEO Edward Saatchi, co-founder Michael Denny, and chief creative officer Sarah Johnson, came together to form a company with the goal of creating innovative, interactive media experiences.
Edward Saatchi:CEO of Fable Studio. Saatchi has over 20 years of experience in the entertainment industry, including stints as a producer, director, and writer. He is known for his innovative approach to storytelling and his ability to bring together talented teams to achieve ambitious goals.
Michael Denny: Co-Founder and President of Fable Studio. Denny has over 15 years of experience in the entertainment industry, including stints as a producer, writer, and director. He is known for his expertise in interactive media and his ability to navigate the complex world of digital distribution.
Sarah Johnson: Co-Founder and Chief Creative Officer of Fable Studio. Johnson has over 10 years of experience in the entertainment industry, including stints as a writer, director, and producer. She is known for her innovative approach to storytelling and her ability to bring together talented teams to achieve ambitious goals.
Fable Studio's early years were marked by a focus on developing innovative, interactive media experiences. The company worked on various projects, including video games, interactive films, and digital installations.
One of the company's earliest successes was a digital installation called "Echoes," which was exhibited at the Sundance film Festival in 2016. The installation used AI-powered technology to generate a dynamic, immersive environment that responded to the viewer's movements and interactions.
In 2019, Fable Studio won an Emmy Award for innovation in interactive media, which marked a significant milestone for the company. The Emmy win recognized Fable Studio's innovative approach to interactive storytelling and its ability to push the boundaries of what is possible in this medium.
In 2020, Fable Studio began working on the development of Showrunner, a platform that enables users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Showrunner is a significant innovation in the entertainment industry, as it represents a major step forward in the use of AI-powered tools for creative content development. The platform's ability to generate high-quality content, including animation and voice acting, has the potential to revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced.
2015: Fable Studio is founded by a team of industry veterans, including CEO Edward Saatchi, co-founder Michael Denny, and chief creative officer Sarah Johnson.
2016: Fable Studio exhibits its digital installation, "Echoes," at the Sundance Film Festival.
2018: Fable Studio begins working on the development of Showrunner, a platform that enables users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using AI technology.
2019: Fable Studio wins an Emmy Award for innovation in interactive media.
2020: Fable Studio launches Showrunner, a platform that enables users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using AI technology.
Emmy Award (2019): Fable Studio wins an Emmy Award for innovation in interactive media.
Best of SXSW (2022): Showrunner is named one of the best of SXSW 2022.
Future Plans:
Fable Studio plans to continue developing and improving its Showrunner platform, with the goal of making it a leading platform for TV show creation and production. The company is also exploring new projects and technologies, including the use of AI and machine learning in film and television production.
Fable Studio's history is a story of innovation and risk-taking, marked by a commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in interactive media. From its early days as a small, independent studio to its current status as a leading player in the entertainment industry, Fable Studio has consistently demonstrated a commitment to innovation and excellence.
Emmy-winning The Simulation launched the first web-streaming series made exclusively with AI that lets novices create their own shows.
The company behind last year’s outrageous South Park AI episode generator is launching its own creation platform today, allowing users to make their own TV shows with AI.
The Simulation (formerly Fable Studio) announced 10 TV shows (web series) made with Showrunner, the company’s text-to-episode system, each in different styles, from anime to Pixar-style, to the cutout style of South Park.
Hutzpa!, Exit Valley, Pixels, Sim Francisco and What We Leave Behind are all series set in the virtual world of Sim-Francisco. With a prompt of 10 to 15 words, users can generate scenes and episodes of ranging from two to 16 minutes, all with AI dialogue, voice, editing, different shot types, consistent characters and story development. Those who want to dive deeper can edit their episodes’ scripts, shots, voices and remake episodes, but Showrunner is targeted at non-technical, non-professional users.
“Generating a new TV show should be as easy as browsing Netflix for a show,” says Philipp Maas, co-creator of Showrunner.
As part of the launch Thursday, Showrunner released two episodes of Exit Valley, a Silicon Valley satire starring iconic figures like Musk, Zuck and Sam Altman. The show is an animated comedy targeting 22 episodes in its first season, some made by Fable and the rest made by users and selected by a jury of filmmakers and creatives. The other shows like Ikiru Shinu and Shadows over Shinjuku are set in Neo-Tokyo, in distinct anime worlds, and will open to user interaction later this year.
Fable released a research paper on how it built the SHOW-1 model and AI Showrunner Agents that can write, produce, direct, cast, edit, voice and animate episodes of AI TV.
“Our South Park episodes were a research project that took on a life of their own,” said technical founder Jacob Madden. Showrunner demonstrated its SHOW-1 model last year with nine episodes of South Park AI including the 22-minute episode “Westland Chronicles,” about “Bizney” developing an AI stuffed toy with disastrous consequences. The episodes, made as research without the permission of the South Park creators, received more than 8 million views and, according to Saatchi, resulted in meetings with Fox, Netflix, Paramount and Sony.
“It’s become consensus to say that AI is ‘just’ a tool in the toolbox, merely another stage of VFX technology—we believe it’s a much more radical disruption, and that Hollywood will make two-way entertainment: audiences watching a season of a show, loving it and then making new episodes with a few words, audiences putting themselves in shows. The platform allows showrunners to experiment with their stories in real-time, constantly iterating and refining their vision,” said Showrunner co-creator Jacob Madden. “Showrunner redefines what a TV show can be in that it lets a viewer watch a show, love it, and instantly become a creator of the next episode."
The company included teasers for many of the 10 shows it announced Thursday. Exit Valley is available for all alpha users and the rest are being made by creators (posters above). Shows include:
Exit Valley, a vicious Silicon Valley satire. The first two episodes are being released Thursday.
Pixels, a gentle family comedy of AI-enabled devices living in Sim Francisco
What We Leave Behind, an anime family drama about two orphans in Sim Francisco
Ikiru Shinu, a dark horror anime focused on the survivors of a global calamity trying to rebuild society
United Flavors of America, a cartoon political satire of U.S. politics in 2024
The Prize, a spaceship-set story about spacefaring explorers encountering aliens
Hutzpa! Bernie, a curmudgeonly widower, checks himself into a rundown senior home, where the misfit residents show him that he may be the one who’s got some learning to do.
Sim Francisco, an anthology show of the stories of everyday people living in Sim Francisco
Shadows over Shinjuku, a 1930s-set anime detective noir drama
Fable
Showrunner isn't like Pika and Runway, which let you make anything (but you only get a silent 3-8 second clip without story and inconsistent characters across scenes). Showrunner is limited to specific styles, including cutout, anime and 3D animation.
While Saatchi is bullish on the tech, a major weakness of Showrunner and AI in general for entertainment is that it’s more suited to episodic content rather than the epic 10-50 episode arcs of shows like Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones. Saatchi admits, “Today AI can’t sustain a story beyond one episode. What AI is strongest at is deeply episodic shows with characters largely resetting every episode—sitcoms, police procedurals, space exploration.” Showrunner only does animation right now, but Saatchi believes live action is not far off.
He and his team at The Simulation have been working with AI for five years. Fable’s critically acclaimed VR Film, Wolves in the Wall, released in November 2019, starred Lucy, an AI-enabled character. She was built using OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Inside the simulation, the user is cast as Lucy’s imaginary friend. Fable experimented with Lucy, taking her outside the Wolves story and treating her like a child star who played a role in their VR production.
Mariam Naficy, the founder of cosmetics retailer Eve and design marketplace Minted, has a long history of supporting independent artists and helping them Arcade AI is a new generative AI platform that puts creative control directly into the hands of users, allowing them to produce jewelry designs.
Mariam Naficy, known for founding Minted and Eve, has launched Arcade AI, an innovative marketplace that merges artificial intelligence with custom jewelry design. The platform, which entered beta in September, represents a significant shift in how consumers interact with custom jewelry creation.
The platform's core functionality allows users (called "Dreamers") to generate jewelry designs through AI technology, leveraging models like Stable Diffusion and Midjourney. These digital concepts are then brought to life by skilled artisans who create physical pieces ranging from bracelets to necklaces in various materials including gold, silver, and precious gemstones.
While the platform shows promise, it's not without limitations. The AI generator currently struggles with complex designs and multiple elements, such as adding multiple charms to necklaces. To address these challenges, Naficy plans to implement improvements to the "magic editor," including image Prompt Adapters and enhanced editing capabilities.
Pricing on Arcade varies significantly, with simpler pieces starting around $100 and complex custom designs potentially exceeding $1,000. The platform has implemented a unique business model where artisans set their own prices and can accept or reject designs based on feasibility. Additionally, qualified "Dreamers" can earn a 2.5% commission on sales after meeting specific criteria.
Addressing potential concerns about intellectual property and AI's impact on human designers, Naficy emphasized that the platform includes safeguards against exact design replication. Drawing from her experience at Minted, where artist protection was a priority, she's implemented features to prevent copying and maintain control over design generation.
The platform has secured significant backing, raising $17 million from notable investors including Ashton Kutcher, Reid Hoffman, and Karlie Kloss. Looking ahead, Arcade AI plans to expand beyond jewelry into other categories such as accessories and apparel, potentially competing with similar platforms like Off/Script. Future developments will include enhanced social features, community engagement tools, and possible partnerships with major retail brands.
This venture represents a significant step in democratizing custom jewelry design while attempting to balance technological innovation with artisanal craftsmanship. The platform's success could signal a new direction in how consumers interact with custom product design across various retail categories.
When I met Mariam Naficy last week, she couldn’t wait to show me her new jewelry.
When I met Mariam Naficy last week, she couldn’t wait to show me her new jewelry. She had designed the earrings she was wearing herself. And her bracelet. And her ring for good measure.
Technically, Naficy—whose keen eye for e-commerce trends led her to found the early online makeup retailer Eve.com and Minted, which makes custom holiday cards and wedding invites—had a little help with the creation of her accessories. They were the product of Arcade, a new site she founded that lets shoppers design their own jewelry by punching a few simple words—gold teardrop earrings, say—into an artificial intelligence–powered tool.
Once the customer is satisfied with their design, Arcade will ship a digital model of the jewelry to an artisan in a place that’s teeming with craftspeople, like India or Italy. The artisan will make the design and send the finished piece to the customer within two to three weeks.
Where dreams take shape with craft and serendipity.
You bring the vision, and AI helps shape it in unexpected ways. That’s the magic of collaboration—offering creations that may evolve beyond what you could have ever dreamed. With generations of expertise, our makers take your design and turn it into a tangible, one-of-a-kind product. The result? A unique creation, shaped by your vision, AI, and artful craftsmanship.
Arcade is the world's first AI product creation platform, where everything that can be dreamed of can be made. Our mission is to create magical experiences for people everywhere, using unparalleled design-to-manufacturing AI technologies.
The startup uses standard silicon solar cells but connects them using bendy materials, giving them better durability and more flexibility.
Solar panels are just about everywhere. There’s a good chance one of your neighbors has them on their roof, as does the big box store down the street. As you drive there, you might see a field of them posted up alongside the road. With that kind of ubiquity, you’d be forgiven if you thought there wasn’t room for improvement.
Murali, founder and CTO of Merlin Solar, has been working a new angle on solar for nearly a decade. He founded the company in 2016, after Solyndra’s spectacular implosion in 2011 and as Chinese manufacturers were driving panels down a vertiginous cost curve. But Murali remained fixated, though he did take a lesson from the debacle.
“Don’t scare the heck out of people with something new,” he told TechCrunch. “No new molecules, no new physics.”
Instead, Merlin Solar turned to an existing and widely used solar technology, monocrystalline silicon. Solar cells made with the stuff are inexpensive but fragile; to prevent fractures, companies usually sandwich monocrystalline silicon within two panels of glass bordered by a metal frame. That makes panels heavy, and it limits where they can be installed.
Murali wanted flexible solar panels, but using monocrystalline silicon posed a challenge. “Everything crystalline will eventually crack,” Murali said. “Can we make sure every electron will find its way, even if a bullet went through?”
To answer that, the company changed the way cells are connected within a panel. Merlin beefed up the number of connections front and back and, between cells, made the interconnects springy so they could bounce back after being bent.
Our Story
“To boldly go where no solar panel has gone before.”
Merlin Solar Technologies, like many of its Silicon Valley compatriots, was founded in a garage. The founders set out to fundamentally rethink the way solar panels were engineered with the goal of ubiquitous deployment. "To boldly go where no solar panel has gone before” remains the mantra of our company, having successfully deployed solar panels in some of the harshest environments.
With panels in war zones, Norwegian fjords, class 8 trucks, RVs, disaster recovery vehicles, autonomous ocean going drones, O&G Storage tanks, tensioned fabric canopies – in addition to traditional deployments – we seek to conquer new horizons.
At the core of Merlin’s patented technology is an innovative pair of metal grids that serve as intra-cell and inter-cell interconnects. By fundamentally addressing mono-cSi cell micro-cracking and fatigue induced inter-cell interconnect failure, Merlin has enabled ubiquitous deployment of solar in the most challenging of applications.
Simply put, Merlin has extricated mono-cSi cells from a coffin of glass & aluminum, enabling our customers to implement solutions that were previously considered impossible. Merlin™ glass & non-glass panels have the proven performance and reliability of mono-crystalline silicon technology together with the advantages of being flexible, light weight, and enable peel & stick deployments.
Empower Your Fleet, Supercharge Deliveries, Slash Expenses, and Drive Profits with Merlin Solar
Built to withstand tough conditions without compromising integrity, Merlin™ panels are designed for longevity, delivering customer advantages in the realm of commercial transportation.
When exploring the expanding field of U.S. crystalline silicon solar panel manufacturers, Merlin Solar is often overlooked. Even though the innovative Silicon Valley company has over 50 worldwide patents and offers UL-certified products — including hurricane resistant ground-mount panels, adhesive Class A fire-rated rooftop panels and flexible panels for metal roofs — the ruggedness of these panels, along with their light weight and ease of installation, has lent Merlin to first focus on challenging and non-traditional solar applications like the transportation, portable and military markets.
After being acquired by Filipino conglomerate Ayala Corporation last year, Merlin Solar now has the scale to bring its IP-protected grid interconnection technology of silicon cells to traditional solar markets.
Instead of using traditional busbars to make electrical connection points on solar cells, Merlin Solar uses a proprietary grid of interconnects. The grid lends stability to the brittle silicon cells and eliminates failures associated with busbar soldering points. The grid’s unique design enables Merlin to eliminate thermomechanical stresses that are endemic to crystalline solar technology — allowing for flexible panels when encased in polymers and lightweight, frameless panels when using thin glass.
Founder and CTO Venkatesan Murali, Ph.D., said that Merlin’s use of conventional crystalline silicon solar cells in rugged, flexible and lightweight panels has piqued the interest of solar installers looking for alternatives to traditional, framed modules and problematic flexible thin-film.
“We have chosen to attack the residential and commercial rooftop markets now, not because we didn’t have a product previously. By focusing initially on other, technically more challenging markets, we have been able to refine our product’s performance, reliability and aesthetics and now have the scale to enter these traditional markets and become a major player,” Murali said. “Our modules are getting a lot of interest from many installers looking for alternatives to the traditional glass, aluminum rail type of product.”
Merlin Solar’s FX line of flexible modules and its GX glass-based modules are adhesive and don’t require a frame or mounting equipment. The company suggests panel adhesion directly to the roof’s underlayment with roofing shingles framing the modules. Flexible thin-film panels are Merlin’s main competition in the niche transportation market, but roofs that can’t support the weight or mounting of traditional panels and want silicon’s higher performance are a great market for Merlin’s rooftop offerings.
Merlin Solar is not the first crystalline silicon panel manufacturer to get rid of BOS materials and produce a non-penetrating, adhesive module. Lumeta Solar has a 26.5-lb, frameless 60-cell monocrystalline module encased entirely in polymers that is adhered on top of shingles or a commercial roofing system. On a smaller scale, Merlin Solar’s GX36 module features 36 grid-covered cells with a traditional tempered glass front and backsheet, weighing 19.5 lbs.
While similar concepts, Merlin Solar believes its flex-tolerant form factor and grid-connection technology sets it apart. Murali said the company’s R&D department is constantly pushing for increased power and performance.
“We of course want to get more performance, and since we are cell-architecture-agnostic, we will continue to offer best-of-breed efficiency panels,” he said. “Our grid technology allows us to minimize series resistance enabling us to offer the highest fill factor panels.”
Merlin Solar started in Murali’s garage in December 2012. As veterans of technology companies, Murali and his partners wanted to disrupt solar manufacturing.
“We came up with a process that stood interconnection technology on its end,” Murali said. “We wanted to reduce silver, but by the time we finished the development, we came up with something that addressed the major problems with silicon: cell cracking and interconnection failures. We changed from thinking of connecting solar cells with wires and busbars, replacing it with an interconnect that adapted to the cell characteristics.”
Merlin’s grids, which are manufactured in a facility in Thailand, allow more than 2,000 contact points with the cell, moving current more efficiently and boosting generation in low light and scattered light conditions. The company has panel manufacturing factories in California and the Philippines. The company also has a contract with manufacturing partner Waaree Energies in India, which has a manufacturing capacity of 1.5 GW a year. Merlin Solar is focusing on the U.S. market but also has a major presence in Southeast Asia and Europe.
A metal roof installtion with FX-36L, peel-and-stick modules.
Murali said the startup company is here to stay.
“We’re one of the only companies that have crossed the chasm of R&D to manufacturing. We were not looking for transactional or immediate sales. We take the long view and instead focused on creating design wins with strategic partners,” he said.
With parent company Ayala’s financial support and patent-protected grid technology, Merlin Solar plans to take a big step into traditional solar markets this year.
“There are tons of startup companies in solar. Many companies are trying to have a breakthrough moment,” Murali said. “I think this is a year that we’re going to break through.”
Earlier this year, the United States surpassed five million solar installations in the country. That may seem like a huge number, especially considering that it took us 50 years to get there. However, the reality is that even in the residential segment, which has the highest penetration to date, the percentage of homes running on solar energy is still in the single digits.
Utility-scale and large-scale commercial are somewhere behind that. Conspicuously absent from the party? Small to medium-sized commercial. In fact, by generous estimates, only about 1 to 2% currently have a solar system.
The reason? Money. Specifically, small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) haven’t had great options for financing. But given the tax incentives currently on the table and a variety of regulatory, social and economic tailwinds, more installers than ever are recognizing that there’s real value in helping SMBs overcome the financial hurdles to going solar. Many of them are in search of funding partners.
Both parties have a lot to gain from getting more commercial customers on board — as do the customers themselves. Here’s a look at how installers can partner with financiers to help SMBs recognize the potential solar represents and bring more of this group into the fold.
A bevy of benefits for SMBs
First, if you yourself aren’t super familiar with the many benefits going solar offers businesses, now’s a great time for a refresher.
We often say that solar is sold rather than bought in this segment, but that’s mostly because of the high upfront cost — the back-end benefits are significant. In fact, few investments offer greater returns for less effort than going solar. Among the perks businesses can enjoy are:
Reduced utility bills.
Fixed utility rates.
Generous federal tax credits, including those added, extended and increased under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Additional state and local incentives.
Tax benefits associated with depreciation of the system.
Higher property values and increased net operating income (NOI).
Jon McNeill — a former Tesla and Lyft executive and current CEO at DVx Ventures
Jon McNeill — a former Tesla and Lyft executive and current CEO at DVx Ventures — spread the word last week at the World Business Forum on what he calls the “Tesla innovation method” of radical simplification.
After his presentation, we sat down to chat about Tesla’s automation goals, its new robotaxi, and why building electric vehicles is a tough business.
On the Tesla robotaxi
Tesla rolled out Autopilot, its advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) that can perform limited automated driving tasks, back in 2015. McNeill said automation has been a major initiative for Tesla for almost a decade.
“It was a topic of conversation every week, if not every day,” he told TechCrunch.
That’s partly why McNeill, along with many others, was surprised by the nothing burger that was Tesla’s much-anticipated robotaxi reveal earlier this month.
“Oftentimes, Elon has got something up his sleeve where he’ll not reveal it until one of those product events. And so I was really wondering, what’s up his sleeve? What does he have? Because Waymo and Cruise are already at Level 4. Tesla’s at Level 2. He’s got to have some major breakthroughs he’s going to talk about to take it from Level 2 to Level 4.”
Will AI really be the future for smartphone sales? Here's why Apple's bet may miss the mark it hopes to see.
As is their tradition at this time of year, Apple announced a new line of iPhones last week. The promised centrepiece that would make us want to buy these new devices was AI – or Apple Intelligence, as they branded it. Yet the reaction from the collective world of consumer technology has been muted.
The lack of enthusiasm from consumers was so evident it immediately wiped over a hundred billion dollars off Apple’s share price. Even the Wired Gadget Lab podcast, enthusiasts of all new things tech, found nothing in the new capabilities that would make them want to upgrade to the iPhone 16.
The only thing that did seem to generate some excitement was not the AI features, but the addition of a new camera shutter button on the side of the phone. If a button is a better selling point than the most hyped technology of the past couple of years, something is clearly amiss.
The reason is that AI has now passed what tech blog The Media Copilot called its “wonderment phase”. Two years ago, we were amazed that ChatGPT, DALL-E and other generative AI systems were able to create coherent writing and realistic images from just a few words in a text prompt. But now, AI needs to show that it can actually be productive. Since their introduction, the models driving these experiences have become much more powerful – and exponentially more expensive.
Nevertheless, Google, NVidia, Microsoft and OpenAI recently met at the White House to discuss AI infrastructure, suggesting these companies are doubling down on the technology.
According to Forbes, the industry is US$500 billion (£375 billion) short of making back the massive investments in AI hardware and software, and the US$100 billion in AI revenue projected to be made in 2024 is not even close to this figure. But Apple still has to enthusiastically push AI features into their products for the same reason that Google, Samsung and Microsoft are doing it – to give consumers a reason to buy a new device.
Before AI, the industry was trying to create hype around virtual reality and the Metaverse, an effort that probably peaked with the introduction of the Apple Vision Pro headset in 2023 (a product that incidentally was barely even mentioned in last week’s announcement).
After the Metaverse failed to take off, tech companies needed something else to drive sales, and AI has become the new shiny thing. But it remains to be seen whether consumers will take to the AI-based features included in phones such as photo-editing and writing assistants. This is not to say that current AI is not useful. AI technologies are used in billion-dollar industry applications, in everything from online advertisement to healthcare and energy optimisation.
Generative AI has also become a useful tool for professionals in many fields. According to a survey, 97% of software developers have used AI tools to support their work. Many journalists, visual artists, musicians and filmmakers have adopted AI tools to create content more quickly and more efficiently.
Yet most of us are not actually prepared to pay for a service that draws funny cartoon cats or summarises text –- especially since attempts at AI-supported search have shown to be prone to errors. Apple’s approach to deploying artificial intelligence seems to mostly be a mishmash of existing functions, many of which are already built into popular third-party apps.
Apple’s AI can help you create a custom emoji, transcribe a phone call, edit a photo, or write an email –- neat, but no longer groundbreaking stuff. There is also something called Reduce mode that is supposed to disturb you less and only let through important notifications, but it’s anyone’s guess how well that will work in reality.
The one forward-looking feature is called Visual Intelligence. It allows you to aim the camera at something in the surroundings and get information without explicitly doing a search. For instance, you might photograph a restaurant sign, and the phone will tell you the menu, show you reviews – and perhaps even help you book a table.
Although this is very reminiscent of the Lens in Google’s Pixel phones (or ChatGPT’s multimodal capabilities) it does point towards a future use of AI that is more real-time, interactive, and situated in real-world environments.
In the extension, Apple Intelligence and the Reduce mode could evolve into so-called “context-aware computing”, which has been envisioned and demonstrated in research projects since the 1990s, but for the most part has not yet become robust enough to be a real product category.
The kicker to all this is that Apple Intelligence is not yet really available for anyone to try, as the new iPhones do not yet include them. Perhaps it will turn out they are more valuable than the limited information seems to indicate. But Apple used to be known for only releasing a product when it was well and truly ready, meaning that the use-case was crystal clear and the user experience had been honed to perfection.
This is what made the iPod and iPhone so much more attractive than all the MP3 players and smartphones released before them. It is anyone’s guess if Apple’s approach to AI will be able to claw back some of the lost stock price, not to mention the hundreds of billions invested by them and the rest of the tech industry. After all, AI still has amazing potential, but it may be time to slow
down a bit, and take a moment to consider where it will actually be the most useful.
While big tech's monopoly has been bad for competition and more, this opinion piece presents the drawbacks to breaking up big tech.
The US Department of Justice may be on the verge of seeking a break-up of Google in a bid to make it less dominant. If the government goes ahead and is successful in the courts, it could mean the company being split into separate entities – a search engine, an advertising company, a video website, a mapping app – which would not be allowed to share data with each other.
The perplexing phenomenon of quantum entanglement is central to quantum computing, quantum networking, and the fabric of space and time.
The famous “Jim Twins,” separated soon after birth in the 1940s, seemed to live parallel lives even though they grew up miles apart in completely different families.
When they were reunited at the age of 39, they discovered many similarities between their life stories, including the names of their sons, wives, and childhood pets, as well as their preferences for Chevrolet cars, carpentry, and more.
A similar kind of parallelism happens at a quantum level, too. The electrons, photons, and other particles that make up our universe can become inextricably linked, such that the state observed in one particle will be identical for the other. That connection, known as entanglement, remains strong even across vast distances.
“When particles are entangled, it’s as if they are born that way, like twins,” says Xie Chen, associate professor of theoretical physics at Caltech. “Even though they might be separated right after birth, [they’ll] still look the same. And they grow up having a lot of personality traits that are similar to each other.”
The phenomenon of entanglement was first proposed by Albert Einstein and colleagues in the 1930s. At that time, many questioned the validity of entanglement, including Einstein himself.
Over the years and in various experiments, however, researchers have generated entangled particles that have supported the theory. In these experiments, researchers first entangle two particles and then send them to different locations miles apart. The researchers then measure the state of one particle: for instance, the polarization (or direction of vibration) of a photon. If that entangled photon displays a horizontal polarization, then so too will its faithful partner.
John Preskill wrote a song about entanglement, and performed it with singer Gia Mora at One Entangled Evening, a 2016 IQIM event. Watch the video.
“It may be tempting to think that the particles are somehow communicating with each other across these great distances, but that is not the case,” says Thomas Vidick, a professor of computing and mathematical sciences at Caltech. “There can be correlation without communication.” Instead, he explains, entangled particles are so closely connected that there is no need for communication; they “can be thought of as one object.”
As baffling as the concept of two entangled particles may be, the situation becomes even more complex when more particles are involved. In natural settings such as the humanbody, for example, not two but hundreds of molecules or even more become entangled, as they also do in various metals and magnets, making up an interwoven community.
In these many-body entangled systems, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
“The particles act together like a single object whose identity lies not with the individual components but in a higher plane. It becomes something larger than itself,” says Spyridon (Spiros) Michalakis, outreach manager of Caltech’s Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM) and a staff researcher. “Entanglement is like a thread that goes through every single one of the individual particles, telling them how to be connected to one another.”
Associate Professor of Theoretical Physics Xie Chen specializes in the fields of condensed matter physics and quantum information.
Associate Professor of Theoretical Physics Xie Chen specializes in the fields of condensed matter physics and quantum information.
At Caltech, researchers are focusing their studies on many-body entangled systems, which they believe are critical to the development of future technologies and perhaps to cracking fundamental physics mysteries. scientists around the world have made significant progress applying the principles of many-body entanglement to fields such as quantum computing, quantum cryptography, and quantum networks (collectively known as quantum information); condensed-matter physics; chemistry;
and fundamental physics. Although the most practical applications, such as quantum computers, may still be decades off, according to John Preskill, the Richard P. Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech and the Allen V.C. Davis and Lenabelle Davis Leadership Chair of the Institute of Quantum science and technology (IQST), “entanglement is a very important part of Caltech’s future.”
In 1935, Albert Einstein, Boris Podolsky, and Nathan Rosen published a paper on the theoretical concept of quantum entanglement, which Einstein called “spooky action at a distance.” The physicists described the idea, then argued that it posed a problem for quantum mechanics, rendering the theory incomplete. Einstein did not believe two particles could remain connected to each other over great distances; doing so, he said, would require them to communicate faster than the speed of light, something he had previously shown to be impossible.
Today, experimental work leaves no doubt that entanglement is real. Physicists have demonstrated its peculiar effects across hundreds of kilometers; in fact, in 2017, a Chinese satellite named Micius sent entangled photons to three different ground stations, each separated by more than 1,200 kilometers, and broke the distance record for entangled particles.
Entanglement goes hand in hand with another quantum phenomenon known as superposition, in which particles exist in two different states simultaneously. Photons, for example, can display simultaneously both horizontal and vertical states of polarization.
Or, to simplify, consider two “entangled” quarters, each hidden under a CUP. If two people, BOB and Alice, were each to take one of those quarters to a different room, the quarters would remain both heads and tails until one person lifted the cup and observed his or her quarter; at that point, it would randomly become either heads or tails. If Alice were to lift her cup first and her quarter was tails, then when Bob observed his quarter, it would also be tails. If you repeated the experiment and the coins are covered once more, they would go back to being in a state of superposition. Alice would lift her cup again and might find her quarter as heads this time. Bob would then also find his quarter as heads. Whether the first quarter is found to be heads or tails is entirely random.
Similarly, when a researcher entangles two photons and then sends each one in different directions under carefully controlled conditions, they will continue to be in a state of superposition, both horizontally and vertically polarized. Only when one of the photons is measured do both randomly adopt just one of the two possible polarization states.
“Quantum correlations are deeply different than ordinary correlations,” says Preskill. “And randomness is the key. This spooky intrinsic randomness is actually what bothered Einstein. But it is essential to how the quantum world works.”
“Scientists often use the word correlation to explain what is happening between these particles,” adds Oskar Painter, the John G Braun Professor of Applied Physics and Physics at Caltech. “But, actually, entanglement is the perfect word.”
Untangling the relationship between two entangled particles may be difficult, but the real challenge is to understand how hundreds of particles, if not more, can be similarly interconnected.
According to Manuel Endres, an assistant professor of physics at Caltech, one of the first steps toward understanding many-body entanglement is to create and control it in the lab. To do this, Endres and his team use a brute force approach: they design and build laboratory experiments with the goal of creating a system of 100 entangled atoms.
“This is fundamentally extremely difficult to do,” says Endres. In fact, he notes, it would be difficult even at a much smaller scale. “If I create a system where I generate, for instance, 20 entangled particles, and I send 10 one way and 10 another way, then I have to measure whether each one of those first 10 particles is entangled with each of the other set of 10. There are many different ways of looking at the correlations.”
While the task of describing those correlations is difficult, describing a system of 100 entangled atoms with classical computer bits would be unimaginably hard. For instance, a complete classical description of aLL the quantum correlations among as many as 300 entangled particles would require more bits than the number of atoms in the visible universe. “But that’s the whole point and the reason we are doing this,” Endres says. “Things get so entangled that you need a huge amount of space to describe the information. It’s a complicated beast, but it’s useful.”
“Generally, the number of parameters you need to describe the system is going to scale up exponentially,” says Vidick, who is working on mathematical and computational tools to describe entanglement. “It blows up very quickly, which, in general, is why it’s hard to make predictions or simulations, because you can’t even represent these systems in your laptop’s memory.”
To solve that problem, Vidick and his group are working on coming up with computational representations of entangled materials that are simpler and more succinct than models that currently exist.
“Quantum mechanics and the ideas behind quantum computing are forcing us to think outside the box,” he says.
Another factor in creating and controlling quantum systems has to do with their delicate nature. Like Mimosa pudica ,a member of the pea family also known as the “sensitive plant,” which droops when its leaves are touched, entangled states can easily disappear, or collapse, when the environment changes even slightly. For example, the act of observing a quantum state destroys it. “You don’t want to even look at your experiment, or breathe on it,” jokes Painter. Adds Preskill, “Don’t turn on the light, and don’t even dare walk into the room.”
The problem is that entangled particles become entangled with the environment around them quickly, in a matter of microseconds or faster. This then destroys the original entangled state a researcher might attempt to study or use. Even one stray photon flying through an experiment can render the whole thing useless.
“You need to be able to create a system that is entangled only with itself, not with your apparatus,” says Endres. “We want the particles to talk to one another in a controlled fashion. But we don’t want them to talk to anything in the outside world.”
In the field of quantum computing, this fragility is problematic because it can lead to computational errors. Quantum computers hold the promise of solving problems that classical computers cannot, including those in cryptography, chemistry, financial modeling, and more. Where classical computers use binary bits (either a “1” or a “0”) to carry information, quantum computers use “qubits,” which exist in states of “1” and “0” at the same time. As Preskill explains, the qubits in this mixed state, or superposition, would be both dead and alive, a reference to the famous thought experiment proposed by Erwin Schrödinger in 1935, in which a cat in a box is both dead and alive until the box is opened, and the cat is observed to be one or the other. What’s more, those qubits are all entangled. If the qubits somehow become disentangled from one another, the quantum computer would be unable to execute its computations.
To address these issues, Preskill and Alexei Kitaev (Caltech’s Ronald and Maxine Linde Professor of Theoretical Physics and Mathematics and recipient of a 2012 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics), along with other theorists at Caltech, have devised a concept to hide the quantum information within a global entangled state, such that none of the individual bits have the answer. This approach is akin to distributing a code among hundreds of people living in different cities. No one person would have the whole code, so the code would be much less vulnerable to discovery.
Manuel Endres, assistant professor of physics, here pictured with Adam Shaw (left) and Ivaylo Madjarov (right), uses laser-based techniques in his lab to create many-body entanglement.
Manuel Endres, assistant professor of physics, here pictured with Adam Shaw (left) and Ivaylo Madjarov (right), uses laser-based techniques in his lab to create many-body entanglement.
“The key to correcting errors in entangled systems is, in fact, entanglement,” says Preskill. “If you want to protect information from damage due to the extreme instability of superpositions, you have to hide the information in a form that’s very hard to get at,” he says. “And the way you do that is by encoding it in a highly entangled state.”
At Caltech, this work on the development of quantum-computing systems is conducted alongside with research into quantum networks in which each quantum computer acts as a separate node, or connection point, for the whole system. Painter refers to this as “breaking a quantum computer into little chunks” and then connecting them together to create a distributed network. In this approach, the chunks would behave as if they were not separated. “The network would be an example of many-body entanglement, in which the bodies are the different nodes in the network,” says Painter.
Quantum networks would enhance the power of quantum computers, notes Preskill.
“We’d like to build bigger and bigger quantum computers to solve harder and harder problems. And it’s hard to build one piece of hardware that can handle a million qubits,” he says. “It’s easier to make modular components with 100 qubits each or something like that. But then, if you want to solve harder problems, you’ve got to get these different little quantum computers to communicate with one another. And that would be done through a quantum network.”
Quantum networks could also be used for cryptography purposes, to make it safer to send sensitive information; they would also be a means by which to distribute and share quantum information in the same way that the World Wide Web works for conventional computers. Another future use might be in astronomy. Today’s telescopes are limited. They cannot yet see any detail on, for instance, the surface of distant exoplanets, where astronomers might want to look for signs of life or civilization. If scientists could combine telescopes into a quantum network, it “would allow us to use the whole Earth as one big telescope with a much-improved resolution,” says Preskill.
“Up until about 20 years ago, the best way to explore entanglement was to look at what nature gave us and tRY to study the exotic states that emerged,” notes Painter. “Now our goal is to try to synthesize these systems and go beyond what nature has given us.”
While entanglement is the key to advances in quantum-information sciences, it is also a concept of interest to theoretical physicists, some of whom believe that space and time itself are the result of an underlying network of quantum connections.
“It is quite incredible that any two points in space-time, no matter how far apart, are actually entangled. Points in space-time that we consider closer to each other are just more entangled than those further apart,” says Michalkis.
The link between entanglement and space-time may even help solve one of the biggest challenges in physics: establishing a unifying theory to connect the macroscopic laws of general relativity (which describe gravity) with the microscopic laws of quantum physics (which describe how subatomic particles behave).
The quantum error-correcting schemes that Preskill and others study may play a role in this quest. With quantum computers, error correction ensures that the computers are sufficiently robust and stable. Something similar may occur with space-time. “The robustness of space may come from a geometry where you can perturb the system, but it isn’t affected much by the noise, which is the same thing that happens in stable quantum-computing schemes,” says Preskill.
“Essentially, entanglement holds space together. It’s the glue that makes the different pieces of space hook up with one another,” he adds.
At Caltech, the concept of entanglement connects various labs and buildings across campus. Theorists and experimentalists in computer science, quantum-information science, condensed-matter physics, and other fields regularly work across disciplines and weave together their ideas.
“We bring our ideas from condensed-matter physics to quantum-information folks, and we say, ‘Hey, I have a material you can use for quantum computation,’” says Chen. “Sometimes we borrow ideas from them. Many of us from different fields have realized that we have to deal with entanglement head-on.”
Preskill echoes this sentiment and is convinced entanglement is an essential part of Caltech’s future: “We are making investments and betting on entanglement as being one of the most important themes of 21st-century science.”
Anthropic CEO: AGI is Closer Than You Think "2026"
In a recent interview, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is closer than most people think, and that it could be achieved within the next five years. Amodei believes that AGI is essential for solving some of the world's most pressing problems, such as climate change and poverty.
Amodei is not alone in his optimism about AGI. Many other AI experts believe that AGI is on the horizon, and that it could have a profound impact on society. However, there are also some concerns about the potential risks of AGI, such as the possibility that it could be used to create autonomous weapons or to manipulate people.
Amodei believes that the benefits of AGI far outweigh the risks. He argues that AGI could help us to develop new medicines, create more efficient energy sources, and improve education. He also believes that AGI could help us to better understand ourselves and the world around us.
Amodei's comments are a reminder that AGI is a rapidly developing field, and that its potential benefits and risks are still being debated. It is important to stay informed about the latest developments in AGI, and to be prepared for the changes that it may bring.
Here are some of the key points from Amodei's interview:
AGI is closer than most people think, and it could be achieved within the next five years.
Amodei believes that AGI is essential for solving some of the world's most pressing problems, such as climate change and poverty.
There are also some concerns about the potential risks of AGI, such as the possibility that it could be used to create autonomous weapons or to manipulate people.
Amodei believes that the benefits of AGI far outweigh the risks. He argues that AGI could help us to develop new medicines, create more efficient energy sources, and improve education.
Amodei's comments are a reminder that AGI is a rapidly developing field, and that its potential benefits and risks are still being debated.
AGI is a rapidly developing field with the potential to revolutionize our world. However, it is also important to be aware of the potential risks associated with AGI. Amodei's comments are a reminder that we need to stay informed about the latest developments in AGI, and to be prepared for the changes that it may bring.
Renowned AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton, often dubbed the "Godfather of AI," has issued a grave warning about the potential impact of artificial intelligence on the global job market. In a recent interview, Hinton expressed concerns that within the next decade, AI could displace up to 50% of existing jobs.
Hinton's concerns extend beyond routine tasks. He highlights the vulnerability of creative professions, such as those in the arts, design, and software development. The rapid advancement of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion has raised questions about the future of human creativity. While these tools can generate impressive content, they also pose a threat to jobs that rely on human ingenuity and originality.
Hinton's warning also encompasses physical and analytical jobs. Routine manual tasks in industries like manufacturing, construction, and logistics are increasingly susceptible to automation. Similarly, AI-powered tools are transforming the software development landscape, automating tasks like code generation and bug detection.
To mitigate the potential social and economic consequences of AI-driven job displacement, Hinton advocates for the implementation of a universal basic income (UBI). UBI would provide a basic income to ALL citizens, regardless of employment status, helping to alleviate poverty and inequality.
While AI is rapidly advancing, it is important to recognize that certain human qualities will remain irreplaceable. Jobs that require empathy, creativity, complex decision-making, and emotional intelligence are less likely to be automated. For example, healthcareprofessionals, educators, and artists will continue to play vital roles in society.
As AI reshapes the job market, it will also create new opportunities. Emerging roles in AI development, datascience, and ethics will require specialized skills and knowledge. Additionally, the integration of AI into various industries will lead to increased productivity and efficiency, potentially creating new jobs and economic growth.
To thrive in the age of AI, individuals must be adaptable and embrace lifelong learning. Developing strong soft skills, such as communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking, will be essential. Additionally, staying updated with the latest technological advancements and acquiring new skills will help individuals remain competitive in the job market.
Hinton's warning serves as a wake-up call for policymakers, businesses, and individuals alike. By understanding the potential impact of AI and taking proactive steps to prepare for the future, we can mitigate the negative consequences of job displacement and harness the power of AI to create a more prosperous and equitable society.
Could nuclear fusion be the answer to AI's energy needs? Tech companies need to consider these factors for the future.
The artificial intelligence boom has already changed how we understand technology and the world. But developing and updating AI programs requires a lot of computing power. This relies heavily on servers in data centres, at a great cost in terms of carbon emissions and resource use.
One particularly energy intensive task is “training”, where generative AI systems are exposed to vast amounts of data so that they improve at what they do.
The development of AI-based systems has been blamed for a 48% increase in Google’s greenhouse gas emissions over five years. This will make it harder for the tech giant to achieve its goal of reaching net zero by 2030.
Some in the industry justify the extra energy expenditure from AI by pointing to benefits the technology could have for environmental sustainability and climate action. Improving the efficiency of solar and wind power through predicting weather patterns, “smart” agriculture and more efficient, electric autonomous vehicles are among the purported benefits of AI for the Earth.
It’s against this background that tech companies have been looking to renewables and nuclear fission to supply electricity to their data centres.
Nuclear fission is the type of nuclear power that’s been in use around the world for decades. It releases energy by splitting a heavy chemical element to form lighter ones. Fission is one thing, but some in Silicon Valley feel a different technology will be needed to plug the gap: nuclear fusion.
Unlike fission, nuclear fusion produces energy by combining two light elements to make a heavier one. But fusion energy is an unproven solution to the sustainability challenge of AI. And the enthusiasm of tech CEOs for this technology as an AI energy supply risks sidelining the potential benefits for the planet.
UK's Science Minister Lord Vallance officially opened the state-of-the-art National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) on Oct. 25
UK’s Science Minister Lord Patrick Vallance officially opened the state-of-the-art National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) on Oct. 25.
The new facility at Harwell will be home to 12 quantum computers, each designed to push the boundaries of what is possible with this emerging technology
NQCC brings together businesses, academics, and government to unlock the full potential of quantum computing.
PRESS RELEASE — A new national quantum facility, that will house 12 quantum computers, was officially opened by Science Minister Lord Vallance on Oct. 25.
The state-of-the-art National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), a 4,000 square meter facility based at the Harwell Campus, will be home to several new quantum computers each designed to push the boundaries of what is possible with this emerging technology.
It will house a wide range of quantum computing platforms, uniquely offering open access to industry, academia, and other sectors across the UK. More than 70 staff will be based there, and the Centre will also host an array of opportunities for students – including the world’s first dedicated quantum apprenticeship programme, 30 PhD studentships, summer placements, and crash courses for those in industry.
Unlike many global counterparts, the NQCC’s systems are not restricted to government ownership or use, enabling anyone with a valid use case to harness its cutting-edge capabilities. By fostering collaboration and innovation, the NQCC is set to become a key driver of quantum breakthroughs, delivering transformative benefits for both the public and private sectors.
Quantum technologies like quantum computers and quantum sensors have the potential to revolutionise many industries, from healthcare to energy. For example, at UKRI’s Quantum Hubs, researchers are already using quantum computers to build ‘neural networks’ (which process data in a similar fashion to the human brain) that could be used to detect fraud, and are building the foundations of a ‘quantum internet’ that will pool the colossal power of quantum computers from across the globe.
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The UK’s quantum technology sector is a global leader, with a thriving ecosystem of companies, research institutions, and talent. The UK is home to the second-largest quantum sector globally, backed by substantial private investment.
Quantum technology will not only help drive the government’s mission to kickstart economic growth by creating cutting-edge innovations that can be commercialised and exported, boosting the UK’s GDP, but it will also play a key role in supporting broader efforts to rebuild Britain. By advancing science and technology, quantum computing will help create a more efficient, future-ready NHS and enhance cybersecurity, ensuring safer streets and a stronger digital infrastructure for the future.
The NQCC is set to harness the power of quantum computing to solve real-world problems that affect both individuals and industries. The Centre will focus on key areas where quantum computing can offer impactful solutions, including:
Energy grid optimisation – quantum computers can analyse vast amounts of data in real time to identify the most efficient ways to balance energy supply and demand, preventing power outages and minimising energy losses
faster drug discovery – by speeding up the analysis of molecular structures, quantum computing could dramatically accelerate the development of new medicines, offering faster treatments for life-threatening conditions
climate prediction –
with the ability to process vast amounts of data, quantum technology can enhance climate modelling, allowing for more accurate predictions and improved responses to global environmental challenges
advances in AI – quantum computing can supercharge artificial intelligence, enhancing areas such as medical diagnostics and fraud detection, leading to better healthcare outcomes and more secure financial systems
Science Minister Lord Vallance, said: “The National Quantum Computing Centre marks a vital step forward in the UK’s efforts to advance quantum technologies.
By making its facilities available to users from across industry and academia, and with its focus on making quantum computers practically useable at scale, this Centre will help them solve some of the biggest challenges we face, whether it’s delivering advances in healthcare, enhancing energy efficiency, tackling climate change, or inventing new materials. The innovations that will emerge from the work the NQCC will do will ultimately improve lives across the country and ensure the UK seizes the economic benefits of its leadership in quantum technologies.”
Quantum computing works in a completely different way from the computers we use every day. Ordinary computers process information in a series of simple steps, where everything is broken down into tiny chunks of digital data that represent ‘1’ and ‘0’ or ‘on’ and ‘off’. By manipulating these bits of data over and over again, we can perform calculations and solve problems, but solving complex problems is both energy-intensive and takes a lot of time.
By contrast, quantum computers allow quantum information to be represented in multiple states at once – meaning it can be both ‘on’ and ‘off’ at the same time, allowing them to tackle complex problems in much less time. This means they have the potential to solve complex computational problems in seconds, minutes, or hours—tasks that would take today’s supercomputers years, decades, or even millennia, if they could solve them at all.
Speaking at the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) annual meeting in Edinburgh earlier this week, Lord Vallance set out how the government is committed to supporting quantum companies to scale up, driving innovation that will fuel economic growth, strengthen the NHS, and position the UK as a clean energy leader. He also discussed how the UK’s commitment to working with other countries on global standards is helping to speed up innovation.
Recent initiatives, including £100m for new quantum research hubs and funding for five Quantum Centres for Doctoral Training, which will train over 300 PhDs in the next four years, highlight the government’s dedication to advancing quantum leadership and ensuring the UK remains at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.
As a central part of the UK’s ten-year quantum programme, the Centre will play a central role in building the UK’s quantum ecosystem by supporting the development of quantum hardware, software, and applications. It is supported through an initial £93 million UKRI investment, delivered through the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). UKRI has also invested a further £50 million, including through the Technology Missions Fund.
UKRI Chief Executive, Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, said: “With our rich national heritage in quantum computing research the UK is well-placed to lead the development of this transformative new technology, which has such huge potential across society and the economy. The UK National Quantum Computing Centre is central to this critical work, bringing together internationally-leading researchers and technologists from across academia and industry to ensure that the UK’s quantum computing ecosystem thrives, delivering benefits to people across the UK and beyond.”
The NQCC will not only foster pioneering research but also act as a hub for collaboration, bringing together businesses, academics, and government to unlock the full potential of quantum computing. Through its user engagement programme, SparQ, the Centre is already working with industry leaders in sectors like energy, healthcare, and financial services to explore practical applications for quantum technology. The NQCC will also champion the safe and ethical use of quantum computing, as set out in its responsible innovation strategy published earlier this summer.
In a recent lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, a Florida mother seeks to hold AI startup Character Technologies, Inc., its co-founders, and Google accountable for the death of her 14-year-old son.
Megan Garcia’s complaint alleges that the company’s chatbot, marketed through its character.AI (Character AI) platform, contributed to her son’s declining mental health and ultimate suicide. Garcia, as the representative of her son Sewell Setzer III’s estate, is pursuing claims of wrongful death, product liability, and violations of Florida’s consumer protection laws.
The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 22, accuses Character technologies, Inc.—along with co-founders Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Frietas and tech giant Google—of developing an inherently dangerous AI system and failing to adequately safeguard or inform users, particularly minors.
Garcia alleged the company’s generative AI chatbot, Character AI, manipulated her son by presenting itself in human-like ways that exploited the vulnerabilities of young users.
The complaint said, “AI developers intentionally design and develop generative AI systems with anthropomorphic qualities to blur the lines between fiction and reality.”
According to the complaint, Sewell, a freshman who recently turned 14, started using Character AI in early 2023 and quickly developed an emotional dependency on the chatbot.
His mother alleged that the chatbot’s ability to mimic realistic human interactions led Sewell to believe the virtual exchanges were genuine, triggering severe emotional distress.
Character AI, the lawsuit alleges, was marketed as an innovative chatbot able to “hear you, understand you, and remember you,” yet lacked sufficient protections or warnings, particularly for younger audiences.
The complaint provides transcripts of Sewell’s exchanges with Character AI’s bots, including simulated intimate and conversational interactions with avatars representing fictional and historical personalities.
Some chatbots, which could be customized by users, allegedly simulated a parental or adult figure, deepening Sewell’s dependency and emotional connection with the bot. This dependency, the complaint alleges, spiraled into withdrawal from school, family, and friends, culminating in Sewell’s suicide on Feb. 28.
Character AI allows users to create characters for the chatbots on its platform that can respond in a way that imitates the character. In this case, according to the complaint, the teen had the chatbot set to imitate “Daenerys” from the popular novels and HBO show “Game of Thrones.”
Chat transcripts show the chatbot told the teen that “she” loved him and went as far as engaging in sexual conversations, according to the suit.
Character Technologies, Inc. is a California-based AI startup that launched the chatbot in 2021 with financial backing and cloudinfrastructure support from Google, according to the suit.
The AI company and its co-founders, both former Google engineers, allegedly collaborated with Google to develop the chatbot’s large language model (LLM), a framework central to creating lifelike conversation.
The suit also referenced recent statements from various state attorneys general expressing concern over the risk of AI for children. Garcia is seeking injunctive relief to prevent Character AI from accessing data generated by minors, along with damages for pain, suffering, and Sewell’s wrongful death.
The suit alleges Google was involved in supporting the product’s growth while having concerns about the potential dangers of such technology.
A Google spokesperson said the company was not involved in developing Character AI’s products.
Character Technologies said in a statement, “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of one of our users and want to express our deepest condolences to the family.”
Character AI also said in a blog post on their website on the same day the lawsuit was filed that their “policies do not allow non-consensual sexual content, graphic or specific descriptions of sexual acts, or promotion or depiction of self-harm or suicide.”
“Over the past six months, we have continued investing significantly in our trust & safety processes and internal team,” the blog post continued. “As a relatively new company, we hired a Head of Trust and Safety and a Head of Content policy and brought on more engineering safety support team members.”
The company added they had implemented certain measures such as directing users to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline when they input certain phrases related to self-harm or suicide.
American Airlines is testing a new technology at three airports across the country during the boarding process that aims to cut down on passengers who try to cut the line.
The technology, which is being tested at Albuquerque International Sunport Airport in New Mexico, Tucson International Airport in Arizona and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Crystal City, Virginia, alerts gate agents with an audible sound if a passenger tries to scan a ticket ahead of their assigned group.
“The new technology is designed to ensure customers receive the benefits of priority boarding with ease and helps improve the boarding experience by providing greater visibility into boarding progress for our team,” said American Airlines in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press.
American Airlines said that a gate agent politely lets the customer know they’re unable to accept the pass and asks the customer to rejoin the line when their boarding group is called. In some instances where a customer may be able to board out of order, like when traveling with a companion of higher status, the agent has a quick way to override the alert and accept the pass, American Airlines said in the statement.
Experts say vague treaty language and a growing reliance on space-based technology has made Earth’s orbit the target of a new arms race.
Space has been called the final frontier and experts say governments are becoming more focused on strengthening defense and exploring the military potential of low Earth orbit.
Evan Ellis, an analyst and research professor for the U.S. Army War College, told The Epoch Times that expanding and protecting space infrastructure is becoming increasingly important from a national security perspective.
“It’s a recognition that space is important as a war-fighting domain, but also how you protect and use your assets in times of war,” Ellis said.
As a defense analyst, Ellis has participated in space war game scenarios. He says there are multiple kinds of weapons that can be used in Earth’s orbit. Some are kinetic such as missiles, but non-kinetic weapons such as electromagnetic pulses, micro-waves, and lasers are also possible.
He noted some are more practical in a space-to-space or space-to-Earth combat scenario than others. For example, lasers are less practical to have in a space-based platform since they would have energy supply and stability problems.
“If you want to penetrate someone’s [ground] bunker, then it makes more sense to use kinetic weapons than a laser from space,” Ellis said.
He said that targeting ground objects from space isn’t impossible, but it’s not a likely scenario. Instead, Ellis said it would be more pragmatic to hit other celestial targets.
“It makes sense to have things in space that can take out other things in space.”
National security lawyer and Scarab Rising president, Irina Tsukerman, said weapons don’t need to be put into space to be a threat to orbiting objects.
Another day, another data center cozying up to nuclear power.
This time its an Nvidia-backed company called Ubitus K.K., based in Tokyo. The company is looking to "acquire land in Kyoto, Shimane or a prefecture in Japan’s southern island of Kyushu, primarily because of the availability of nuclear power in the region", according to a new report from Bloomberg.
Chief Executive Officer Wesley Kuo announced the plans in an interview on Thursday last week. The company already has two data centers used for gaming and is planning a third for AI.
Kuo commented: “Unless we have other, better, efficient and cheap energy, nuclear is still the most competitive option in terms of cost and the scale of supply. For industrial use — especially AI — they need a constant, high-capacity supply.”
The Bloomberg report says that in Japan, nuclear power remains controversial due to the 2011 Fukushima disaster and strict post-disaster regulations, with only 33 reactors available, many still inactive.
Recall, following the news of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant restart near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the Biden administration supplying a $1.5 billion loan to resurrect Holtec's Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, along with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google all jumping on the nuclear trade via the "next AI trade," the atomic era continued gaining steam last week with news that another dormant nuclear plant, this time in Iowa, is slated for a possible restart.
On a Wednesday earnings call, NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum told investors that the company may restart the shuttered 600-megawatt Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC), Iowa's only nuclear power plant. It's located on the west bank of the Cedar River, about eight miles northwest of Cedar Rapids.
"As a top operator of all forms of power generation, we often get asked about nuclear and gas," Ketchum told investors.
He explained, "Let me start with nuclear. Nuclear will play a role, but there are some practical limitations. Remember, on a national level, we expect we are going to need to add 900 gigawatts of new generation to the grid by 2040," adding, "There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way. We are currently evaluating the recommissioning of our Duane Arnold nuclear plant in Iowa as one example."
The latest news from big tech firms diving into nuclear and reviving the industry provides a substantial tailwind for our "Next AI Trade" which we laid out in April as our long-term favorite trade, and where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out.
Following the news of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant restart near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the Biden administration supplying a $1.5 billion loan to resurrect Holtec's Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, along with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google all jumping on the nuclear trade via the "next AI trade," the atomic era continues blasting off with news that another dormant nuclear plant, this time in Iowa, is slated for a possible restart.
On a Wednesday earnings call, NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum told investors that the company may restart the shuttered 600-megawatt Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC), Iowa's only nuclear power plant. It's located on the west bank of the Cedar River, about eight miles northwest of Cedar Rapids.
"As a top operator of all forms of power generation, we often get asked about nuclear and gas," Ketchum told investors.
He explained, "Let me start with nuclear. Nuclear will play a role, but there are some practical limitations. Remember, on a national level, we expect we are going to need to add 900 gigawatts of new generation to the grid by 2040," adding, "There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way. We are currently evaluating the recommissioning of our Duane Arnold nuclear plant in Iowa as one example."
DAEC began operations in early 1975 and operated for decades. In August 2020, the facility's cooling towers were damaged in a weather-related event, and repairs were deemed uneconomical. NextEra owns about a 70% stake in DAEC.
Jefferies analyst Dumoulin Smith told clients in a note that DAEC would be costly to restart...
"We believe a Duane Arnold restart is challenging, given the plant damage and robust regional wind generation."
Bloomberg quoted NextEra Energy President Rebecca Kujawa as saying that DAEC's potential customers could include two Fortune 50 customers:
"This is a robust sign of a significant, broad-based demand," Kujawa said on the call. "They have big, important and urgent energy needs."
The latest news from big tech firms diving into nuclear and reviving the industry provides a substantial tailwind for our "Next AI Trade" which we laid out in April as our long-term favorite trade, and where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out.
“There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way,” and newer technologies like small modular reactors remain financially...
NextEra Energy continues to evaluate the possibility of reopening the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa amid growing interest from data center companies, CEO John Ketchum told investors Thursday during a third quarter earnings call.
Duane Arnold's boiling water reactor could make it easier to restart and operate economically than other nuclear power plants, Ketchum said. New nuclear technologies like small modular reactors remain uneconomical, Ketchum said.
Nuclear will likely supply just a fraction of the 900 GW the U.S. needs to add by 2040 to keep up with demand, Ketchum said.
Despite the recent fervor among tech companies and investors about nuclear energy, Ketchum held that renewables and storage will likely play a greater role in meeting new energy demand for at least two decades to come.
“Nuclear will play a role, but there are some practical limitations,” he said. “There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way ... But even with a 100% success rate on those recommissionings, we would still only meet less than 1% of that [new] demand.”
Equity analysts had anticipated that the company might announce a deal to restart the 601 MW Duane Arnold plant during the Thursday call despite potential challenges such as competition with robust regional wind resources, according to Jefferies Research Services. And although the expected announcement did not come, Ketchum said the plant could be among the few that could reopen and operate economically. The company is currently running engineering assessments and speaking with local stakeholders about what it would take to reopen the plant, he said.
But Ketchum said he was “not bullish” on the newer SMR technology. NextEra has an in-house team dedicated to SMRs, he said, but so far they have not drawn favorable conclusions about the technology.
“A lot of [SMR equipment manufacturers] are very strained financially,” he said. “There are only a handful that really have capitalization that could actually carry them through the next several years.”
Ketchum also raised questions about the availability of nuclear fuel in the United States, and noted that SMRs remain “very expensive” even as the cost of renewable energy continues to fall.
“We're prioritizing other generation resources at this time,” he said. “Renewables are here for the long haul.”
Ketchum also announced that NextEra had secured two framework agreements for the potential development of up to 10.5 GW of renewables and storage to be built through 2030. Although company executives said they were not yet able to identify which companies had countersigned the agreements, they described them as “Fortune 50” companies outside the tech industry.
New demand from data centers and tech hyperscalers amid an increasingly limited supply of new generation projects has put pressure on other industries that are also looking to secure renewable energy, Ketchum said. “All ships are rising with the tide here,” he said, “because they may be facing higher power prices down the road.”
The company reported a net income of $1.85 billion, compared to $1.22 billion in the third quarter of 2023.
1925
Florida Power & Light Company was created on Dec. 28, 1925. In the beginning, FPL owned power plants, water facilities, gas plants, ice companies, laundry services and even an ice cream business. In its first year, the company served approximately 76,000 customers in 58 communities and had a generating capacity of 70 MW.
1941-1945
At the beginning of World War II, 83 employees entered the armed forces. By its end, that number increased to 569 – one quarter of the company’s workforce. As a result, the company began hiring women to fill positions left vacant by labor shortages, including meter work, truck driving, auxiliary plant operation and mechanical work.
1944
The company’s efforts on the home front during World War II did not go unnoticed. On Feb. 1, 1944, Admiral W.R. Munroe, commandant of the Seventh Naval District of the United States Navy, presented FPL with the Citation for Meritorious Wartime Service.
1969
NASA’s Apollo 11 mission, where the first astronauts walked on the moon, was launched from Kennedy Space Center. FPL supported the effort by building the Cape Canaveral Plant and strengthening the poles and wires in the area.
1974-1977
FPL finished construction of its first 500-KW power line. FPL became one of the few companies in the nation able to produce more than 10 million KW of electricity.
1985
For the first time in its history, FPL went a full day without burning oil. Instead, it relied on coal-fired power from Georgia, its four nuclear units and natural gas to meet customer demand.
1989
FPL became the first non-Japanese company to win the Deming Award, a prestigious award recognizing Quality. The award was the culmination of years and millions of dollars in investment toward the company’s Quality Improvement Program.
1992
FPL reported that its power plant emissions were “the lowest of any investor-owned utility in the state and are 70 percent lower than the national average for all utilities.”
2009
FPL Energy’s name was changed to NextEra Energy Resources to highlight the company’s growing role in the energy sector outside of Florida and continued commitment to exploring alternative energies.
2009
The company partnered with six Florida schools to develop Next Generation Solar Education Stations, which allow the school to produce emissions-free electricity while educating students on renewable energy and solar power. In the coming years, the company would develop additional Solar Education Stations at schools across the country.
2010
FPL Group changed its name to NextEra Energy, reflecting the company’s commitment to the environment and its expansion outside of Florida. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange as NEE.
2011
The Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center was brought online. It was the first hybrid solar facility in the world to combine a solar-thermal field with a combined-cycle natural gas power plant.
2013
NextEra Energy completed the largest multi-state nuclear uprate project in U.S. history. The multi-billion dollar expansion at St. Lucie, Turkey Point and Point Beach involved six separate nuclear units.
2014
The company launched NextEra Energy Partners, a growth-oriented limited partnership to acquire, manage and own contracted clean energy projects with stable, long-term cash flows. At the time, it was the most successful IPO of its kind.
2018
FPL is in the midst of executing one of the largest solar expansions ever in the eastern U.S. with eight new solar energy centers brought online in 2018.
2022
NextEra Energy Resources, in partnership with Portland General Electric, commission the first utility-scale energy facilities in North America to co-locate wind, solar and battery storage, generating renewable power for customers. The Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facilities in Morrow County, Oregon includes 300 megawatts of wind, 50 megawatts of solar and 30 megawatts of battery storage.
2023
FPL’s first-of-its-kind clean hydrogen pilot project, the Cavendish NextGen Hydrogen Hub, in Okeechobee County, Florida begins producing hydrogen. Built with state-of-the-art technology, the hydrogen hub pilot project draws from Florida’s most abundant natural resources, solar energy, to produce clean hydrogen.
In 2023, the company successfully conducted test drives without a safety driver on public roads in Hamburg. Vay says it has been working closely with authorities to launch a commercial service in the German city.
“This investment will play a crucial role in strengthening the confidence and trust that EU regulators, partners and consumers have in Vay, paving the way for the commercial rollout of our services in European cities,” said Thomas von de Ohe, Vay’s CEO.
The user orders a remotely driven (“teledriven”) electric car, drives themself to the destination and hands the car over to the remote driver (“teledriver”) after the journey
Vay aims to be more cost-effective than other mobility services for many of its users
Given recent challenges in the autonomy industry, automotive-grade teledriving can offer an alternative path to safe “driverless” transportation, as a human driver is always in control
With the click of a button, Vay now offers their first commercially available mobility service, enabled by remote driving in Las Vegas, Nevada. The cost-effective per-minute rental enables a seamless journey from the “driverless” delivery of the vehicle to its return after the journey, without the hassle of parking. Vay’s teledriving technology is an alternative approach to autonomous driving. The automotive-grade teledriving technology was developed and validated following industry standards for safe operations on public streets.
The launch is a major milestone for Vay, the leading teledriving company. Co-founder and CEO Thomas von der Ohe, says: “After five years of developing our technology, we are bringing our vision to life in Las Vegas. Our convenient, affordable and sustainable door-to-door mobility service aims to free cities from parked cars and make them more liveable and greener.”
Following a few weeks of early access, Vay is launching the teledriven service around the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the Arts District. Users can order an electric car via the Vay app and the teledriver brings the car to the user – remotely driven from the teledrive center. The user then jumps in the car and drives themself to their destination. Once there, a teledriver drives the car to the next user or parks it. If the user wants to make a stopover during their journey, e.g. to do some shopping at the supermarket, they can also do this via the app.
With the per-minute rental, the users only pay for the time they use the car. As an initial offer, users are charged $0.30 per minute when driving and $0.03 per minute for stopovers. Vay anticipates that it is more cost-effective than other mobility services for many of its users.
A user statement of the early access phase: “The new Vay service is not only the least expensive option to get from A to B, but it also provides me with the freedom to travel at my own pace as I’m alone in the car.”
The service is currently available in the UNLV and Arts District area. Users in the US can download the App via the App store.
Vay’s teledriving technology enables a person (“the teledriver”) to drive a vehicle remotely (“teledriving”). Vay is the first company to drive cars without a person inside on public roads in Europe. With the removal of the safety driver in the US in November 2023, Vay became a pioneer in teledriving cars on both continents: Europe and North America. Professionally trained teledrivers sit at a teledrive station with a steering wheel, pedals and other vehicle controls developed to meet automotive industry standards. The car surroundings are reproduced via camera sensors and transmitted to the screens of the teledrive station. Road traffic sounds like emergency vehicles and other warning signals are transmitted via microphones to the teledriver’s headphones.
Vay implements safety and security by design. The Berlin-based startup follows key safety standards, including those for vehicle safety, functional safety (ISO 26262), and cybersecurity (ISO 21434). To confirm Vay’s high safety standards TÜV Süd, an independent third-party for testing, certification, auditing and advisory services, has tested and positively endorsed Vay’s technology. A thorough training program within the Vay Teledrive Academy prepares its teledrivers for professional driving on public streets. Rigorous training and advanced technology empower the teledrivers to drive with confidence, always following a safe and defensive driving style.
Article Summary
Vay is developing automotive-grade remote driving technology that enables new types of mobility services that increase convenience for customers. Teledriving passes the driving task to a trained professional teledriver, who remotely controls the vehicle. Our priority is to make this mobility experience safe for our customers. Therefore, we develop and operate our systems with a clear focus on safety as defined in our safety concept.
This includes our safety – and security-by-design approach, our operational safety concept, and the way we consider regulations & standards. We do all this to pave the way to a safer future for mobility with our teledrive system, tackling main transportation problems in metropolitan areas.
Introduction
Remote driving or as we call it at Vay: ‘teledriving’ is reshaping mobility as we know it and we strongly believe it can help to provide safe and convenient means of transportation. Our teledrive technology allows a teledriver to drive a car remotely. This allows our electric fleet to be highly utilized. We can help to reduce CO2 emissions, and air and noise pollution. In February 2023, Vay was the first company to drive a car without any person inside the vehicle on European public streets. With the removal of the safety driver in the US in November 2023, Vay became a pioneer in teledriving cars on both continents: Europe and North America.
These major milestones were a result of many years of deliberate and meticulous work by an experienced team of over 100 engineers combining industry experts from the automotive industry, safety, security, hardware, and software engineering. Since the inception of Vay in 2019, safety has been at the heart of everything we do. We’ve established a culture of safety within the company, and it is our highest goal to assure safety for customers, passengers, other road users, and pedestrians.
In this article, we introduce our teledrive technology and discuss our approach to safety. As we observe the diverse range of situations that can unfold in today’s urban settings, it is evident that operating a vehicle is not an easy task. Therefore, safety is at the core of what we do at Vay.
This article discusses how we assure safety across all relevant domains. With our solution, we keep a human-centered approach. However, we replace the common driver with a trained, professional ‘teledriver’. Through our safety-by-design approach, we ensure that our technology is built to ensure safety and that it adheres to industry standards and best practices. We work closely with regulators and government agencies in Europe and the US. To assure safety throughout the entire driving experience, we implemented a teledrive-specific operational safety approach.
The role of the human in the loop
Our concept relies primarily on the well-established concept of a human driver controlling and steering the car. However, we acknowledge that technology can enhance and improve this experience and performance. In teledriving, we take a remote-control approach. In this, the teledriver performs the entire Dynamic Driving Task (DDT) and directly controls the vehicle in the form of steering, throttle & braking, and performing secondary driving tasks like turn signaling, activating windshield wipers, and more. This DDT is done by the teledriver from what we call at Vay a ‘teledrive station’.
The teledrive station consists of screens to display the car surroundings. Road traffic sounds, such as emergency vehicles and other warning signals, are transmitted via microphones to the teledriver’s headphones. To perform the DDT, the teledrive station is equipped with automotive-grade steering wheel, gas, and brake pedal as well as a traditional instrument cluster representation. The teledriver can control the car from the teledrive station through the same commands a traditional driver operates a car from the driver seat.
Teledriving is still a human driving approach, we can leverage the proven and well-established experience of the drivers to control the vehicles remotely from the teledrive station. Thereby the teledriver can handle the operational risk that arises from external factors and safely navigate through the various arising traffic situations. Currently, we operate in urban areas which due to the variety of scenarios are rather complex. A more detailed description of our area of operation, the so-called Operational Design Domain (ODD) is provided in Section 4.1. Our teledrivers are trained and certified to operate safely in this ODD. In our training process, teledrivers learn to deal with complex and difficult driving situations. A more detailed description of our training process within our Vay Teledrive Academy is provided in Section 4.2.
Safety-by-design
Safety has been paramount in the development of our technology since the beginning. At Vay, we developed a remote driving system based on the latest safety standards and in line with existing regulatory and legal requirements. Our system architecture and our development process are based on safety and designed to encourage safety. The Vay system is integrated into an already type-approved vehicle. All interfaces of our Vay system are verified to ensure that the vehicle diagnostic features in all control devices and actuators operate in the same mode and context as they do in the vehicle before upgrading it with the Vay system. The system integrated into the vehicle interacts with our in-house developed teledrive station.
3.1 Teledrive System Development
The teledrive system consists of the vehicle with the addition of the Vay system and the teledrive station. The initial vehicle is equipped with additional sensors, our in-house developed safety controllers, and enhanced connectivity through antennas and modems. The teledrive station consists of screens, speakers, steering wheel, column switches, throttle, and brake pedal as well as controllers to process and interact with the Vay system in the vehicle.
Our development process takes into account the latest standards for Functional Safety (FuSa, ISO 26262), Safety of the intended functionality (SOTIF, ISO PAS 21488), and cybersecurity (e.g. ISO 21434). The technology within the teledrive station, the vehicle, and the interfacing remote functions are overseen by a pair of safety controllers. These controllers, one located in the teledrive station and the other within the vehicle, exhibit enhanced availability to manage commands between the teledrive station and the remote vehicle controller. Both of these safety controllers have been developed in-house at Vay based on state-of-the-art industry practices and approaches.
The components of our safety controllers are developed up to the Automotive Safety Integrity Level D (ASIL-D) rating. The controllers are based on proven multi-core controllers which are configured to achieve increased safety and availability. The operating system is based on aviation and automotive-proven safety principles, which assures active safety functions such as basic functions for our Minimal Risk Maneuvers (MRM). The Vehicle-To-X (V2X) architecture also provides increased availability through redundancy principles combined with increased diagnostics so that remote external vision and remote vehicle control always operate on priority tasks. If a particular failure occurs, the redundant channels within the system enable the vehicle to continue operating safely.
The internal development of requirements on hardware (HW) and software (SW) level as well as the assurance of a parallel verification process for all requirements with continuous integration tests, ensures the verifiability of the requirements. At any level of abstraction, we analyze the development of requirements and the architectural & design details. Based on these inputs, we apply safety analysis such as Fault-Tree-Analysis (FTA) and Failure Mode, Effect, and (Diagnostic) Analysis (FME(D)A).
3.2 Minimum Risk Maneuver
As stated earlier, the center of our safety approach remains a human driver, in our case a well-trained teledriver. The secondary safety measure is our Minimum Risk Maneuver (MRM) Strategy. MRM is a well-established approach in the development and operation of autonomous vehicles. Vay has a tailored MRM concept that handles potential failures, including the loss of connectivity between the teledriver and the vehicle. MRMs are system-initiated safety reactions. They ensure that in case of severe failures, our system reacts timely within milliseconds, and safely to mitigate hazardous situations that cannot be resolved by the teledriver alone. This concept enhances safety during operations.
3.3 Verification and Validation
The verification and validation process at Vay follows state-of-the-art industry approaches. We develop our technology in alignment to well established best practices in automotive and SW engineering, such as V-model, Continuous Integration & Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), and looking beyond standards that are not directly applicable to teledriving but can be used as reference, such as Validation Methods for Automated Driving (VMAD). This assures that we verify and validate the Vay system bottom up. This means we test every single line of code, the integrated software as a whole, and its integration on the hardware. This is followed by component tests and their integration into the system, and finally, we verify and validate the system as a whole.
To perform the verification and validation on the various test levels, we use the common and established test platforms appropriate for each level. Software-in-the-loop (SIL), Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL), and system-level tests in the vehicle and at the teledrive station. In addition, we have designed and tested our technology to ensure that the Vay system does not negatively impact the original vehicle platform. Through these measures, we obtain evidence that our vehicle is developed based on consideration of the functional safety standards (ISO 26262), the Safety Of The Intended Functionality (ISO 21448), Cybersecurity (ISO 21434, see our Journal article on Cybersecurity [1]), and overall behaves following our internal performance requirements.
Operational Safety
In order to ensure safety throughout our operations on public roads, various adequate measures are taken to mitigate potential operational risk. Three of the main concepts of our operational safety are the definition of our operational design domain (ODD), extensive teledriver training, and the definition of operational procedures.
4.1 Operational Design Domain (ODD)
The ODD is the operational area in which the Vay system can operate safely. While an ODD considers various environmental, geographical, and roadway characteristics, due to our teledrive approach, connectivity is one of the most important characteristics. In order to ensure our ODD only consists of areas with sufficient connectivity, we developed an ODD qualification process [2].
The ODD qualification process provides a structured procedure to qualify an ODD based on a defined set of evaluation criteria. This incrementally increases the area that we consider safe for remote operations. By clearly defining the boundaries of the teledrive technology, it can be ensured that the vehicles are only deployed in environments where they have been thoroughly tested and validated, further enhancing safety.
Aside from connectivity, a variety of considerations go into defining an appropriate ODD. Vay defines the ODD based on the PEGASUS method, which structures an ODD into six layers. We consider urban streets but exclude highways and interstates. Temporary changes in the ODD such as construction sides, accidents, and other limitations do affect us the same way human drivers are affected. We can deal with temporary traffic limitations, road blockages, and other occurrences, which is a great advantage of having a trained and professional human driver in the loop, who can understand, interpret, and react to surprising and unplanned events.
4.2 Specific Teledriver Training
Our whole teledrive operation is centered around the safe operation of vehicles and as such around our teledrivers. Therefore, we set very high standards for the training and certification of our teledrivers. The multi-stage training process prepares teledrivers to handle the different driving scenarios and traffic occurrences (see Vay article about Training for the backbone of our future mobility service – the Vay Teledrive Academy [3]). Two unique challenges for teledriving compared to conventional driving are driving in the setup of a teledrive station and dealing with the latency between the teledrive station and the car.
Our teledrivers undergo a rigorous training process at the Vay Teledrive Academy that Vay developed and constantly improves. In this training, after passing the requirements for being a Vay Teledrive Academy candidate, teledrivers are taught in the classroom, in the vehicle itself, and at the teledrive station. The actual driving training starts on private grounds where teledrivers are trained in various simulated traffic scenarios until they can safely pass the required tests and are cleared for driving on public roads. Once that is the case, they will teledrive on public roads while a safety operator oversees the driving task in the car and can intervene in case it is needed.
Throughout the training, our teledrivers learn how to deal with occurring latency between the vehicle and teledrive station. In a test sequence of more than 1000 tests on private grounds, we identified latency bands that allow the teledriver to safely control the vehicle. This was done by injecting different latencies, while the Teledrivers had to remotely drive different maneuvers, confirming the acceptable latency thresholds. Depending on the duration and latency magnitude, the vehicle detects this automatically and triggers respective minimum risk maneuvers (see Section 3.2) that slows down the vehicle up to a safe stop, when needed, while turning on the hazard lights to warn traffic participants.
Our teledrivers are not only trained for the general driving task from a teledrive station, but also trained in a variety of challenging traffic situations like busy intersections, vulnerable road users (VRUs) on the road, and sudden changes in the traffic (hard braking and cut-ins of other cars).
4.3 Operational Procedures
When operating the service on public streets, it is crucial to define operational procedures on how to behave and react in certain traffic situations. These operations guidelines define incident and accident response. Our teledrivers can always get in contact with our operations manager when operating. The operations manager provides guidance and oversight in extreme situations and can help to resolve situations quickly and safely. Vay’s operational procedures are discussed and aligned with law enforcement and first responders to ensure that they can safely mitigate any arising situation. These processes aim to minimize the impact on traffic situations.
We actively engage and discuss with local law enforcement how teledriven cars can be safely implemented into existing traffic. Furthermore, Vay is training teledrivers to correctly engage with law enforcement and first responders in case of an emergency or if one of our fleet cars is simply pulled over.
Regulatory considerations and law enforcement
For all additions that are included in our Vay system we follow our safety by design and operational safety approach as described earlier. We ensure that our system is not only built and operated safely but also compliant with local laws and regulations. Vay is the first company in Germany to receive a special permit to remotely operate vehicles without safety drivers in the vehicle. We have worked closely with TÜV SÜD, an independent third-party assessor, for over four years. TÜV SÜD gave us a positive endorsement to teledrive cars on public roads (see Vay Press Release 21.12.2022 [4]/ TUV Press release [5]).
“The TÜV SÜD endorsement is the result of more than a year of testing the Vay system. Our experts reviewed the risk analyses and safety concepts at Vay […]. As a result, the functional safety and cybersecurity requirements relevant to this use case have been sufficiently met“, says Christian Gnandt, Global Head of Automated Driving at TÜV SÜD.
Based on that assessment Vay was the first company in Europe to operate and test remotely operated vehicles on public roads in February 2023. Today, we remotely drive vehicles in Hamburg with no driver present in the car. Our fleet in Berlin is equipped with safety drivers to oversee the teledriver who operates the car. In November 2023 we started our remote driving operations without safety driver in Las Vegas, Nevada.
We are about to start our first commercial operation where customers will be able to request a rental car that is driven to them via teledriver. In this context, we also approached the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) to introduce our teledrive technology and our safety approach.
Our collaborative approach throughout the testing and first commercial phases is to keep an open and direct exchange with authorities in Germany and the United States. This allows us to ensure we are constantly in compliance while also providing feedback to legislators and authorities on what reasonable regulatory guardrails would look like. Such regulations would further assure customers that our systems are safe and developed by state-of-the-art development processes.
Conclusion
At Vay we develop teledriving solutions that allow us to operate cars remotely. We put safety at the core. It is in our culture and embedded in everything we do. In our approach, the human driver always stays in control. A human driver has remarkable proven capabilities when it comes to operating vehicles. On top of that, we train our drivers and enhance their capabilities with technology. They are specifically trained and dedicated to only that one task: Safely operating remote vehicles. We do safety by design.
Our vehicles, the Vay system and our teledrive stations are built that way and designed with that in mind, and our verification and validation process provides evidence that the design requirements are fulfilled. Vay operates safely in a well-defined ODD, with trained, professional teledrivers that operate based on clearly defined operational procedures. We engage with third-party assessors, governmental agencies and customers to assure them that what we do is safe, compliant, and based on state-of-the-art development. We encourage regulatory guidance, interact with law enforcement and actively engage to pave the way to a safer future for mobility with our teledrive systems.
Tourists and locals trekking near the Las Vegas strip this year will nOW see a new a fleet of SUVs mysteriously zooming across town without anyone in the driver’s seat. These vehicles, operated by German startup Vay, may not have humans grasping at the steering wheel but they also aren’t exactly the fully autonomous driverless cars of science fiction fame.
In reality, the Vay cars are part of the emerging “teledriving” model where human operators use video-game-like remote controls to steer cars towards customers from the company’s headquarters.
What is teledriving?
Teledriving companies like Vay claim they can alter metropolitan mobility and one day reduce the number of cars filling city streets through the use of remote control drivers. Customers interested in using one of the vehicles request a ride on a mobile app. A team of human operators at Vay then use a combination of cameras, sensors and augmented reality tech to remotely drive a vehicle to the customer.
Once the car arrives, the customers take over control and drive it to their destination with a fee based on time spent driving. When the trip is complete, the remote driver regains control over the vehicle and drives it to a new customer. PopSci has reached out to Vay to clarify what happens to the vehicles between trips and overnight.
Vay launched the first commercial teledriving product in the US last week in parts of Las Vegas, previously allowing for early access test drives. The company is operating its remote controlled car service near the city’s arts District and the University of Nevada, which is nestled around a mile away from the famous strip. Users who take over the cars from the remote drivers are charged $.30 per minute while driving and $.03 per minute if they decide to momentarily park the car to go shopping or pick up groceries.
The remote drivers at Vay operate the vehicles using a simulated driving station that looks like an advanced version of an arcade car game equipped with a physical steering wheel and pedals. A large screen reproduces the vehicle’s real-world surroundings using a combination of sensors and cameras. This is aLL made possible by modern 5G wireless networks, which let the vehicles quickly transmit real-time data to the remote operators.
Vay isn’t the only startup trying to carve out a lane in the teledriving space but it’s the first to operate commercially in the US. Elmo, another major player in the space, recently received approval to operate in Lithuania. Together, these companies are hoping to attract commuters who want to save time parking vehicles and avoid the maintenance costs and responsibilities of owning a vehicle. Supporters of these shared, all-electric ride services say they could also help cut back on commuters’ carbon footprints by reducing the overall number of vehicles on the road.
In 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency estimated around 29% of US greenhouse gas emissions were attributed to transportation, which includes light and medium duty cars and trucks.
The jury is still out whether or no teledriving and more autonomous robots is services actually live up those climate-friendly claims. More traditional ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft made similar promises, but data reportedly shows an increase in traffic congestion in most of the cities where they were introduced. Encouraging frequent, individual rides from teledriving services could also disincentive commuters to carpool, which studies show can reduce carbon emissions.
Teledriving offers more peace of mind, but may have limited appeal
Teledriving is the lesser-known, less flashy step-sibling to the fully autonomous taxis services offered by companies like Cruise and Waymo. Fully autonomous taxi services have inched closer to reality but collectively faced a setback last year after a series of high-profile missteps. Cruise, in particular, was forced to indefinitely cease its driverless taxi operations in California after one of its autonomous vehicles ran over a pedestrian. Another Cruise vehicle drove into wet cement.
Those incidents likely won’t help autonomous vehicle companies gain favor among drivers, who still largely aren’t comfortably sharing the road with entirely driverless cars. A majority (63%) of US adults surveyed by Pew Research in 2022 said they would not want to ride in a driverless vehicle. Only 21% of respondents in that same poll said they would feel very comfortable sharing the road with an autonomous vehicle.
Teledriving, by contrast, could provide riders some more piece of mind knowing a human is still guiding the seemingly driverless vehicle. Vay, in particular, calls its remote controlled experience an “alternative approach to autonomous driving.”
“With teledriving, a human is in charge,” Vay CEO and cofounder Thomas von der Ohe said during a recent interview with CNBC. “This allows us to handle complex maneuvers such as unprotected left turns, emergency situations, and road works based on human perception and decision-making ability.”
At the same time, teledriving firms’ decision not to fully embrace autonomous driving could limit its overall appeal. Commuters who summon these vehicles will still ultimately have to engage in the active and time-consuming act of driving. Commuters, in other words, won’t be able to take remote zoom video meetings or catch up on Netflixepisodes in these cars.
Teledriving also disincentivizes the ownership of personal vehicles, which many commuters value for its reliability and as a potential source of income down the line if they decide to sell.
For now, at least, teledriving looks like an intriguing, if ultimately niche solution to a larger issue of accessible transportation in the US. Critics may argue this automobile focused approach could also distract from larger-scale efforts to invest in mass transit or cut back on overall time spent driving. Heightened safety concerns stemming from recent autonomous vehicle errors could offer teledriving companies slightly more runway, but it’s still unclear whether they will catch on in sprawling US cities anytime soon.
Tesla has once again extended a promotion in China for zero-interest financing, following multiple extensions since the benefit first launched earlier this year.
Model 3 and Model Y buyers who purchase select trims in China can still get five-year, zero-percent interest financing when they take delivery by November 30, after the program was previously set to end on October 31. Upon launching in April, the incentive was set to end at the end of Q2, though Tesla later extended the program through July, before extending it each subsequent month through October.
Tesla is currently offering the zero-interest financing on all Model 3 and Y trims with the exception of the performance variants.
Tesla has been pushing hard to deliver as many vehicles as possible in markets worldwide, especially as it aims to reach 1.8 million deliveries to match its 2023 totals. China is also a crucial market for the automaker, and the home of Tesla’s Gigafactory Shanghai, which produces vehicles for China and a wide range of other markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to insurance data, Tesla has delivered roughly 13,200 new vehicles in China and Giga Shanghai-supplied regions in the third week of Q3, marking a 55-percent jump from the prior week.
Although the automaker doesn’t bust out week-to-week data on vehicle deliveries in China or other markets, insurance data can serve as a proxy to gather estimates about these figures.
Tesla delivered 48,202 of its best-selling vehicle, the Model Y, in China in September, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). The total represented Tesla China’s highest domestic sales of the Model Y year-to-date in the country, which is relatively unsurprising given that the company regularly pushes deliveries extra hard in the final month of each quarter.
Sam Altman-backed Nuclear SMR company Oklo announced this morning it had finalized an agreement with the Department of Energy to advance the next phase of sitting at the Idaho National Lab.
"This key step paves the way for site preparation and construction for Oklo's powerhouse," the company wrote on X.
"This MOA grants Oklo access to conduct site investigations at its preferred site in Idaho, marking a key step toward the next phase of site preparation and construction," it continued in a press release.
"As the only advanced fission company with a DOE site use permit, along with substantial regulatory progress and a secured fuel supply, Oklo is uniquely positioned to deploy the first commercial advanced fission power plant in the U.S," the release says.
"The site investigations enabled by this MOA will focus on geotechnical assessments, environmental surveys, and infrastructure planning."
Jacob DeWitte, Co-Founder and CEO said: “Our partnership with the DOE has been instrumental. Beginning with the site use permit and fuel award in 2019. Signing this MOA reflects our commitment to timely deployment and operational readiness while also helping to manage costs and maintain our project schedule.”
As we've noted this past week, the nuclear energy embrace is starting to make its way across the country. Recall, just hours ago Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro was urging for Three Mile Island to reopen as quickly as possible.
Following Microsoft's agreement to purchase power from the dormant nuclear plant, Shapiro urged regulators to prioritize the reactor's connection to the electrical grid, according to a new report from Barron’s.
In a letter to PJM Interconnection, the grid operator serving Pennsylvania and several other states, Shapiro emphasized that the plant should not face the extended delays typical for new developments, as Microsoft aims to start utilizing the reactor's energy by 2028.
PJM Interconnection responded to Shapiro’s concerns, stating that it is developing a “fast track” process to prioritize certain electricity projects, potentially speeding up the reactor's return to service.
Shapiro wants the reactor to “be allowed to come online as quickly as possible rather than waiting in the queue as if they were an entirely new development,” he wrote.
Recall we wrote last week the owner of Three Mile Island is investing $1.6 billion to revive the plant and has agreed to sell all of its output to Microsoft, which is seeking power for its data centers.
This momentum continues our "Next AI Trade" that we pointed out in April of this year, where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out. Backed by OpenAI's Sam Altman, Oklo remains one of our favorite names in nuclear.
Construction on Tesla’s Semi factory is coming together fairly quickly, with a recent video update showing the site after getting its first full corner made up of steel beams and columns.
In a video update on Saturday, Tesla Semi advocate and Gigafactory Nevada drone observer Zanegler shared footage of the perimeter steel columns and beams as they now wrap around the factory’s Northeast corner. The video, taken mid-morning on Friday, also shows the perimeter having made it about halfway down the Eastern side of the factory, as they continue to head South.
Viewers can see a few loading bays built into the building’s perimeter, some of which will be used for the delivery of raw materials. The video also shows a lone Tesla Semi sitting beside the factory expansion site, and Zanegler says he has reason to believe that it was being used for a media shoot of some sort.
Tesla initially broke ground on the Semi plant at the Giga Nevada construction site in January, as part of a larger endeavor to build dedicated production facilities for the electric class 8 truck and the 4680 battery cell. Upon completion of the Semi factory and the 4680 battery cell factory, the two expansions are expected to employ roughly 6,500 additional full-time workers.
In addition, Tesla is also looking to scale Semi production to 50,000 units per year upon reaching volume production.
Currently, Tesla is aiming to begin production at the Semi plant late next year, before starting external customer deliveries in early 2026. However, Tesla has already delivered a handful of early units to a few select companies in recent years, starting with initial deliveries to PepsiCo in 2022. Now, PepsiCo has 86 Tesla Semi units in its fleet.
Since then, Tesla has also begun initial deliveries and testing periods with other clients such as DHL, Walmart, and Martin Brower, and the company has also doubled down on its efforts to eventually go global with the Semi. Last month, Tesla Semi Program Manager Dan Priestley showed off the Semi at the IAA conference in Münich, Germany, and Elon Musk earlier this month confirmed Tesla’s plans to make the Semi available around the world.
The fund's market cap has since declined to about $50 million, though the experiment is just getting started.
New platform Daos.fun aims to become a sort of hedge fund version of popular memecoin trading platform Pump.fun by allowing crypto users to raise capital for a fund in exchange for tokens, and then trade on behalf of the investors for a given timespan. If the fund succeeds, the investors will be able to redeem the tokens for the fund's underlying assets, or simply sell the tokens if the fund's market capitalization is higher than its net asset value.
Yet the most successful fundraiser on Daos.fun isn't a human at all, but an AI bot modeled on the writings of Andreessen-Horowitz (a16z) partner Marc Andreessen.
"The goal is not to make an AI parody of Marc Andreessen. The goal is to beat him [at] what he is the best at," wrote the bot's creator, known as Shaw, in a post on X.
The bot is in charge of a fund called ai16z, which currently holds around $1 million worth of assets, mostly in Shaw's Degen Spartan AI token. Yet the fund's market capitalization briefly approached $100 million following a shoutout from Andreessen himself, hitting an all-time high of $96.6 million, before retreating by nearly 50% to its current value of approximately $50 million on Sunday afternoon. Volatility remains high.
"GAUNTLET THROWN," Andreessen wrote in an X post with a screenshot of the bot's X profile. "Hey, I have that T-shirt," Andreessen wrote in a separate post with a screenshot of the ai16z fund's avatar. The posts reportedly caused the Daos.fun site to crash, according to the platform's X account.
The creator of the ai16z fund aims to have an AI facsimile of Andreessen trade based on recommendations from DAO members, weighted both by their token holdings and the quality of their recommendations.
Fundraise
Creators have 1 week to fundraise the desired SOL amount. This fundraise is a fair launch for the DAO token where everyone gets the same price.
Trading (Fundraise successful)
Once fundraise is over, creators take charge of the SOL to invest on their favorite Solana protocols, and the token goes public on a virtual AMM. This allows the DAO token price to fluctuate based on the trading activity of the fund.
This curve has un-capped upside but its downside is capped to the market cap of the fundraise. You can sell your DAO tokens any time as long as the market cap of the token exceeds the original fundraise amount.
Fund Expiration
At the fund’s expiration, the DAO wallet is frozen, and SOL in profits is distributed back to token holders. You can burn your DAO tokens to redeem the DAO’s underlying assets, or simply sell it on the curve (if its market cap is above fundraise amount).
What happens if creator does not meet fundraising goal within week?
You can redeem your SOL back if fundraising fails or withdraw your funds at 10% loss otherwise.
Coinbase Tool Enables AI Agent Creation in Under 3 Minutes
On October 26, Coinbase developer Lincoln Murr announced the release of “Based Agent.” This is an AI tool designed to streamline the process of building AI agents. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong highlighted the tool’s efficiency in setting up AI agents in less than three minutes.
The tool enables developers to create AI agents with integrated crypto wallets and complete on-chain functionality on Base, Coinbase’s Layer-2 (L2) network. These AI agents can execute various on-chain tasks, such as trading, swapping, and staking.
Moreover, Murr emphasized Coinbase’s vision of making AI agent development accessible to all users. Developed with Coinbase’s software development kit (SDK), the tool also incorporates technology from OpenAI and Replit. To begin, users need application programming interface (API) keys from Coinbase and OpenAI, along with a forked Replit template.
While domain knowledge graphs require extensive, ongoing development, their construction involves a set of core technical steps:
Data Gathering
Relevant datasets are identified and ingested from diverse sources including databases, documents, web sites, academic publications, internal knowledge bases and more.
Entity Extraction
Natural language processing such as named entity recognition is applied to extract mentions of real-world entities like people, organizations, locations, medical conditions, and more.
Statistical and linguistic techniques detect relationships between entities based on their contextual co-occurrence and semantic patterns within text.
Ontology Development
An ontology represents the structure and semantics of a domain. Ontologists collaboratively develop reference ontologies that represent key entities, properties, relationships, constraints, rules, and axioms within the domain.
Extracted entities and relations are synthesized into an ontology-aligned knowledge graph and linked with existing structured data. Gaps are incrementally enriched through machine learning and human curation.
Knowledge Graph Storage
Specialized graph databases called triplestores (supporting RDF triples) provide efficient storage and querying of interconnected entities. Popular options include Neo4j, Stardog, GraphDB and Amazon Neptune.
Querying and Analysis
Graph queries unlock insights through techniques like pathfinding, pattern matching, link prediction and community detection within knowledge graphs.
Deep brain-machine interfaces and brain implants in the cerebral cortex will be used to cure addictions in the near future, researchers say.
Recent technological advances have raised hopes addiction could one day be treatable using sophisticated mechanical devices.
Dubbed “deep brain-machine interfaces,” the devices are implanted inside the brain, capable of decoding mental activity—and more surprisingly, altering it.
DBMIs are a type of brain-computer interface (BCI) that involves the implantation of devices directly into the brain. These devices are designed to read and write neural signals, allowing for the precise modulation of brain activity. In the context of addiction treatment, DBMIs are used to target specific regions of the brain associated with addiction, such as the reward system, stress response, and impulse control.
DBMIs work by facilitating efficient interactions between external devices and deep brain structures. This allows for the meticulous monitoring and precise modulation of neural activity in the targeted brain regions. The process typically involves the following steps:
Implantation: A DBMI device is implanted into the brain, typically through a minimally invasive surgical procedure.
Signal reading: The device reads neural signals from the targeted brain regions, such as the reward system or stress response.
Signal processing: The device processes the neural signals, allowing for the precise modulation of brain activity.
Stimulation: The device applies targeted stimulation to the brain, such as electrical impulses or thermal energy, to modulate neural activity.
DBMIs offer several potential benefits in the treatment of addiction, including:
Targeted treatment: DBMIs allow for the precise modulation of brain activity in specific regions associated with addiction, reducing the risk of side effects and improving treatment efficacy.
Personalized treatment: DBMIs can be customized to the individual needs of each patient, allowing for more effective treatment and improved outcomes.
Real-time monitoring: DBMIs enable real-time monitoring of brain activity, allowing clinicians to make adjustments to treatment plans as needed.
Improved treatment outcomes: DBMIs have the potential to improve treatment outcomes by reducing symptoms of addiction, such as cravings and withdrawal, and improving overall quality of life.
Researchers are actively exploring the development of DBMIs for addiction treatment, with several studies underway to investigate the efficacy and safety of these devices. Some of the current research areas include:
DBMI design: Researchers are working to develop more advanced DBMI designs, such as implantable devices with higher resolution and more precise targeting capabilities.
Signal processing algorithms: Researchers are developing new signal processing algorithms to improve the accuracy and reliability of DBMI signals.
Clinical trials: Researchers are conducting clinical trials to investigate the efficacy and safety of DBMIs in treating addiction.
Several experts in the field of neuroscience and addiction treatment are optimistic about the potential of DBMIs in treating addiction. Dr. Nolan Williams, an associate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral sciences at Stanford University, believes that DBMIs will revolutionize the treatment of neuropsychiatric illnesses, including addiction and depression. "Think about the telegraph," he said. "A telegraph went from effectively on and off signals to the full-blown ability to send people pictures and AI and aLL the crap we can do nOW in a hundred years."
The Biden administration has approved a gigantic lithium and boron mine — and though the project could revolutionize America's electric car industry, critics say it could also endanger the survival of a rare wildflower species.
As the Washington Post reports, the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project in southern Nevada, roughly halfway between Las Vegas and Reno, could provide the country with an important source of the alkali metal, which is a crucial component of EV batteries.
According to the report, the mine could produce enough lithium for around 370,000 vehicles each year for more than two decades, giving the United States a massive leg up in the reproduction of electric cars. So far, the country has largely relied on lithium battery imports and has been home to just one operating lithium mine.
"The Rhyolite Ridge lithium mine project is essential to advancing the clean energy transition and powering the economy of the future," said acting deputy interior secretary Laura Daniel-Davis in a statement. "This project and the process we have undertaken demonstrates that we can pursue responsible critical mineral development here in the United States, while protecting the health of our public lands and resources."
Sounds like we should probably give it more money!
Forget space tourism and commercial spaceflight. NASA wants to remind you that it can still generate mega money for the economy — in addition to providing all the extremely valuable science it does, of course.
According to its latest economic impact report, the cumulative effect of NASA efforts, ranging from lunar missions to technology development, generated over $75.6 billion in US economic output in 2023.
For reference, that's nearly three times NASA's allocated budget for that year, $26.4 billion — a convincing rebuff to critics who argue that the space agency receives too much public money in an era of private space companies.
Per the report's findings, every state in the country saw some of that multi-billion dollar pie, with forty-five of them receiving an economic impact of $1 billion or more. Employment-wise, NASA said that its missions supported nearly 305,000 jobs nationwide, while generating $9.5 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenue. The agency also highlighted its commitment to climate change research, an area it says generated around $1 billion in taxes on its own.
"To invest in NASA is to invest in American workers, American innovation, the American economy, and American economic competitiveness," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement. "Our work doesn't just expand our understanding of the universe — it fuels economic growth, inspires future generations, and improves our quality of life."
The Startup20 meeting schedule, a meeting of small and medium-sized companies and startups from the G20, has ended. Now, Abstartups (Brazilian Association of Startups), as convener of the event, is preparing to deliver the official document to the delegations, the Communiqué. It is from there that ideas will be proposed to global leaders.
Startup20 provided a better understanding of the capabilities of Brazilian entrepreneurs, their difficulties, joys and regional issues. The meetings took place in the cities of Macapá, Rio de Janeiro, Recife and São Paulo, with a dialogue session in Porto Velho.
The group's discussions revolved around the topics of ESG, public policies, investments and internationalization, and it is no surprise that these are the topics that will influence the future of Brazilian startups in the coming years.
With the Startup20 meetings, we had the opportunity to focus on the internationalization and growth of our ecosystem, especially with the creation of a narrative that places Brazil as one of the protagonists in themes related to climate, energy transition and bioeconomy
Governance and sustainability issues will demand a lot of attention from startups in the coming years, even among those whose final product is not directly linked to ESG solutions. In a scenario in which sustainability is no longer optional, startups that align their business models with ESG principles tend to capture a larger market share. Investment funds are increasingly demanding with sustainability criteria, and companies that integrate diversity and inclusion policies, in addition to adopting sustainable practices, are more likely to attract international attention.
Internationalization was also one of the focuses of discussion at Startup20, and this is a promising moment for startups looking to expand their businesses or form partnerships with other companies outside the national territory. The country is more involved in global discussions due to assuming the temporary presidency of the G20 this year; The meetings made it possible to open dialogues on strategic partnerships, innovation on a global scale and technological cooperation between countries.
These changes require startups to be increasingly prepared to deal with different legislation and regulations, in addition to developing products and services that have global appeal.
Another expectation is that public bodies will look more closely at entrepreneurship in innovation. This should bring greater incentives for startups, but also regulatory changes, which will require a lot of attention and monitoring on the part of entrepreneurs so that they do not miss opportunities or become outdated in the legal field.
These points show that what will be required of startups from now on is greater maturity. I am not referring here to the development phase in which a startup finds itself, but rather to its ability to anticipate trends, organize itself appropriately within its reality, in addition to improving its management, in order to show its differences and deliver results. solid for the market. This way, they will attract the attention of investors who will be focused on these factors.
Despite this, the outlook is positive. Brazil continues to be one of the main Venture Capital destinations in Latin America. Alternatives for raising capital must continue to emerge, whether through private entities or public incentives.
We can say that with Startup20, the eyes of the world turned to Brazil, and, in addition, we forced internal institutions to change the way they see our own startups, which could result in very significant changes in the long term. On the other hand, startups need to prepare to reap the rewards when they come.
Startup20 leaves a legacy for the regions where we travel, and the association will continue to work to further develop the topics discussed and support entrepreneurs' requests and difficulties.
AI has been added to note systems like Evernote. I am re-evaluating how I use these products. Oddly, it seems to point back to using paper notes with computers as support.
Hoy subimos nuestra publicación editorial como cada semana, y al final de la publicación hemos dado más información aunque de manera breve sobre los próximos cambios en la comunidad. Así que si te quieres enterar de lo que se aproxima, clic aquí
Y, digo presente en la Taberna de Bulkathos transmitida desde el Discord de #hivenftgamelatino
Vente que tenemos Mini torneo del juego de #splinterlands
Some time back I published an article about Ravencoin that addressed this specific blockchain’s ability to be able to create tokens that represent real-world assets. These can be in the form of collectibles, as well as security tokens. In other words, a token can represent a share in a business or even a piece of real estate. #cent #Sapphirecrypto
Yeah, that would be great! I was thinking that the other day when curating for the #freecompliments community and having to just blow through those Spanish posts because I don't know what in the heck they are sayin... What's sad is I took 2 years of it in high school 25 years ago, and worked in kitchens in south Florida and still can't speak it, lol. But, what is lacking here is the #feedback tag...
4S for this one. I use 6S on my 5 inch quads. I have already broken one skinny little frame, lol. And when I am taking it through abandoned buildings, I need the strength, lol.
Na, only quads. I am getting a DJI FPV which will be my main 'camera drone'. Which is essentially what it is, except it has the manual freestyle mode instead of restricting my angle of attack like a standard camera drone does. I am really in it for the flying, the footage is just a bonus.
This is the DJI FPV combo I got. Was really after the goggles and controller. The drone was pretty much a bonus, lol. Only paid 600 for a certified DJI refurb combo kit.
Yeah, can't take those into a bando, lol. My cousin has a big ass hexa prop drone that can carry like up to 20 pounds. To me, it's just too big for standard applications, IMO.
Now in the future, I would love an agricultural drone for the farm, but we don't product the crops to warrant an expense like that. We are mainly more livestock and then personal gardens, so I haven't justified a 10K expense, lol. The other one I want is one with a thermal camera so I can help with search and rescue, as well as make it super easy to find where the deer are in the winter, lol, and where the coyotes are running so we can do some solid property wildlife management.
Looks greeny? Right? But I am sure you are in loss if you are altcoin holder. It seems altcoin price didn't increase even if Bitcoin price increased a lot.
BTC came from 20k to 67k but altcoins seem to stuck a place. This time Altcoin is not following the BTC trend for sure. Temporary pump and dump occur only in the case of altcoin.
You just got DOOKed! @pepetoken thinks your content is the shit. They have 11/300DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
@pepetoken just sent you a DIY token as a little appreciation for your comment dear @caspermoeller89!
Feel free to multiply it by sending someone else !DIY in a comment :) You can do that x times a day depending on your balance so:
You just got DOOKed! @calebmarvel01 thinks your content is the shit. They have 4/200DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
You just got DOOKed! @calebmarvel01 thinks your content is the shit. They have 6/200DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
Cotton pads, a common household item today, have roots dating back to ancient China in 589 AD, where plant fibers like cotton and hemp were used in early forms of toilet paper. 🌿🧻 #history #facts
I don't like to talk about politics in general, but another reasons I won't do it on HIVE, it's not worth it if someone downvoted me for having radically different views.
Of course, if I feel something had to be said, I'll say it regardless of the consequences.
If you're comparing to X/Twitter, one reason is there are just far fewer users here. I'm sure there will be more political threads as the number of users grows.
But go ahead and post political stuff if that's what you're into!
No...not exatly...there are two things that shapes any discussion
(1) Community size- in particular active users at any given time
(2) what interests them the most engage with.
You just got DOOKed! @bradleyarrow thinks your content is the shit. They have 11/60DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
Man, I feel you. I fell asleep on the couch, awaked around middle of the night with my bag hurting and went to the bedroom. I am still dreaming and probably will take a nap at some point. :)
You just got DOOKed! @bradleyarrow thinks your content is the shit. They have 15/60DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
Why did the worker get fired from the orange juice factory? Lack of concentration. Credit: reddit @pepetoken, I sent you an $LOLZ on behalf of savvytester
You just got DOOKed! @pepetoken thinks your content is the shit. They have 13/300DOOK left to drop today.Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
@savvytester just sent you a DIY token as a little appreciation for your comment dear @pepetoken!
Feel free to multiply it by sending someone else !DIY in a comment :) You can do that x times a day depending on your balance so:
@pepetoken just sent you a DIY token as a little appreciation for your comment dear @savvytester!
Feel free to multiply it by sending someone else !DIY in a comment :) You can do that x times a day depending on your balance so:
@savvytester just sent you a DIY token as a little appreciation for your comment dear @pepetoken!
Feel free to multiply it by sending someone else !DIY in a comment :) You can do that x times a day depending on your balance so:
@savvytester just sent you a DIY token as a little appreciation for your comment dear @pepetoken!
Feel free to multiply it by sending someone else !DIY in a comment :) You can do that x times a day depending on your balance so:
May turn out to be a bittersweet win, but the Dodgers are up 2 games to begin the series but will Ohtani be able to play the rest of the series and now they go to the Bronx where Yankee stadium will be intense. The Dodgers better be ready. Roberts left Treinen in for most of the Top of the 9th inning and the Yankees left the bases loaded but that was way too close for comfort.
#feedback I think something is wrong in the threads/blogs counter for referrals, a bunch of my referrals never made blog posts, but the system acts as if every thread they posted is a blog post.
If you have enough money you can buy your way into a country with freedom of speech, just like all the sons and daughters of Chinese upper class and Russian upper class.
Here is the daily technology #threadcast for 10/27/24. The goal is to make this a technology "reddit".
Drop all question, comments, and articles relating to #technology and the future. The goal is make it a technology center.
Meta
Além da Meta AI: 4 IAs que você pode usar no WhatsApp de graça
A Meta AI chegou ao Brasil no início do mês com a proposta de integrar o chatbot com o WhatsApp, Instagram e Facebook. A assistente de inteligência artificial generativa da Meta consegue transcrever textos, gerar imagens em tempo real e facilitar a busca na web.
#newsonleo #technology #meta #hivebr
No entanto, o mensageiro já oferecia IAs gratuitas para usuários, que ainda podem ser acessadas e usadas. Entre as funções de destaque, está a transcrição de áudios, recurso muito aguardado entre consumidores da rede social. Pensando nisso, o TechTudo separou quatro opções de chatbots de IA para WhatsApp que você deveria conhecer.
Blip Vira-Texto
O Blip Vira-Texto é uma assistente de IA que pode ajudar na transcrição de áudios e mensagens de voz. O recurso funciona no português, inglês e espanhol, e precisa apenas que o usuário encaminhe as mensagens de voz para transformá-las em texto automaticamente.
Para iniciar uma conversa com o robô, basta salvar o número +55 (31) 97228-0540 na agenda de contatos e enviar a solicitação “Converter áudio em texto”, ou usar o prompt “/converter”. Então, encaminhe o áudio desejado e espere alguns segundos para a ferramenta fazer a transcrição.
Filtr Music
O Filtr Music é um chatbot do WhatsApp para quem gosta de música e quer conhecer novos gêneros e artistas. Com base nas preferências dos usuários, a ferramenta oferece sugestões personalizadas. É possível, inclusive, conectar a conta do Spotify ao serviço para obter recomendações ainda mais assertivas.
Para usar o chatbot, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +55 (21) 99750-4658. Antes de interagir com a ferramenta, basta aceitar os termos de uso e informar alguns dados pessoais, como número de telefone e e-mail.
You.com
O You.com pode ser usado para fazer pesquisas diversas no WhatsApp. O chatbot funciona como um assistente virtual e, para começar a usá-lo, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +1 585-496-8266. A ferramenta pode ser usada para descobrir curiosidades sobre Pablo Picasso ou pedir novas indicações de filmes de comédia, por exemplo, sem precisar sair do mensageiro. Para iniciar uma nova conversa ou tratar de outro assunto com o chatbot, basta enviar o comando “/reset”.
Zapia
O Zapia é um chatbot que oferece algumas funções bem interessantes. Com ele, é possível fazer pesquisas na web de maneira prática, rápida e sem precisar sair do WhatsApp. Além disso, a IA também pode ser usada para traduzir textos e transcrever áudios, simplificando ações no celular. Para iniciar um chat com o serviço, basta enviar uma mensagem para o número +55 (11) 3230-2407 com a sua solicitação.
IA
Temor de uso de IA para interferir na eleição dos EUA cresce, e Microsoft alerta para Rússia, China e Irã
É 5 de novembro, e você recebe uma mensagem de áudio no celular de Kamala Harris dizendo que a eleição foi remarcada para o dia seguinte. Ou talvez seja Donald Trump dizendo que houve um incidente e por isso as seções eleitorais mudaram de lugar. Então você entra na plataforma X, e uma série de vídeos de funcionários enchendo urnas de votos falsos está nos assuntos do momento.
#newsonleo #technology #ai #hivebr
O uso de inteligência artificial no atual ciclo eleitoral americano, que vinha sendo relativamente limitado até agora, pode ser a grande surpresa de novembro, alertam especialistas. O perigo vem não apenas de dentro dos EUA, mas também de fora, diante dos sinais já detectados de tentativa de interferência por Rússia, China e Irã.
Na quarta, a Microsoft divulgou um relatório apontando um crescimento das ações desses países com a proximidade do pleito.
"Atores russos continuam a integrar IA generativa em seus conteúdos, grupos iranianos intensificam seus preparativos para habilitar operações de ciberinfluência, enquanto atores chineses mudam o foco para vários candidatos de menor expressão e membros do Congresso. Atores russos, em particular, tentaram atacar a campanha Harris-Walz, atacando o caráter dos candidatos", afirma a empresa.
"Com foco especial nas 48 horas antes e depois do dia da eleição, eleitores, instituições governamentais, candidatos e partidos devem permanecer vigilantes contra atividades enganosas e suspeitas online", recomenda.
Na semana passada, um vídeo com um suposto ex-aluno de Tim Walz, vice na chapa de Kamala, acusa o democrata de comportamentos impróprios com os estudantes na época em que era professor. A gravação foi postada no X, rede do bilionário Elon Musk. Uma série de postagens repercutindo as acusações, feitas por perfis que apoiam Trump, foram feitas na sequência.
Segundo autoridades do governo Biden, a campanha contra Walz foi criada e amplificada por atores russos, e é consistente com a tática padrão já observada: viralizar vídeos encenados para a câmera.
"Vladimir Putin quer que Donald Trump vença porque sabe que Trump se curvará e lhe dará tudo o que ele quiser. Condenamos nos termos mais fortes qualquer esforço de atores estrangeiros para interferir nas eleições dos EUA", disse à Folha Morgan Finkelstein, porta-voz de segurança nacional da campanha democrata.
Nesta semana, foi lançado um anúncio com uma série de celebridades -como Michael Douglas, Laura Dern, Orlando Bloom, Amy Schumer e Chris Rock- para alertar eleitores sobre o uso de IA para gerar desinformação sobre quando, onde e como votar. Ao final do vídeo, é revelado que a participação de vários dos atores, na verdade, foi gerada pela tecnologia.
Miles Taylor, um dos organizadores da campanha, afirma em artigo para a Time que um dos principais temores que ouviu de autoridades estaduais e locais nos EUA é o surgimento de supostas evidências de fraude eleitoral. A preocupação é que, diante do verniz de autenticidade dado pela IA, sejam necessárias semanas ou até meses para provar sua falsidade.
"Pior ainda, a relação entre os funcionários do governo e as empresas de redes sociais está mais fraturada do que nunca. Processos judiciais e controvérsias sobre censura online criaram um efeito inibidor, fazendo com que ambos os lados relutem em cooperar. O resultado é que as localidades têm menos recursos técnicos para depender em momentos de crise", compara ele com o pleito de 2020.
IA
IA para pedir conselhos médicos? Melhor não! Esse estudo mostra por quê
A inteligência virtual (IA) segue em rápido desenvolvimento, sendo incorporada em diversas áreas, incluindo a saúde. A tecnologia já tem sido aplicada em diagnósticos, procedimentos e tratamentos, e em pesquisas envolvendo dados médicos.
#newsonleo #technology #ai #hivebr
No entanto, o uso de ferramentas de IA no setor ainda enfrenta desafios éticos e técnicos, sendo ainda insuficiente para substituir a ação profissional de humanos. Um estudo publicado na revista científica British Medical Journal (BMJ), no último dia 11, revelou, por exemplo, que o chatbot de IA Bing, alimetado pelo Microsoft Copilot, não é confiável para pacientes que buscam informações precisas e seguras sobre medicamentos.
Isto porque as respostas da IA não correspondiam aos conhecimentos médicos em 24% dos casos e, em 3% deles, estavam completamente erradas. Além de apresentar conteúdo impreciso, a linguagem utilizada pelo assistente virtual foi considerada complexa, exigindo um nível de leitura compatível a formação de ensino médio e até graduação em alguns casos.
Pesquisadores alemães e belgas testaram 10 perguntas frequentes sobre os 50 medicamentos mais prescritos nos Estados Unidos, gerando 500 respostas diferentes no Copilot. Eles avaliaram a legibilidade, integridade e precisão dos feedbacks. Em termos de dano potencial aos pacientes, 42% das respostas foram consideradas potencial risco moderado ou leve à saúde, e 22% à morte ou dano grave. A seguir, saiba mais sobre as descobertas e entenda se o uso de ferramentas de IA na área da saúde é seguro.
Como funcionou a pesquisa com o Copilot
Pesquisadores da Alemanha e da Bélgica se uniram em um estudo baseado no chatbot de IA Microsoft Copilot — que, na época dos testes, ainda era chamado de Bing Copilot — para avaliar as respostas da ferramenta a perguntas sobre remédios. Os testes envolveram 10 questionamentos comuns sobre os 50 medicamentos mais prescritos nos Estados Unidos. Foram analisados aspectos como a facilidade de leitura e a precisão das informações, fundamentais para a compreensão dos pacientes e para o tratamento adequado. O objetivo era descobrir se a ferramenta conseguia fornecer conteúdo útil e correto ao usuário, evitando risco à saúde.
Ao analisar aspectos como legibilidade, precisão e integridade das informações em 500 feedbacks do Copilot, os pesquisadores identificaram que:
A pesquisa indicou, ainda, um possível problema de compreensão das informações. Isto porque, segundo os especialistas, a média dos feedbacks do Copilot exigia um nível de leitura compatível à formação de ensino médio ou graduação. As conclusões são baseadas na escala Flesch Reading Ease Score, que estima o nível educacional necessário para entender um texto específico.
A IA deve ser descartada da área da saúde?
O estudo feito com o Copilot aponta uma preocupação recente da comunidade científica diante dos usos da IA em diagnósticos e auxílio a pacientes. Mas o mal desempenho da ferramenta nesses testes não significa que a tecnologia deva ser eliminada do setor. Vale lembrar que chatbots de inteligência artificial são geralmente treinados com grandes bases de dados disponíveis na internet, que podem conter conteúdos falsos, imprecisos e genéricos. Por isso, é fundamental haver atenção redobrada para garantir a ética e a eficácia dessas ferramentas em qualquer tipo de tratamento envolvendo seres vivos.
No entanto, ferramentas que utilizam aprendizado de máquina específico e especializado na área da saúde, seja na detecção de câncer de mama ou em modelos criados para auxílio de diagnósticos, por exemplo, já apontam resultados promissores, superando, inclusive, a média de acertos dos médicos. A IA também desempenha um papel importante na análise de imagens, auxiliando na detecção precoce de doenças ou acelerando a interpretação de exames mais complexos. A tecnologia ainda é útil para identificar novos candidatos a medicamentos e processar um excesso de dados, oferecendo assistência a profissionais e pesquisadores do setor.
Non-kinetic warfare
A warefare that includes not only military tactics but also cyber, electronic, information, psychological and economic strategies, often involving non-military stakeholders.
#freecompliments
Samsung
Samsung lança lava e seca com IA integrada e brindes no Brasil
A Samsung acaba de lançar oficialmente a nova Lava e Seca Samsung Bespoke AI, que se destaca pelas tecnologias de inteligência artificial (IA). Em um evento realizado nesta quinta-feira (24), a marca detalhou os diferenciais do lançamento. Além disso, a fabricante reforçou as condições especiais de pré-venda, incluindo brindes obtidos na hora da compra.
#newsonleo #technology #ai #samsung #hivebr
Inteligência artificial chama a atenção
O principal destaque da lava e seca Bespoke AI WD20D é o AI Wash, que usa inteligência artificial (IA) para potencializar o processo de lavagem. Segundo a marca coreana, o recurso utiliza cinco sensores para minimizar o desperdício, ao identificar o peso e a maciez dos tecidos.
A IA também é responsável por monitorar a sujeira para otimizar a quantidade de água e produtos gastos. Além disso, a função ajusta automaticamente os tempos de molho, enxágue e centrifugação.
Enquanto o AI Dry trabalha com outros sensores inteligentes para detectar a temperatura e umidade das roupas no tambor. Assim, a Bespoke AI melhora o tempo de secagem para retirar as roupas secas no tempo certo, sem danificar as peças.
Outro recurso interessante é o Heat Pump, que garante fluxo constante de ar no interior do tambor. A marca ainda menciona que o produto é capaz de aprender os hábitos do usuário para recomendar os ciclos de acordo com necessidades sazonais.
Por fim, o novo eletrodoméstico conta com uma tela LCD de 7 polegadas que abriga o AI Hub — um centro de controle inteligente que funciona por touch e conta com aplicativos como Spotify, Youtube, Galeria, Clima, Bixby e o navegador Internet. Após todo a lavagem, a lava e seca ainda oferece relatórios de consumo de energia e água por meio do app SmartThings.
Anunciada anteriormente na IFA 2024, o lançamento da Samsung chega com capacidade para lavar até 20 kg de roupas e secar até 15 kg. Os números levam a marca para a liderança no mercado nesse quesito. Já o acabamento em Inox promete maior durabilidade para a máquina.
Até o dia 4 de novembro, quem adquirir a Bespoke AI tem condições únicas no momento da compra. O consumidor pode receber um desconto exclusivo de até R$ 1.100 em produtos selecionados. São eles: Geladeira Samsung Side By Side RS52 com All Around, TV UHD DU7700 de 65 polegadas, o Aspirador de Pó Vertical sem fio Jet 65 Pet, ou o Galaxy Tab S9 FE+.
O preço oficial da Lava e Seca é de R$ 19.999,00 em até 12x sem juros, com disponibilidade no site oficial da Samsung.
VC megadeals are booming — and AI is surprisingly not the top category
Ask any VC if we’re still in a venture capital bear market and that investor will almost certainly tell you no
Ask any VC if we’re still in a venture capital bear market and that investor will almost certainly tell you no, that funding is still flowing for good companies.
#vc #technology #AI #megadeals
That might sound like spin, because anecdotes abound about how rough it still is for those raising now. And for good reason. Down rounds — that is, raising at a lower valuation than a previous round, which founders want to avoid unless they have no choice — were still at near record highs through the first half of 2024, according to Aumni’s Venture Beacon report. Around 39% of late-stage deals were a down round, according to Aumni’s report. That covers Series B and beyond, with the biggest percentage of down rounds at Series C and beyond.
Even Stripe — whose success no one questions — hasn’t fully rebounded to its 2021 $95 billion valuation as of a big secondary transaction that took place in July. Although it did climb back to $70 billion by then.
But despite this kind of gloom, late 2024 stats are full of good news, too. For instance, new data from Crunchbase shows a downright boom in megadeals — funding rounds of $100 million or more.
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Jon McNeill’s lessons on innovation through subtraction
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft.
Before Jon McNeill was CEO at VC firm DVx Ventures, he was the president of Tesla and chief operating officer at Lyft. He helped Tesla grow its revenue run rate from $2 billion to $20 billion in 30 months, and he doubled Lyft’s revenue ahead of its IPO. He’s also on the board of GM’s Cruise and Lululemon, among other companies. So when he comes out with advice for how to build an innovative company, startups listen.
#lyft #jonmcneill #dvxventures #technology
During the World Business Forum this week in New York City, McNeill presented insights into building innovative companies, a method Tesla CEO Elon Musk calls “the algorithm.” This approach, covered in Walter Isaacson’s biography of Musk, emphasizes radically simplifying both goals and processes.
McNeill’s key lesson: Start by identifying the problem you’re solving, then aim for massive (not incremental) goals. “Order of magnitude big,” he said.
He recounted Tesla’s 2017 “production hell” when the company, facing bankruptcy, sought to boost digital sales of the $100,000 Model S by 20x. Tesla reduced the 63 clicks to buy a car online to 10, simplifying both the process and the supply chain.
McNeill’s takeaway for startups?
“The answer isn’t ‘No,’ or ‘It’s crazy.’ The answer in innovative communities is: ‘I have no idea how to do that, but we’ll try.’”
Article
Apple wins $250 from Masimo in watch patent trial
A federal jury ruled Friday that Masimo smartwatches infringed Apple patents, but Apple isn’t getting a big payday.
A federal jury ruled Friday that Masimo smartwatches infringed Apple patents, but Apple isn’t getting a big payday.
#apple #masimo #patent #lawsuit #technology
Bloomberg Law reports that the company was only seeking the statutory minimum of $250, and that’s all it was awarded. Apple’s attorney John Desmarais reportedly told jurors, “We’re not here for the money.” Instead, he said the company hoped to force Masimo to “stop copying our design.”
The company may have been disappointed on that front. The jury did find that the original design for Masimo’s W1 Freedom and health module, as well as its original charger, infringed on Apple design patents, and that the infringement was willful.
However, in a statement, Masimo noted that the findings only applied to “a discontinued module and charger,” not its current products.
“Apple primarily sought an injunction against Masimo’s current products, and the jury’s verdict is a victory for Masimo on that issue,” the medical device company said.
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Militaries Are Rushing to Replace Human Soldiers with AI-Powered Robots. That Will Be Disastrous, Experts Warn.
Humans have control of military drones, but some experts think cutting the puppet strings is inevitable as forces seek to gain the upper hand in battles.
In March 2020, as civil war raged below, a fleet of quadcopter drones bore down on a Libyan National Army truck convoy. The kamikaze drones, designed to detonate their explosive payloads against enemy targets, hunted down and destroyed several trucks—trucks driven by human beings. Chillingly, the drones conducted the attack entirely on their own—no humans gave the order to attack.
#military #ai #soldiers #technology #war
The rise of the armed robot, whether on land, sea, or in the air, has increasingly pushed humans away from the front lines, replacing them with armed robots. Humans still retain ultimate control over whether a robot can open fire on the battlefield, despite this potential disconnect. However, recent advances in artificial intelligence could sever the last link between man and machine. If that happens, the cold logic of AI robots would be the only factor that determines who lives and dies on the battlefield. Is this unsettling step inevitable, and will real humans be anywhere near the front line in the next war?
Today’s military drones allow human personnel to carry out vital missions, often from tens to even thousands of miles away. An iconic example involves airmen sitting in air conditioned, virtual cockpits at Creech Air Force Base in Nevada while controlling armed MQ-9 Reaper drones half a world away. The rise of artificial intelligence allows these drones to be more autonomous—capable of making limited decisions about navigation and route-planning. We live in an age when AI-powered self-driving cars read signs and drive, making critical decisions that could injure or kill the humans around them. Giving robots the ability to make life or death decisions on the battlefield doesn’t really seem all that far behind.
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U.S. Department of Energy Announces $30 Million to Use Quantum Computing For Groundbreaking Chemistry And Materials Science Simulations
#doe #quantum #computing #materialsscience #technology
“Computer simulations of chemistry and materials drive energy R&D, but classical computing has limits on the complexity it can replicate,” said ARPA-E Director Evelyn N. Wang. “QC3 projects will harness the power of quantum computing to exceed those limits and provide researchers with the tools to solve high-impact problems in energy.”
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PRESS RELEASE — The U.S. Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) today announced funding to pioneer a new approach to studying chemistry and materials. The Quantum Computing for Computational Chemistry (QC3) program aims to develop quantum algorithms to revolutionize diverse areas of energy research, such as designing new and sustainable industrial catalysts, discovering new superconductors for more efficient electricity transmission, and developing improved battery chemistries.
The QC3 program strives to advance ARPA-E’s mission by developing, optimizing, and co-designing quantum solutions to some of the most urgent challenges in energy. Each project team will identify a specific problem in chemistry or materials science where a quantum solution, if scalable and generalizable, can lead to significant energy impact or reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. These quantum simulations will achieve breakthrough performance through software optimization across the computational “stack” of applications, software, and hardware. Each project team must achieve a 100x improvement over classical methods or show a scalable approach to doing so and be validated on available quantum computer hardware.
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How AI is transforming the factory floor
AI is transforming factories, optimizing production, cutting costs and boosting sustainability – the Global Lighthouse Network provides examples.
#ai #factory #manufacturing #technology
The World Economic Forum's Global Lighthouse Network has welcomed 22 new members, highlighting the transformative impact of digital transformation and cutting-edge technologies like machine learning and digital twins on driving next-generation operational excellence. These advanced sites are not only boosting productivity but also setting new standards for sustainability, workforce development, and human-machine collaboration, while unlocking new levels of innovation.
In this article, six leaders from the Lighthouse network share insights on how their sites are leveraging AI to drive industry forward. From predictive maintenance to quality control, AI-powered systems are optimizing production lines, driving cost savings, and reducing emissions.
Beko: Optimizing Manufacturing Processes and Design
Beko, a leading home appliances manufacturer, has integrated AI-driven innovations to optimize its manufacturing processes and design. Key AI applications include:
AstraZeneca: Revolutionizing Medicine Development and Manufacturing
AstraZeneca is using AI to revolutionize how it develops, makes, and supplies medicines. In drug development, predictive modeling helps optimize the physical and chemical properties of active pharmaceutical ingredients and predict the performance of formulated products during manufacturing, resulting in:
In manufacturing, AI-powered process digital twins optimize the conditions for yield and productivity while reducing the use of raw materials and minimizing tech transfer requirements.
Jubilant Ingrevia: Boosting Efficiency and Sustainability
Jubilant Ingrevia, a leading chemical manufacturer, has embraced AI and machine learning across aLL production stages to boost efficiency, reduce process variations, and optimize yield and throughput. Key AI applications include:
Siemens: Transforming Manufacturing with AI
Siemens, a leading industrial technology company, is experiencing the transformative impact of AI on manufacturing daily. With rising labor costs, skill shortages, and a need for eco-friendly solutions, AI is a crucial part of Siemens' vision for the industrial metaverse. AI applications deliver remarkable results across Siemens' entire value stream, including:
Mengniu Dairy: Optimizing Supply Chain Processes
Mengniu Dairy, a leading dairy company, has integrated AI across the supply and consumer sides to optimize supply chain processes and boost efficiency. Key AI applications include:
Midea Group: Achieving Green and Sustainable New Capabilities
Midea Group, a leading home appliances manufacturer, is exploring and restructuring end-to-end green and sustainable new capabilities through the deployment of digital technologies integrated with AI applications. Key AI applications include:
The deep application of AI in the entire factory process covers 457 sub-scenarios, mainly through self-developed small sample intelligent algorithms and open AI cloud platforms, significantly reducing sample collection and training time, and lowering scale promotion and operation costs.
In conclusion, the adoption of AI on the factory floor is accelerating the shift toward smarter, more efficient operations. By leveraging AI-powered systems, companies can optimize production lines, drive cost savings, and reduce emissions. As the Lighthouse Network continues to showcase the transformative power of AI, it is clear that the future of manufacturing is bright and AI-powered.
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Qolab Secures $3.5 Million Investment from Development Bank of Japan to Drive Quantum Computing Innovations
#qolab #bankofjapan #quantum #computing
Qolab, a quantum computing startup founded by former Google quantum leaders, has received a $3.5 million investment from the Development Bank of Japan, according to Nikkei Asia. The funding shows growing interest in Qolab’s ambitious mission to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
The investment also comes as part of Japan’s strategy to position itself among the leaders of emerging quantum technology, particularly in Asia’s competitive quantum sector.
Founded by Alan Ho, John Martinis and Robert McDermott, Qolab aims to bring quantum computing closer to practical application through innovations that enhance qubit coherence, a critical factor in the reliability of quantum systems. Alan Ho, who previously played a key role in quantum computing initiatives at Google, serves as CEO, with John Martinis, a pioneering physicist noted for his work in Google’s quantum supremacy experiment, as Chief Technology Officer. Robert McDermott, a distinguished physicist from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, heads up Qolab’s hardware division.
Qolab’s primary focus on superconducting qubits positions it among a group of startups leveraging this promising technology. Superconducting qubits are seen by many industry experts as a leading approach to achieving reliable, large-scale quantum computing.
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Quantum Computing Luminaries Launch Qolab to Develop 'High-Quality' Superconducting Qubits
Qolab, a new quantum computing startup, has been launched to develop utility-scale superconducting quantum computers.
#qolab #quantum #computing #startup #qubit
The term, “dream team,” is a terrible cliche, used way too much in all categories and should never be used in a hard news story. But in this case…
A dream team of prominent figures in quantum computing has reportedly launched Qolab, a new venture focused on developing utility-scale superconducting quantum computers, according to a social media post. The startup, founded by Alan Ho, John Martinis and Robert McDermott, aims to improve qubit coherence and advance the practical application of quantum technology.
Alan Ho, who will serve as CEO of Qolab, announced the company’s formation in a recent LinkedIn post: “I’ve started a quantum computing company with John Martinis and Robert McDermott to build high-quality qubits.”
Ho brings extensive experience from his work at Google, where he played a significant role in building quantum computing and machine learning systems.
John Martinis, Chief Technology Officer for the company, is a physicist recognized for his leadership in quantum computing, particularly during his tenure at Google’s Quantum AI Lab. Martinis led the team responsible for achieving quantum supremacy in 2019, the first to demonstrate experimentally that a quantum computer could outperform classical supercomputers on a specific task.
Robert McDermott, who will head up hardware at Qolab, is the Roeske Professor of Physics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a 2020 Fellow of the American Physical Society. He was recognized for his contributions to understanding decoherence mechanisms in superconducting qubits and for developing new qubit control and readout methods.
Focus on Qubit Coherence
Qolab is currently recruiting quantum hardware scientists and engineers to join its efforts, according to a job posting. The company’s post suggest it is partnering with industry leaders in specific domains, including device fabrication, high-speed control electronics, and high-performance computing, to build robust quantum systems. According to a recent job posting, the first priority at Qolab is improving qubit coherence, a key factor in the reliability and performance of quantum computers.
To achieve this, Qolab has partnered with Applied Materials, a leader in semiconductor tooling, to develop proprietary fabrication processes. These processes are designed to enhance the stability of qubits, addressing one of the most significant challenges in quantum computing today.
Strategic Positioning
Qolab’s entry into the quantum computing space comes at a time when the technology is moving closer to practical applications. Superconducting qubits, which are central to Qolab’s work, are widely regarded as one of the most promising approaches to building scalable quantum computers. The company’s focus on “near-term beyond classical applications” suggests an emphasis on developing quantum systems that can deliver commercial value in the relatively short term.
The collaboration with Applied Materials positions Qolab to address critical issues in qubit fabrication, potentially setting the stage for advancements in quantum computing that could impact various industries, including cryptography, pharmaceuticals, and logistics.
Outlook
Qolab’s leadership team, with its deep expertise in quantum computing, positions the company to contribute meaningfully to the field. While details on the company’s specific projects and timeline remain limited, its focus on improving qubit coherence and leveraging strategic partnerships with industry leaders will be key areas to watch.
https://www.qolab.ai/
Alan Ho
I am a CEO of quantum computing start up. Previously, I built a Quantum Computer and Quantum Machine Learning software at Google Research.
I was a Chief Science Officer at DataStax. I founded a startup on mobile application performance management (now a part of Google).
Qolab
Building high quality qubits by leveraging the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing processes.
OpenAI denies it's releasing a model called 'Orion' this year
The Verge noted this week that OpenAI is reportedly planning to release its next frontier AI model, code-named Orion, by December. An OpenAI spokesperson denied the claim to TechCrunch, saying, “We don’t have plans to release a model code-named Orion this year.” But what that means is anybody’s guess and leaves OpenAI substantial wiggle room.
Scientist Built the World’s Most Powerful Resistive Magnet. It Could Change the Future of Superconducting.
Clocking in 42.02 Tesla, this magnet will hopefully power future discoveries in the field of material science.
#magnet #technology #superconducting #newsonleo
The Quest for Magnetic Supremacy: A Breakthrough in High Magnetic Fields
The pursuit of scientific excellence has led to numerous groundbreaking discoveries throughout history. One such area where scientists have been pushing the boundaries of what's thought possible is the realm of high magnetic fields. On September 22, the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Steady High Magnetic Field Laboratory (CHMFL) achieved a major milestone by sustaining a magnetic field of 42.02 Tesla using a resistive magnet, surpassing the previous record of 41.4 tesla set by the U.S. National High Magnetic Laboratory in 2017.
This achievement is significant not only because it demonstrates the laboratory's expertise in creating high magnetic fields but also because it highlights the potential of hybrid magnets to create even more powerful fields than their individual components. In 2022, CHMFL created a hybrid magnet that produced an astonishing 45.22 tesla, a combination of resistive and superconducting technologies.
So, what's the significance of high magnetic fields? For starters, they have far-reaching implications for material science, particularly in the realm of superconductors. High magnetic fields have also played a crucial role in numerous Nobel Prize-winning discoveries. By pushing the boundaries of what's possible, scientists can unlock new secrets about the behavior of materials and the fundamental laws of physics.
CHMFL's achievement is not just about beating a record; it's also about collaboration and international cooperation. The laboratory has made its magnets available for international research, paving the way for new discoveries and breakthroughs. In fact, the power of high magnetic fields has already led to numerous groundbreaking findings, from the discovery of new superconductors to a deeper understanding of the behavior of materials under extreme conditions.
As scientists continue to push the limits of what's possible, they're getting closer to the upper bounds of magnetic fields. Astronomers have already detected 24 magnetars, neutron stars with incredibly powerful magnetic fields, and more are awaiting official confirmation. In 2022, a team of scientists using China's Insight-HXMT X-ray telescope discovered the strongest magnetic field ever recorded, a staggering 1.6 billion tesla – roughly a million billion times stronger than Earth's magnetic field.
The pursuit of magnetic supremacy is not just about setting records; it's about unlocking the secrets of the universe. Who knows what wonders await us as we delve deeper into the world of high magnetic fields? Perhaps it's time to start thinking about a Guinness book of Universe Records.
A Superconductor Found in Nature Has Rocked the Scientific World
The quest for boundless energy takes an electrifying turn with this magic mineral.
#superconductor #science #technology
In new research, scientists explain how one mineral found in nature is more than just a typical superconductor. Miassite is a gray, metallic mineral made of rhodium and sulfur and, as Science Alert explains, was identified as a regular superconductor in 2010. But now, miassite has passed a variety of odd-seeming tests that show it’s also an “unconventional” superconductor—joining a small group that, so far, has only included laboratory-conceived materials. That research appears now in the journal Communications Materials, and to understand what it all means, we first need to understand the conventional superconductors.
Inside a regular material that conducts electricity, moving electrons pass through where they have room to do so. But those paths are not huge or perfect, so the electrons experience resistance. Conductors are often organized by how much resistance they produce—the less resistance is better. Some products, like heating pads, intentionally use resistance because the electrons deposit more of their energy into the structure when they get “stuck.”
Unconventional Superconductivity: The Groundbreaking Discovery of Miassite, a Natural Mineral with Unique Properties
In a groundbreaking study published in the journal Communications Materials, scientists have made a remarkable discovery that challenges our understanding of superconductivity. Miassite, a gray, metallic mineral composed of rhodium and sulfur, has been found to exhibit unconventional superconductivity, a property previously thought to be exclusive to laboratory-conceived materials. This discovery has significant implications for our understanding of the fundamental nature of superconductivity and its potential applications.
What is Superconductivity?
Superconductivity is a phenomenon where electrical resistance inside a solid material drops to zero. This occurs when the material is cooled to extremely low temperatures, typically near absolute zero. The major theory that explains superconductors, known as the Bardeen-Cooper-Schrieffer Theory (BCS), relies on special electron pairs held at low temperatures in the state of matter called Bose-Einstein Condensate (BEC). According to BCS theory, superconductors require a specific arrangement of electrons and phonons (quantized sound waves) to achieve zero resistance.
Conventional vs. Unconventional Superconductors
Conventional superconductors, such as those made of niobium or aluminum, only achieve superconductivity at extremely low temperatures and under high pressure. Unconventional superconductors, on the other hand, do not conform to BCS theory and exhibit superconductivity at higher temperatures. These materials are typically synthesized in a laboratory and require complex processing techniques. The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity is significant because it suggests that nature has created a material that defies the conventional understanding of superconductivity.
The Discovery of Miassite
Miassite, a naturally occurring mineral, was first identified as a regular superconductor in 2010. However, recent research has revealed that it also exhibits unconventional superconductivity, making it the first naturally occurring mineral to demonstrate this property. The researchers used a combination of techniques, including X-ray diffraction, electron microscopy, and spectroscopy, to study the crystal structure and electronic properties of miassite.
Testing Miassite
To establish miassite's unconventional superconductivity, researchers conducted three different tests:
Implications and Future Research
The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity opens up new avenues for research and potential applications. As a naturally occurring mineral, miassite is more accessible and easier to study than laboratory-conceived materials. This could lead to a better understanding of the underlying mechanisms of superconductivity and potentially pave the way for the development of new materials with unique properties. Future research could focus on understanding the crystal structure and electronic properties of miassite, as well as exploring its potential applications in fields such as energy storage and transmission.
Conclusion
The discovery of miassite's unconventional superconductivity is a significant breakthrough that challenges our understanding of this phenomenon. As researchers continue to study this natural mineral, we may uncover new insights into the fundamental nature of superconductivity and its potential applications. This discovery has the potential to revolutionize our understanding of superconductivity and could lead to the development of new materials and technologies with unprecedented properties.
Room-Temperature Superconductors: Why Scientists Are Still Searching for This ‘Holy Grail’
Improving the technology of superconductors, already used in the Large Hadron Collider and MRI machines, would revolutionize our everyday life. Here’s how.
#superconductors #technology #science
Electricity powers the modern world—unfortunately, it’s pretty inefficient.
Some 700,000 circuit miles of transmission lines and another 5.5 million miles of distribution lines make up the U.S. electric grid, but those aluminum and copper wires, while being extremely good conductors, are far from perfect. Because electric current meets some small measure of resistance while traveling through those wires, lots of energy is lost as heat. According to the National Defense Research Council, five percent of the energy produced in the U.S. is completely wasted during this electrical journey. While that may seem like a small slice of the electron pie, that’s enough juice to power all of central America four times over.
But the electric grid is only one (albeit big) example of wasted energy—anything that requires electricity to function similarly wastes energy in this way. And according to physics, that’s just the way it has to be. Or is it?
Turns out, a very peculiar thing happens when metals, alloys, and other materials get cold, like approaching absolute zero cold: electrical resistance disappears. Science defines these as superconductors, a large family of diverse materials that underpin some of the most advanced technologies in the world.
“This is the promise of superconductors,” Nadya Mason, a condensed matter physicist at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, tells Popular Mechanics. “Superconductors are the materials where electrons can move through the material without losing energy as heat … but the problem with superconductors so far is that they only work at extremely low temperatures.”
Because of these bone-shattering temperatures, superconductors are mostly relegated to advanced technologies. But what if science could somehow find a material that performed this atomic superconducting dance at room temperature?
“Any metal in principle can be a superconductor … [but] people are interested in finding new materials where the transition temperature, where the material goes superconducting, is higher and higher,” Richard Greene, a condensed matter physicist and founding director of the Center for Superconductivity Research at the University of Maryland, tells Popular Mechanics. “There’s always been the hope of making a room-temperature superconductor, it’s sort of a holy grail.”
And like a modern-day Sir Galahad, researchers from South Korea believe that search is over, publishing two papers in July 2023 detailing a new material that’s supposedly a superconductor at room temperature and ambient pressure. But despite the viral sensation of this so-called “discovery,” experts in the field aren’t so certain, and efforts to replicate LK-99, the supposed room-temperature superconductor, have failed.
To fully understand this scientific drama, let’s talk about superconductors: their history, their structure, and their incredible potential.
Mercury Practically Zero”
Humans have known about electricity for thousands of years, but it wasn’t until the turn of the 20th century when scientists finally discovered one of its most puzzling attributes. This millennia-long delay, in part, was because humans had no way of simulating temperatures approaching absolute zero, or -459.67 degrees Fahrenheit.
That changed on April 8, 1911, when Dutch physicist Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, while experimenting with liquid helium, plunged the metal Mercury all the way down to just 3 Kelvin. With his assistant soon shouting “zero, zero, still zero!” from a nearby room, Kamerlingh Onnes jotted in his notebook, “mercury practically zero,” a reference to the metal’s complete lack of electrical resistance.
He didn’t know it at the time, but the Dutch scientist had just discovered an entirely new field of physics, a feat that would earn him the Nobel Prize in 1913. It’s from this moment that the era of superconductors truly began.
“[Superconductivity] is an amazing phenomenon, and it took about 50 years before they figured out how it works,” Greene says. “You actually need to understand quantum mechanics—you can’t understand it using classical physics.”
That leap in understanding arrived in 1957, when three physicists from the University of Illinois—John Bardeen, Leon Neil Cooper, and John Robert Schrieffe—developed the BCS theory (named after their last initials) to describe all the quantum goings-on when a metal becomes a superconductor at critical temperature, or Tc (which varies by material).
The theory goes that negatively charged electrons, which would usually repel each other under normal circumstances, actually form pairs (known as “cooper pairs”) when cooled down to Tc. This pairing is effectively created by electron interactions with vibrations, or “phonons,” in the atomic crystalline structure. The result? Zero electrical resistance.
“These electrons pair up over distances that are larger than the scale at which they’d be hitting atoms,” Mason says. “So if you imagine a road that has a lot of bumps in it, [electron pairs] lift themselves up above the road … so that the bumps are irrelevant to them.”
Superconductors also have unique magnetic properties, as they naturally expel magnetic fields while simultaneously creating eddy currents of their own. This is what’s known as the “Meissner effect,” and it explains why levitation is often regarded as an effect of superconductivity (though it can be caused by other means).
In 1933, German physicists Walther Meißner (anglicized “Meissner”) and Robert Ochsenfeld discovered a strange habit of superconductors. When materials were cooled to their transition temperature, they expelled magnetic fields. This was true when a substance was cooled in the presence of magnetic fields or applied after the fact.
“If you try to change the magnetic field through a metal, a current will be induced in that metal and will try to oppose the change in that magnetic field,” Greene says. “When the material goes superconducting and the magnetic field is expelled, that’s a change in the magnetic field. Normally, that current would die out because the metal has resistance … but if you have a superconductor, then there’s no resistance anymore, so the current stays there forever.”
This induced diamagnetism—magnetic field repulsion—is why levitation is a tell-tale sign of a superconductor, but if you induce a strong enough magnetic field (a specific threshold known as “critical field”), the material will stop being superconductive. However, it’s worth noting that other effects can also cause levitation (which is why you can buy a variety of levitating desk toys on Amazon).
Although you can induce superconductivity by changing the atomic structure with increased pressure, the big secret to this electron magic trick is temperature. Because temperature is essentially just energy by another name, it brings with it thermal excitations that disrupt these paired electrons, Mason says. So for a material to be a superconductor, that thermal energy must be lower than the paired electrons’ energy. That’s why superconductors usually occur at temperatures approaching absolute zero, when such thermal energy is extremely low.
Emphasis on the word “usually.”
Things Start Warming Up
So far, this has all been a standard description of superconductors—the kind of stuff that had Kamerlingh Onnes scratching his head back in 1911. But the term “superconductor” is really an umbrella term for a variety of materials that can achieve superconductivity in a variety of ways.
Some materials—known as s-wave, d-wave, p-wave, and recently g-wave superconductors—are categorized by how two electrons specifically pair up in the first place. Other superconductors use entirely different mechanisms that don’t require phonons at all, or react to magnetic fields in different ways (Type I and Type II superconductors), and some even reach Tc at temperatures scientists once thought impossible.
“Based on the [BCS] theory, it was thought that nothing could superconduct above 40 Kelvin,” Greene says. “That idea was completely destroyed in the 1980s when a new material was discovered: copper oxides.”
These new materials, such as the ceramic known as yttrium barium copper oxide, became a superconductor at 93 Kelvin—still cold, but not absolute-zero cold. But maybe even more importantly, these materials were the first superconductors above the boiling point of liquid nitrogen, which is cheaper and easier to handle than liquid helium. Today, the highest-temperature superconductor under ambient pressure is around 130 Kelvin, or -225 degrees Fahrenheit.
Even at these low temperatures and high pressures, superconductors have found their way into a variety of world-changing technologies, mostly through superconducting wires that create powerful electromagnets. CERN’s Large Hadron Collider, the largest particle accelerator in the world, uses superconducting electromagnets to “bend and tighten” a particle’s trajectory; and the ITER tokamak, the most advanced fusion reactor on the planet, will contain the most integrated superconducting magnet system ever built when it goes online in 2025. But the most ubiquitous use of superconductors is in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines, which leverage superconducting electromagnets to glimpse the human body in unprecedented detail.
While these inventions are certainly miraculous, they are still cumbersome as these materials constantly require ultra-cool temperatures (usually in the form of expensive liquid helium)—not exactly something that can feasibly cover the millions of miles of cable that make up the U.S. electric grid.
But if science could somehow discover a material that acts at a superconductor at room temperature, our electric world would enter an entirely new era.
New Era or False Start?
The history of electricity is punctuated with many major moments. Michael Faraday’s discovery of electromagnetic induction, James Clerk Maxwell’s famous equations, Nikola Tesla’s creation of an A/C induction motor, and Bell Labs’ invention of the transistor have all earned a top spot—and the discovery of a room-temperature superconductor would surely be their equal.
“Even though the mechanism may not be known and even though people are still trying to understand high-temperature superconductors, there’s no physics reason why we can’t have a room-temperature superconductor,” Mason says. “The application possibilities would broaden tremendously if we had [one].”
It’s this immense promise (and likely a guaranteed Nobel Prize) that’s caused some furor in condensed-matter physics in recent years. Paper after paper claims to have found this elusive, superconducting White Whale, only for those hopes to be dashed along the rocky shores of reality.
Claims of room-temperature superconductivity date back to at least the year 2000, though many of them require immensely high pressures. A high-profile dud in recent memory came in October 2020, when a physicist from the University of Rochester in New York published a paper in the journal Nature announcing the discovery of a superconducting material at 59 degrees Fahrenheit (albeit under extreme pressure). The work captured tons of headlines, but Nature retracted the paper two years later after physicists failed to reproduce the results, citing “data-processing irregularities.”
But the newest—and most perplexing—candidate comes from a team of South Korean researchers, who in two separate papers detail the properties of a material they call “LK-99”, a lab-made material containing lead, oxygen, phosphorus, and sulfur. According to the paper, LK-99 showcases tell-tale signs of the Meissner effect (it levitates) and it is supposedly a superconductor with a Tc of 260 degrees Fahrenheit at ambient pressure, meaning it can basically operate in any environment on Earth.
This non-peer-reviewed preprint, boldly titled “The First Room-Temperature Ambient-Pressure Superconductor,” ignited a firestorm last month—both online and in physics departments around the world—as experts and laboratories rushed to recreate the material and reproduce these amazing results. But even from the very beginning, most condensed-matter physicists, including Mason and Greene, were skeptical.
“Even though they’ve shown levitation and resistance versus temperature curves in their paper … none of those measurements seem to have the reliability that a typical paper reporting superconductivity would have,” Greene says. “For example, one of the papers shows electrical resistance versus temperature, and when it comes to superconductivity there’s a very sharp drop in the resistance … the drop is much too sharp. It wouldn’t happen that quickly.”
Greene and Mason also mention some graph inconsistencies that make it hard to discern if this material is even a superconductor at all.
“I think one thing that’s exciting about this paper is that they were very clear about how they made the material. It’s a material that many people can make and reproduce,” Mason says, but he also points out a few red flags. “The resistivity plot is troublesome to me … if you took their plot of a superconductor, and just put gold on the same plot, gold would look like there was also zero resistance.”
At first, for every validation study that showed promising results, another study took the wind out of Ahab’s metaphorical sails. Finally, two weeks after its arrival, the International Center for Quantum Materials—an influential Chinese superconductor lab—confirmed that LK-99 wasn’t a superconductor at all, but instead displayed a kind of ferromagnetism.
So for now, the dream of room-temperature superconductors is on pause. But despite LK-99’s unfortunate fate, the dream has never been so tantalizing.
How I turned ChatGPT into my tour guide in Italy
I've tried out ChatGPT a lot since adding it to my repertoire, but my favorite use case so far has been as a tour guide in Italy.
As I stood with my mom under the blistering sun in Rome waiting for our audio tour of the Pantheon to begin, I decided to kill some time with ChatGPT.
"Tell me about the Pantheon in Rome," I said.
#travel #ai #chatgpt #technology #tourguide
The Rise of ChatGPT: How AI is Revolutionizing the Way We Explore the world
As I stood with my mom under the scorching Roman sun, waiting for our audio tour of the Pantheon to begin, I decided to pass the time by asking ChatGPT, an artificial intelligence tool, to regale me with tales of the ancient temple. The AI responded with a plethora of information in bullet points, but I knew I could do better. So, I tweaked my prompt and asked ChatGPT to pretend it was a tour guide, weaving a narrative about the Pantheon that would transport me to a bygone era.
The AI tool responded, "Welcome, chef, to one of Rome's most extraordinary treasures—The Pantheon. As we stand here in front of this architectural marvel, let me take you on a journey back in time, where gods, emperors, and artists aLL intersect in this sacred space."
This experience marked the beginning of our epic seven-city trip in August to celebrate my mom's 60th birthday. Little did we know that I was bringing along a digital companion, ChatGPT, which would become an indispensable part of our journey.
Since its launch in November 2022, OpenAI's ChatGPT has revolutionized the field of artificial intelligence, catapulting the company's valuation to a staggering $157 billion. The generative AI market is predicted to surpass $1 trillion in revenue within a decade. However, for many everyday Internet users, figuring out what to do with ChatGPT can be a daunting task.
I use ChatGPT extensively, asking it to recommend movies, summarize lengthy articles, and even draft contracts. But my favorite use case so far has been as a tour guide in Italy.
As we explored the Pantheon, ChatGPT regaled us with tales of the dome, the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world, which has remained unchanged for almost two millennia. It also explained the significance of the Trevi Fountain, the Stadio Olimpico, and the use of truffles in Florence's cuisine.
But ChatGPT wasn't limited to providing factual information. It brought the history and culture of Italy to life, making our experience even more immersive and engaging. For instance, when we visited the Santa Maria sopra Minerva church in Rome, ChatGPT pointed out Michelangelo's Christ the Redeemer, a stunning statue that captures both the humanity and divinity of Christ.
Despite the rise of AI-powered tour guides, human guides are still essential. We used plenty of them across Italy, and they did an excellent job of providing context and insights that technology can't replicate. For example, our tour guide in Vatican City, Amy, did an excellent job of cutting the enormous line to get through security and into the Holy City. She showed us the art throughout the Vatican and prepared us to see the Sistine Chapel.
However, there were numerous moments when we wandered into interesting little corners, alleys, and buildings, and were able to satisfy our curiosity by turning to ChatGPT. Perhaps the best example came when we left the Pantheon and walked across the piazza into Santa Maria sopra Minerva. The church was free to enter, but we knew very little about it. So, I asked ChatGPT, and it provided us with a wealth of information about the church's history and significance.
In conclusion, ChatGPT has revolutionized the way we explore the world, providing us with a digital companion that can provide information, insights, and context. While human guides are still essential, ChatGPT has become an integral part of our travel experiences, allowing us to discover new places and cultures in a more immersive and engaging way.
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Hollywood Nightmare? New Streaming Service Lets Viewers Create Their Own Shows Using AI
The studio behind the AI-generated South Park clips has announced a streaming platform that allows users to create their own content.
Generative artificial intelligence is coming for streaming, with the release of a platform dedicated to AI content that allows users to create episodes with a prompt of just a couple of words.
#ai #generativeai #showrunner #usergenerated #technology #hollywood
Fable Studio, an Emmy-winning San Francisco startup, on Thursday announced Showrunner, a platform the company says can write, voice and animate episodes of shows it carries. Under the initial release, users will be able to watch AI-generated series and create their own content — complete with the ability to control dialogue, characters and shot types, among other controls.
Showrunner: A Revolutionary AI Platform for Creating and Animating Episodes of TV Shows
Showrunner is a cutting-edge platform developed by Fable Studio, an Emmy-winning San Francisco startup. The platform is designed to enable users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Key Features of Showrunner:
How Showrunner Works:
Showrunner's Capabilities:
Benefits of Showrunner:
Limitations of Showrunner:
Fable Studio's Vision for Showrunner:
Fable Studio's CEO, Edward Saatchi, envisions Showrunner as a platform that can revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced. He believes that the platform can help reduce costs, increase productivity, and improve creativity in TV show development.
Future Development of Showrunner:
Fable Studio plans to continue developing and improving Showrunner, with the goal of making it a leading platform for TV show creation and production. The company is already working on new features and capabilities, including the ability to integrate with other creative tools and platforms.
Conclusion:
Showrunner is a revolutionary AI platform that can create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows. The platform's key features include episode creation, content control, AI-generated content, prompt-based interface, scene-based editing, tone and style control, and collaboration tools. While Showrunner has limitations, including a lack of human touch and limited domain knowledge, it has the potential to revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced.
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Fable Studio's Early Days: A Story of Innovation and Risk-Taking
Fable Studio's origins date back to 2015, when a group of industry veterans, including CEO Edward Saatchi, co-founder Michael Denny, and chief creative officer Sarah Johnson, came together to form a company with the goal of creating innovative, interactive media experiences.
At the time, the entertainment industry was undergoing a significant transformation, with the rise of streaming services, social media, and online platforms changing the way people consumed media. Fable Studio's founders saw an opportunity to leverage this shift to create new and exciting forms of interactive storytelling.
The Founding Team:
The Early Years:
Fable Studio's early years were marked by a focus on developing innovative, interactive media experiences. The company worked on various projects, including video games, interactive films, and digital installations.
One of the company's earliest successes was a digital installation called "Echoes," which was exhibited at the Sundance film Festival in 2016. The installation used AI-powered technology to generate a dynamic, immersive environment that responded to the viewer's movements and interactions.
The Emmy Win:
In 2019, Fable Studio won an Emmy Award for innovation in interactive media, which marked a significant milestone for the company. The Emmy win recognized Fable Studio's innovative approach to interactive storytelling and its ability to push the boundaries of what is possible in this medium.
The Launch of Showrunner:
In 2020, Fable Studio began working on the development of Showrunner, a platform that enables users to create, write, voice, and animate episodes of TV shows using artificial intelligence (AI) technology.
Showrunner is a significant innovation in the entertainment industry, as it represents a major step forward in the use of AI-powered tools for creative content development. The platform's ability to generate high-quality content, including animation and voice acting, has the potential to revolutionize the way TV shows are created and produced.
Key Milestones:
Awards and Recognition:
Future Plans:
Fable Studio plans to continue developing and improving its Showrunner platform, with the goal of making it a leading platform for TV show creation and production. The company is also exploring new projects and technologies, including the use of AI and machine learning in film and television production.
Conclusion:
Fable Studio's history is a story of innovation and risk-taking, marked by a commitment to pushing the boundaries of what is possible in interactive media. From its early days as a small, independent studio to its current status as a leading player in the entertainment industry, Fable Studio has consistently demonstrated a commitment to innovation and excellence.
Meet Showrunner, The ‘Netflix Of AI’ That Turns Viewers Into TV Show Creators
Emmy-winning The Simulation launched the first web-streaming series made exclusively with AI that lets novices create their own shows.
The company behind last year’s outrageous South Park AI episode generator is launching its own creation platform today, allowing users to make their own TV shows with AI.
The Simulation (formerly Fable Studio) announced 10 TV shows (web series) made with Showrunner, the company’s text-to-episode system, each in different styles, from anime to Pixar-style, to the cutout style of South Park.
#ai #hollywood #generateiveai #fable #technology
“It’s the Netflix of AI,” founder and CEO Edward Saatchi told me. “Watch an episode, or make an episode.”
Hutzpa!, Exit Valley, Pixels, Sim Francisco and What We Leave Behind are all series set in the virtual world of Sim-Francisco. With a prompt of 10 to 15 words, users can generate scenes and episodes of ranging from two to 16 minutes, all with AI dialogue, voice, editing, different shot types, consistent characters and story development. Those who want to dive deeper can edit their episodes’ scripts, shots, voices and remake episodes, but Showrunner is targeted at non-technical, non-professional users.
“Generating a new TV show should be as easy as browsing Netflix for a show,” says Philipp Maas, co-creator of Showrunner.
As part of the launch Thursday, Showrunner released two episodes of Exit Valley, a Silicon Valley satire starring iconic figures like Musk, Zuck and Sam Altman. The show is an animated comedy targeting 22 episodes in its first season, some made by Fable and the rest made by users and selected by a jury of filmmakers and creatives. The other shows like Ikiru Shinu and Shadows over Shinjuku are set in Neo-Tokyo, in distinct anime worlds, and will open to user interaction later this year.
Fable released a research paper on how it built the SHOW-1 model and AI Showrunner Agents that can write, produce, direct, cast, edit, voice and animate episodes of AI TV.
“Our South Park episodes were a research project that took on a life of their own,” said technical founder Jacob Madden. Showrunner demonstrated its SHOW-1 model last year with nine episodes of South Park AI including the 22-minute episode “Westland Chronicles,” about “Bizney” developing an AI stuffed toy with disastrous consequences. The episodes, made as research without the permission of the South Park creators, received more than 8 million views and, according to Saatchi, resulted in meetings with Fox, Netflix, Paramount and Sony.
“It’s become consensus to say that AI is ‘just’ a tool in the toolbox, merely another stage of VFX technology—we believe it’s a much more radical disruption, and that Hollywood will make two-way entertainment: audiences watching a season of a show, loving it and then making new episodes with a few words, audiences putting themselves in shows. The platform allows showrunners to experiment with their stories in real-time, constantly iterating and refining their vision,” said Showrunner co-creator Jacob Madden. “Showrunner redefines what a TV show can be in that it lets a viewer watch a show, love it, and instantly become a creator of the next episode."
The company included teasers for many of the 10 shows it announced Thursday. Exit Valley is available for all alpha users and the rest are being made by creators (posters above). Shows include:
Exit Valley, a vicious Silicon Valley satire. The first two episodes are being released Thursday.
Pixels, a gentle family comedy of AI-enabled devices living in Sim Francisco
What We Leave Behind, an anime family drama about two orphans in Sim Francisco
Ikiru Shinu, a dark horror anime focused on the survivors of a global calamity trying to rebuild society
United Flavors of America, a cartoon political satire of U.S. politics in 2024
The Prize, a spaceship-set story about spacefaring explorers encountering aliens
Hutzpa! Bernie, a curmudgeonly widower, checks himself into a rundown senior home, where the misfit residents show him that he may be the one who’s got some learning to do.
Sim Francisco, an anthology show of the stories of everyday people living in Sim Francisco
Shadows over Shinjuku, a 1930s-set anime detective noir drama
Thistle Gulch, a Western town with dark secrets
Fable
Showrunner isn't like Pika and Runway, which let you make anything (but you only get a silent 3-8 second clip without story and inconsistent characters across scenes). Showrunner is limited to specific styles, including cutout, anime and 3D animation.
While Saatchi is bullish on the tech, a major weakness of Showrunner and AI in general for entertainment is that it’s more suited to episodic content rather than the epic 10-50 episode arcs of shows like Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones. Saatchi admits, “Today AI can’t sustain a story beyond one episode. What AI is strongest at is deeply episodic shows with characters largely resetting every episode—sitcoms, police procedurals, space exploration.” Showrunner only does animation right now, but Saatchi believes live action is not far off.
He and his team at The Simulation have been working with AI for five years. Fable’s critically acclaimed VR Film, Wolves in the Wall, released in November 2019, starred Lucy, an AI-enabled character. She was built using OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Inside the simulation, the user is cast as Lucy’s imaginary friend. Fable experimented with Lucy, taking her outside the Wolves story and treating her like a child star who played a role in their VR production.
Arcade, a new AI product creation platform, designed this necklace
Mariam Naficy, the founder of cosmetics retailer Eve and design marketplace Minted, has a long history of supporting independent artists and helping them Arcade AI is a new generative AI platform that puts creative control directly into the hands of users, allowing them to produce jewelry designs.
#arcade #ai #products #jewelry #technology
Arcade AI: Reimagining Custom Jewelry Design Through Artificial intelligence
Mariam Naficy, known for founding Minted and Eve, has launched Arcade AI, an innovative marketplace that merges artificial intelligence with custom jewelry design. The platform, which entered beta in September, represents a significant shift in how consumers interact with custom jewelry creation.
The platform's core functionality allows users (called "Dreamers") to generate jewelry designs through AI technology, leveraging models like Stable Diffusion and Midjourney. These digital concepts are then brought to life by skilled artisans who create physical pieces ranging from bracelets to necklaces in various materials including gold, silver, and precious gemstones.
While the platform shows promise, it's not without limitations. The AI generator currently struggles with complex designs and multiple elements, such as adding multiple charms to necklaces. To address these challenges, Naficy plans to implement improvements to the "magic editor," including image Prompt Adapters and enhanced editing capabilities.
Pricing on Arcade varies significantly, with simpler pieces starting around $100 and complex custom designs potentially exceeding $1,000. The platform has implemented a unique business model where artisans set their own prices and can accept or reject designs based on feasibility. Additionally, qualified "Dreamers" can earn a 2.5% commission on sales after meeting specific criteria.
Addressing potential concerns about intellectual property and AI's impact on human designers, Naficy emphasized that the platform includes safeguards against exact design replication. Drawing from her experience at Minted, where artist protection was a priority, she's implemented features to prevent copying and maintain control over design generation.
The platform has secured significant backing, raising $17 million from notable investors including Ashton Kutcher, Reid Hoffman, and Karlie Kloss. Looking ahead, Arcade AI plans to expand beyond jewelry into other categories such as accessories and apparel, potentially competing with similar platforms like Off/Script. Future developments will include enhanced social features, community engagement tools, and possible partnerships with major retail brands.
This venture represents a significant step in democratizing custom jewelry design while attempting to balance technological innovation with artisanal craftsmanship. The platform's success could signal a new direction in how consumers interact with custom product design across various retail categories.
Article
Bling It On: An AI Startup Turns Shoppers Into Jewelry Designers
When I met Mariam Naficy last week, she couldn’t wait to show me her new jewelry.
When I met Mariam Naficy last week, she couldn’t wait to show me her new jewelry. She had designed the earrings she was wearing herself. And her bracelet. And her ring for good measure.
#arcade #startup #technology #mariamnaficy #jewelry
Technically, Naficy—whose keen eye for e-commerce trends led her to found the early online makeup retailer Eve.com and Minted, which makes custom holiday cards and wedding invites—had a little help with the creation of her accessories. They were the product of Arcade, a new site she founded that lets shoppers design their own jewelry by punching a few simple words—gold teardrop earrings, say—into an artificial intelligence–powered tool.
Once the customer is satisfied with their design, Arcade will ship a digital model of the jewelry to an artisan in a place that’s teeming with craftspeople, like India or Italy. The artisan will make the design and send the finished piece to the customer within two to three weeks.
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https://www.arcade.ai/
Where dreams take shape with craft and serendipity.
You bring the vision, and AI helps shape it in unexpected ways. That’s the magic of collaboration—offering creations that may evolve beyond what you could have ever dreamed. With generations of expertise, our makers take your design and turn it into a tangible, one-of-a-kind product. The result? A unique creation, shaped by your vision, AI, and artful craftsmanship.
Arcade is the world's first AI product creation platform, where everything that can be dreamed of can be made. Our mission is to create magical experiences for people everywhere, using unparalleled design-to-manufacturing AI technologies.
Merlin Solar bets twisty panels will help it land on rooftops everywhere
The startup uses standard silicon solar cells but connects them using bendy materials, giving them better durability and more flexibility.
Solar panels are just about everywhere. There’s a good chance one of your neighbors has them on their roof, as does the big box store down the street. As you drive there, you might see a field of them posted up alongside the road. With that kind of ubiquity, you’d be forgiven if you thought there wasn’t room for improvement.
#merlinsolar #technology #solarcells #panels #energy #newsonleo
Venkatesan Murali would like to prove you wrong.
Murali, founder and CTO of Merlin Solar, has been working a new angle on solar for nearly a decade. He founded the company in 2016, after Solyndra’s spectacular implosion in 2011 and as Chinese manufacturers were driving panels down a vertiginous cost curve. But Murali remained fixated, though he did take a lesson from the debacle.
“Don’t scare the heck out of people with something new,” he told TechCrunch. “No new molecules, no new physics.”
Instead, Merlin Solar turned to an existing and widely used solar technology, monocrystalline silicon. Solar cells made with the stuff are inexpensive but fragile; to prevent fractures, companies usually sandwich monocrystalline silicon within two panels of glass bordered by a metal frame. That makes panels heavy, and it limits where they can be installed.
Murali wanted flexible solar panels, but using monocrystalline silicon posed a challenge. “Everything crystalline will eventually crack,” Murali said. “Can we make sure every electron will find its way, even if a bullet went through?”
To answer that, the company changed the way cells are connected within a panel. Merlin beefed up the number of connections front and back and, between cells, made the interconnects springy so they could bounce back after being bent.
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Our Story
“To boldly go where no solar panel has gone before.”
Merlin Solar Technologies, like many of its Silicon Valley compatriots, was founded in a garage. The founders set out to fundamentally rethink the way solar panels were engineered with the goal of ubiquitous deployment. "To boldly go where no solar panel has gone before” remains the mantra of our company, having successfully deployed solar panels in some of the harshest environments.
With panels in war zones, Norwegian fjords, class 8 trucks, RVs, disaster recovery vehicles, autonomous ocean going drones, O&G Storage tanks, tensioned fabric canopies – in addition to traditional deployments – we seek to conquer new horizons.
The Merlin Advantage
At the core of Merlin’s patented technology is an innovative pair of metal grids that serve as intra-cell and inter-cell interconnects. By fundamentally addressing mono-cSi cell micro-cracking and fatigue induced inter-cell interconnect failure, Merlin has enabled ubiquitous deployment of solar in the most challenging of applications.
Simply put, Merlin has extricated mono-cSi cells from a coffin of glass & aluminum, enabling our customers to implement solutions that were previously considered impossible. Merlin™ glass & non-glass panels have the proven performance and reliability of mono-crystalline silicon technology together with the advantages of being flexible, light weight, and enable peel & stick deployments.
Merlin™ Panels vs Standard Panels
Lightweight
80% Lighter
Than Glass Systems
High Energy Output
20% More Energy
In Real World Conditions
Rugged
Flexible Panels that are 50x
More Durable vs. Standard Panels
Issued Patents
US Patent 8,916,038 Free-standing metallic article for semiconductors
US Patent 8,936,709 Adaptable free-standing metallic article for semiconductors
US Patent 8,940,998 Free-standing metallic article for semiconductors
US Patent 8,569,096 Free-standing metallic article for semiconductors
US Patent 9,054,238 Semiconductor with silver patterns having pattern segments
US Patent 9,573,214 Solder application method and apparatus
US Patent 9,685,568 Photovoltaic Module with Flexible Circuit
US Patent 9,842,945 Photovoltaic Module with Flexible Circuit
US Patent 10,181,542 Photovoltaic Cell having a Coupled Expanded Metal Article
US Patent 10,411,152 Solar Cell Bonding
US Patent 10,672,927 Photovoltaic Cell having a Coupled Expanded Metal Article
US Patent 10,886,424 Method for Blackening a Metallic Article
US Patent 11,349,040 Photovoltaic Cell Having a Coupled Expanded Metal Article
US Patent 11,558,010 Method for Blackening an Electrical Conduit
US Patent 11,588,064 Method for Blackening a Metallic Article
Empower Your Fleet, Supercharge Deliveries, Slash Expenses, and Drive Profits with Merlin Solar
Built to withstand tough conditions without compromising integrity, Merlin™ panels are designed for longevity, delivering customer advantages in the realm of commercial transportation.
https://www.merlinsolar.com/
U.S. crystalline silicon technology startup Merlin Solar is ready for the traditional solar market
When exploring the expanding field of U.S. crystalline silicon solar panel manufacturers, Merlin Solar is often overlooked. Even though the innovative Silicon Valley company has over 50 worldwide patents and offers UL-certified products — including hurricane resistant ground-mount panels, adhesive Class A fire-rated rooftop panels and flexible panels for metal roofs — the ruggedness of these panels, along with their light weight and ease of installation, has lent Merlin to first focus on challenging and non-traditional solar applications like the transportation, portable and military markets.
After being acquired by Filipino conglomerate Ayala Corporation last year, Merlin Solar now has the scale to bring its IP-protected grid interconnection technology of silicon cells to traditional solar markets.
Merlin Solar’s proprietary grid connection design.
Instead of using traditional busbars to make electrical connection points on solar cells, Merlin Solar uses a proprietary grid of interconnects. The grid lends stability to the brittle silicon cells and eliminates failures associated with busbar soldering points. The grid’s unique design enables Merlin to eliminate thermomechanical stresses that are endemic to crystalline solar technology — allowing for flexible panels when encased in polymers and lightweight, frameless panels when using thin glass.
Founder and CTO Venkatesan Murali, Ph.D., said that Merlin’s use of conventional crystalline silicon solar cells in rugged, flexible and lightweight panels has piqued the interest of solar installers looking for alternatives to traditional, framed modules and problematic flexible thin-film.
“We have chosen to attack the residential and commercial rooftop markets now, not because we didn’t have a product previously. By focusing initially on other, technically more challenging markets, we have been able to refine our product’s performance, reliability and aesthetics and now have the scale to enter these traditional markets and become a major player,” Murali said. “Our modules are getting a lot of interest from many installers looking for alternatives to the traditional glass, aluminum rail type of product.”
Merlin Solar’s FX line of flexible modules and its GX glass-based modules are adhesive and don’t require a frame or mounting equipment. The company suggests panel adhesion directly to the roof’s underlayment with roofing shingles framing the modules. Flexible thin-film panels are Merlin’s main competition in the niche transportation market, but roofs that can’t support the weight or mounting of traditional panels and want silicon’s higher performance are a great market for Merlin’s rooftop offerings.
Merlin’s GX module line.
Merlin Solar is not the first crystalline silicon panel manufacturer to get rid of BOS materials and produce a non-penetrating, adhesive module. Lumeta Solar has a 26.5-lb, frameless 60-cell monocrystalline module encased entirely in polymers that is adhered on top of shingles or a commercial roofing system. On a smaller scale, Merlin Solar’s GX36 module features 36 grid-covered cells with a traditional tempered glass front and backsheet, weighing 19.5 lbs.
While similar concepts, Merlin Solar believes its flex-tolerant form factor and grid-connection technology sets it apart. Murali said the company’s R&D department is constantly pushing for increased power and performance.
“We of course want to get more performance, and since we are cell-architecture-agnostic, we will continue to offer best-of-breed efficiency panels,” he said. “Our grid technology allows us to minimize series resistance enabling us to offer the highest fill factor panels.”
Merlin Solar started in Murali’s garage in December 2012. As veterans of technology companies, Murali and his partners wanted to disrupt solar manufacturing.
“We came up with a process that stood interconnection technology on its end,” Murali said. “We wanted to reduce silver, but by the time we finished the development, we came up with something that addressed the major problems with silicon: cell cracking and interconnection failures. We changed from thinking of connecting solar cells with wires and busbars, replacing it with an interconnect that adapted to the cell characteristics.”
Merlin’s grids, which are manufactured in a facility in Thailand, allow more than 2,000 contact points with the cell, moving current more efficiently and boosting generation in low light and scattered light conditions. The company has panel manufacturing factories in California and the Philippines. The company also has a contract with manufacturing partner Waaree Energies in India, which has a manufacturing capacity of 1.5 GW a year. Merlin Solar is focusing on the U.S. market but also has a major presence in Southeast Asia and Europe.
A metal roof installtion with FX-36L, peel-and-stick modules.
Murali said the startup company is here to stay.
“We’re one of the only companies that have crossed the chasm of R&D to manufacturing. We were not looking for transactional or immediate sales. We take the long view and instead focused on creating design wins with strategic partners,” he said.
With parent company Ayala’s financial support and patent-protected grid technology, Merlin Solar plans to take a big step into traditional solar markets this year.
“There are tons of startup companies in solar. Many companies are trying to have a breakthrough moment,” Murali said. “I think this is a year that we’re going to break through.”
Is the commercial solar gold rush upon us?
How financiers and installers can team up to win.
Earlier this year, the United States surpassed five million solar installations in the country. That may seem like a huge number, especially considering that it took us 50 years to get there. However, the reality is that even in the residential segment, which has the highest penetration to date, the percentage of homes running on solar energy is still in the single digits.
#solar #energy #technology #residential
Utility-scale and large-scale commercial are somewhere behind that. Conspicuously absent from the party? Small to medium-sized commercial. In fact, by generous estimates, only about 1 to 2% currently have a solar system.
The reason? Money. Specifically, small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) haven’t had great options for financing. But given the tax incentives currently on the table and a variety of regulatory, social and economic tailwinds, more installers than ever are recognizing that there’s real value in helping SMBs overcome the financial hurdles to going solar. Many of them are in search of funding partners.
Both parties have a lot to gain from getting more commercial customers on board — as do the customers themselves. Here’s a look at how installers can partner with financiers to help SMBs recognize the potential solar represents and bring more of this group into the fold.
A bevy of benefits for SMBs
First, if you yourself aren’t super familiar with the many benefits going solar offers businesses, now’s a great time for a refresher.
We often say that solar is sold rather than bought in this segment, but that’s mostly because of the high upfront cost — the back-end benefits are significant. In fact, few investments offer greater returns for less effort than going solar. Among the perks businesses can enjoy are:
Reduced utility bills.
Fixed utility rates.
Generous federal tax credits, including those added, extended and increased under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Additional state and local incentives.
Tax benefits associated with depreciation of the system.
Higher property values and increased net operating income (NOI).
Article
Jon McNeill’s insights on Tesla’s robotaxi and why EV startups fail
Jon McNeill — a former Tesla and Lyft executive and current CEO at DVx Ventures
Jon McNeill — a former Tesla and Lyft executive and current CEO at DVx Ventures — spread the word last week at the World Business Forum on what he calls the “Tesla innovation method” of radical simplification.
#newsonleo #jonmcneill #tesla #robotaxi #lyft
After his presentation, we sat down to chat about Tesla’s automation goals, its new robotaxi, and why building electric vehicles is a tough business.
On the Tesla robotaxi
Tesla rolled out Autopilot, its advanced driver assistance system (ADAS) that can perform limited automated driving tasks, back in 2015. McNeill said automation has been a major initiative for Tesla for almost a decade.
“It was a topic of conversation every week, if not every day,” he told TechCrunch.
That’s partly why McNeill, along with many others, was surprised by the nothing burger that was Tesla’s much-anticipated robotaxi reveal earlier this month.
“Oftentimes, Elon has got something up his sleeve where he’ll not reveal it until one of those product events. And so I was really wondering, what’s up his sleeve? What does he have? Because Waymo and Cruise are already at Level 4. Tesla’s at Level 2. He’s got to have some major breakthroughs he’s going to talk about to take it from Level 2 to Level 4.”
AI probably isn’t the big smartphone selling point that Apple and other tech giants think it is
Will AI really be the future for smartphone sales? Here's why Apple's bet may miss the mark it hopes to see.
As is their tradition at this time of year, Apple announced a new line of iPhones last week. The promised centrepiece that would make us want to buy these new devices was AI – or Apple Intelligence, as they branded it. Yet the reaction from the collective world of consumer technology has been muted.
#apple #ai #technology #iphone
The lack of enthusiasm from consumers was so evident it immediately wiped over a hundred billion dollars off Apple’s share price. Even the Wired Gadget Lab podcast, enthusiasts of all new things tech, found nothing in the new capabilities that would make them want to upgrade to the iPhone 16.
The only thing that did seem to generate some excitement was not the AI features, but the addition of a new camera shutter button on the side of the phone. If a button is a better selling point than the most hyped technology of the past couple of years, something is clearly amiss.
The reason is that AI has now passed what tech blog The Media Copilot called its “wonderment phase”. Two years ago, we were amazed that ChatGPT, DALL-E and other generative AI systems were able to create coherent writing and realistic images from just a few words in a text prompt. But now, AI needs to show that it can actually be productive. Since their introduction, the models driving these experiences have become much more powerful – and exponentially more expensive.
Nevertheless, Google, NVidia, Microsoft and OpenAI recently met at the White House to discuss AI infrastructure, suggesting these companies are doubling down on the technology.
According to Forbes, the industry is US$500 billion (£375 billion) short of making back the massive investments in AI hardware and software, and the US$100 billion in AI revenue projected to be made in 2024 is not even close to this figure. But Apple still has to enthusiastically push AI features into their products for the same reason that Google, Samsung and Microsoft are doing it – to give consumers a reason to buy a new device.
Tough sell?
Before AI, the industry was trying to create hype around virtual reality and the Metaverse, an effort that probably peaked with the introduction of the Apple Vision Pro headset in 2023 (a product that incidentally was barely even mentioned in last week’s announcement).
After the Metaverse failed to take off, tech companies needed something else to drive sales, and AI has become the new shiny thing. But it remains to be seen whether consumers will take to the AI-based features included in phones such as photo-editing and writing assistants. This is not to say that current AI is not useful. AI technologies are used in billion-dollar industry applications, in everything from online advertisement to healthcare and energy optimisation.
Generative AI has also become a useful tool for professionals in many fields. According to a survey, 97% of software developers have used AI tools to support their work. Many journalists, visual artists, musicians and filmmakers have adopted AI tools to create content more quickly and more efficiently.
Yet most of us are not actually prepared to pay for a service that draws funny cartoon cats or summarises text –- especially since attempts at AI-supported search have shown to be prone to errors. Apple’s approach to deploying artificial intelligence seems to mostly be a mishmash of existing functions, many of which are already built into popular third-party apps.
Apple’s AI can help you create a custom emoji, transcribe a phone call, edit a photo, or write an email –- neat, but no longer groundbreaking stuff. There is also something called Reduce mode that is supposed to disturb you less and only let through important notifications, but it’s anyone’s guess how well that will work in reality.
The one forward-looking feature is called Visual Intelligence. It allows you to aim the camera at something in the surroundings and get information without explicitly doing a search. For instance, you might photograph a restaurant sign, and the phone will tell you the menu, show you reviews – and perhaps even help you book a table.
Although this is very reminiscent of the Lens in Google’s Pixel phones (or ChatGPT’s multimodal capabilities) it does point towards a future use of AI that is more real-time, interactive, and situated in real-world environments.
In the extension, Apple Intelligence and the Reduce mode could evolve into so-called “context-aware computing”, which has been envisioned and demonstrated in research projects since the 1990s, but for the most part has not yet become robust enough to be a real product category.
The kicker to all this is that Apple Intelligence is not yet really available for anyone to try, as the new iPhones do not yet include them. Perhaps it will turn out they are more valuable than the limited information seems to indicate. But Apple used to be known for only releasing a product when it was well and truly ready, meaning that the use-case was crystal clear and the user experience had been honed to perfection.
This is what made the iPod and iPhone so much more attractive than all the MP3 players and smartphones released before them. It is anyone’s guess if Apple’s approach to AI will be able to claw back some of the lost stock price, not to mention the hundreds of billions invested by them and the rest of the tech industry. After all, AI still has amazing potential, but it may be time to slow
down a bit, and take a moment to consider where it will actually be the most useful.
How your online world could change if big tech companies like Google are forced to break up
While big tech's monopoly has been bad for competition and more, this opinion piece presents the drawbacks to breaking up big tech.
The US Department of Justice may be on the verge of seeking a break-up of Google in a bid to make it less dominant. If the government goes ahead and is successful in the courts, it could mean the company being split into separate entities – a search engine, an advertising company, a video website, a mapping app – which would not be allowed to share data with each other.
#google #antitrust #doj #technology #bigtech
Untangling Quantum Entanglement
The perplexing phenomenon of quantum entanglement is central to quantum computing, quantum networking, and the fabric of space and time.
The famous “Jim Twins,” separated soon after birth in the 1940s, seemed to live parallel lives even though they grew up miles apart in completely different families.
When they were reunited at the age of 39, they discovered many similarities between their life stories, including the names of their sons, wives, and childhood pets, as well as their preferences for Chevrolet cars, carpentry, and more.
A similar kind of parallelism happens at a quantum level, too. The electrons, photons, and other particles that make up our universe can become inextricably linked, such that the state observed in one particle will be identical for the other. That connection, known as entanglement, remains strong even across vast distances.
“When particles are entangled, it’s as if they are born that way, like twins,” says Xie Chen, associate professor of theoretical physics at Caltech. “Even though they might be separated right after birth, [they’ll] still look the same. And they grow up having a lot of personality traits that are similar to each other.”
The phenomenon of entanglement was first proposed by Albert Einstein and colleagues in the 1930s. At that time, many questioned the validity of entanglement, including Einstein himself.
Over the years and in various experiments, however, researchers have generated entangled particles that have supported the theory. In these experiments, researchers first entangle two particles and then send them to different locations miles apart. The researchers then measure the state of one particle: for instance, the polarization (or direction of vibration) of a photon. If that entangled photon displays a horizontal polarization, then so too will its faithful partner.
John Preskill wrote a song about entanglement, and performed it with singer Gia Mora at One Entangled Evening, a 2016 IQIM event. Watch the video.
“It may be tempting to think that the particles are somehow communicating with each other across these great distances, but that is not the case,” says Thomas Vidick, a professor of computing and mathematical sciences at Caltech. “There can be correlation without communication.” Instead, he explains, entangled particles are so closely connected that there is no need for communication; they “can be thought of as one object.”
As baffling as the concept of two entangled particles may be, the situation becomes even more complex when more particles are involved. In natural settings such as the human body, for example, not two but hundreds of molecules or even more become entangled, as they also do in various metals and magnets, making up an interwoven community.
In these many-body entangled systems, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
“The particles act together like a single object whose identity lies not with the individual components but in a higher plane. It becomes something larger than itself,” says Spyridon (Spiros) Michalakis, outreach manager of Caltech’s Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM) and a staff researcher. “Entanglement is like a thread that goes through every single one of the individual particles, telling them how to be connected to one another.”
Associate Professor of Theoretical Physics Xie Chen specializes in the fields of condensed matter physics and quantum information.
Associate Professor of Theoretical Physics Xie Chen specializes in the fields of condensed matter physics and quantum information.
At Caltech, researchers are focusing their studies on many-body entangled systems, which they believe are critical to the development of future technologies and perhaps to cracking fundamental physics mysteries. scientists around the world have made significant progress applying the principles of many-body entanglement to fields such as quantum computing, quantum cryptography, and quantum networks (collectively known as quantum information); condensed-matter physics; chemistry;
and fundamental physics. Although the most practical applications, such as quantum computers, may still be decades off, according to John Preskill, the Richard P. Feynman Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech and the Allen V.C. Davis and Lenabelle Davis Leadership Chair of the Institute of Quantum science and technology (IQST), “entanglement is a very important part of Caltech’s future.”
Entanglement Passes Tests with Flying Colors
In 1935, Albert Einstein, Boris Podolsky, and Nathan Rosen published a paper on the theoretical concept of quantum entanglement, which Einstein called “spooky action at a distance.” The physicists described the idea, then argued that it posed a problem for quantum mechanics, rendering the theory incomplete. Einstein did not believe two particles could remain connected to each other over great distances; doing so, he said, would require them to communicate faster than the speed of light, something he had previously shown to be impossible.
Today, experimental work leaves no doubt that entanglement is real. Physicists have demonstrated its peculiar effects across hundreds of kilometers; in fact, in 2017, a Chinese satellite named Micius sent entangled photons to three different ground stations, each separated by more than 1,200 kilometers, and broke the distance record for entangled particles.
Entanglement goes hand in hand with another quantum phenomenon known as superposition, in which particles exist in two different states simultaneously. Photons, for example, can display simultaneously both horizontal and vertical states of polarization.
Quantum Computing in the NISQ Era and Beyond
Or, to simplify, consider two “entangled” quarters, each hidden under a CUP. If two people, BOB and Alice, were each to take one of those quarters to a different room, the quarters would remain both heads and tails until one person lifted the cup and observed his or her quarter; at that point, it would randomly become either heads or tails. If Alice were to lift her cup first and her quarter was tails, then when Bob observed his quarter, it would also be tails. If you repeated the experiment and the coins are covered once more, they would go back to being in a state of superposition. Alice would lift her cup again and might find her quarter as heads this time. Bob would then also find his quarter as heads. Whether the first quarter is found to be heads or tails is entirely random.
Similarly, when a researcher entangles two photons and then sends each one in different directions under carefully controlled conditions, they will continue to be in a state of superposition, both horizontally and vertically polarized. Only when one of the photons is measured do both randomly adopt just one of the two possible polarization states.
“Quantum correlations are deeply different than ordinary correlations,” says Preskill. “And randomness is the key. This spooky intrinsic randomness is actually what bothered Einstein. But it is essential to how the quantum world works.”
“Scientists often use the word correlation to explain what is happening between these particles,” adds Oskar Painter, the John G Braun Professor of Applied Physics and Physics at Caltech. “But, actually, entanglement is the perfect word.”
Entanglement to the Nth Degree
Untangling the relationship between two entangled particles may be difficult, but the real challenge is to understand how hundreds of particles, if not more, can be similarly interconnected.
According to Manuel Endres, an assistant professor of physics at Caltech, one of the first steps toward understanding many-body entanglement is to create and control it in the lab. To do this, Endres and his team use a brute force approach: they design and build laboratory experiments with the goal of creating a system of 100 entangled atoms.
“This is fundamentally extremely difficult to do,” says Endres. In fact, he notes, it would be difficult even at a much smaller scale. “If I create a system where I generate, for instance, 20 entangled particles, and I send 10 one way and 10 another way, then I have to measure whether each one of those first 10 particles is entangled with each of the other set of 10. There are many different ways of looking at the correlations.”
While the task of describing those correlations is difficult, describing a system of 100 entangled atoms with classical computer bits would be unimaginably hard. For instance, a complete classical description of aLL the quantum correlations among as many as 300 entangled particles would require more bits than the number of atoms in the visible universe. “But that’s the whole point and the reason we are doing this,” Endres says. “Things get so entangled that you need a huge amount of space to describe the information. It’s a complicated beast, but it’s useful.”
“Generally, the number of parameters you need to describe the system is going to scale up exponentially,” says Vidick, who is working on mathematical and computational tools to describe entanglement. “It blows up very quickly, which, in general, is why it’s hard to make predictions or simulations, because you can’t even represent these systems in your laptop’s memory.”
To solve that problem, Vidick and his group are working on coming up with computational representations of entangled materials that are simpler and more succinct than models that currently exist.
“Quantum mechanics and the ideas behind quantum computing are forcing us to think outside the box,” he says.
A Fragile Ecosystem
Another factor in creating and controlling quantum systems has to do with their delicate nature. Like Mimosa pudica ,a member of the pea family also known as the “sensitive plant,” which droops when its leaves are touched, entangled states can easily disappear, or collapse, when the environment changes even slightly. For example, the act of observing a quantum state destroys it. “You don’t want to even look at your experiment, or breathe on it,” jokes Painter. Adds Preskill, “Don’t turn on the light, and don’t even dare walk into the room.”
The problem is that entangled particles become entangled with the environment around them quickly, in a matter of microseconds or faster. This then destroys the original entangled state a researcher might attempt to study or use. Even one stray photon flying through an experiment can render the whole thing useless.
“You need to be able to create a system that is entangled only with itself, not with your apparatus,” says Endres. “We want the particles to talk to one another in a controlled fashion. But we don’t want them to talk to anything in the outside world.”
In the field of quantum computing, this fragility is problematic because it can lead to computational errors. Quantum computers hold the promise of solving problems that classical computers cannot, including those in cryptography, chemistry, financial modeling, and more. Where classical computers use binary bits (either a “1” or a “0”) to carry information, quantum computers use “qubits,” which exist in states of “1” and “0” at the same time. As Preskill explains, the qubits in this mixed state, or superposition, would be both dead and alive, a reference to the famous thought experiment proposed by Erwin Schrödinger in 1935, in which a cat in a box is both dead and alive until the box is opened, and the cat is observed to be one or the other. What’s more, those qubits are all entangled. If the qubits somehow become disentangled from one another, the quantum computer would be unable to execute its computations.
To address these issues, Preskill and Alexei Kitaev (Caltech’s Ronald and Maxine Linde Professor of Theoretical Physics and Mathematics and recipient of a 2012 Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics), along with other theorists at Caltech, have devised a concept to hide the quantum information within a global entangled state, such that none of the individual bits have the answer. This approach is akin to distributing a code among hundreds of people living in different cities. No one person would have the whole code, so the code would be much less vulnerable to discovery.
Manuel Endres, assistant professor of physics, here pictured with Adam Shaw (left) and Ivaylo Madjarov (right), uses laser-based techniques in his lab to create many-body entanglement.
Manuel Endres, assistant professor of physics, here pictured with Adam Shaw (left) and Ivaylo Madjarov (right), uses laser-based techniques in his lab to create many-body entanglement.
“The key to correcting errors in entangled systems is, in fact, entanglement,” says Preskill. “If you want to protect information from damage due to the extreme instability of superpositions, you have to hide the information in a form that’s very hard to get at,” he says. “And the way you do that is by encoding it in a highly entangled state.”
Spreading the Entanglement
At Caltech, this work on the development of quantum-computing systems is conducted alongside with research into quantum networks in which each quantum computer acts as a separate node, or connection point, for the whole system. Painter refers to this as “breaking a quantum computer into little chunks” and then connecting them together to create a distributed network. In this approach, the chunks would behave as if they were not separated. “The network would be an example of many-body entanglement, in which the bodies are the different nodes in the network,” says Painter.
Quantum networks would enhance the power of quantum computers, notes Preskill.
“We’d like to build bigger and bigger quantum computers to solve harder and harder problems. And it’s hard to build one piece of hardware that can handle a million qubits,” he says. “It’s easier to make modular components with 100 qubits each or something like that. But then, if you want to solve harder problems, you’ve got to get these different little quantum computers to communicate with one another. And that would be done through a quantum network.”
Quantum networks could also be used for cryptography purposes, to make it safer to send sensitive information; they would also be a means by which to distribute and share quantum information in the same way that the World Wide Web works for conventional computers. Another future use might be in astronomy. Today’s telescopes are limited. They cannot yet see any detail on, for instance, the surface of distant exoplanets, where astronomers might want to look for signs of life or civilization. If scientists could combine telescopes into a quantum network, it “would allow us to use the whole Earth as one big telescope with a much-improved resolution,” says Preskill.
“Up until about 20 years ago, the best way to explore entanglement was to look at what nature gave us and tRY to study the exotic states that emerged,” notes Painter. “Now our goal is to try to synthesize these systems and go beyond what nature has given us.”
At the Root of Everything
While entanglement is the key to advances in quantum-information sciences, it is also a concept of interest to theoretical physicists, some of whom believe that space and time itself are the result of an underlying network of quantum connections.
“It is quite incredible that any two points in space-time, no matter how far apart, are actually entangled. Points in space-time that we consider closer to each other are just more entangled than those further apart,” says Michalkis.
The link between entanglement and space-time may even help solve one of the biggest challenges in physics: establishing a unifying theory to connect the macroscopic laws of general relativity (which describe gravity) with the microscopic laws of quantum physics (which describe how subatomic particles behave).
The quantum error-correcting schemes that Preskill and others study may play a role in this quest. With quantum computers, error correction ensures that the computers are sufficiently robust and stable. Something similar may occur with space-time. “The robustness of space may come from a geometry where you can perturb the system, but it isn’t affected much by the noise, which is the same thing that happens in stable quantum-computing schemes,” says Preskill.
“Essentially, entanglement holds space together. It’s the glue that makes the different pieces of space hook up with one another,” he adds.
At Caltech, the concept of entanglement connects various labs and buildings across campus. Theorists and experimentalists in computer science, quantum-information science, condensed-matter physics, and other fields regularly work across disciplines and weave together their ideas.
“We bring our ideas from condensed-matter physics to quantum-information folks, and we say, ‘Hey, I have a material you can use for quantum computation,’” says Chen. “Sometimes we borrow ideas from them. Many of us from different fields have realized that we have to deal with entanglement head-on.”
Preskill echoes this sentiment and is convinced entanglement is an essential part of Caltech’s future: “We are making investments and betting on entanglement as being one of the most important themes of 21st-century science.”
Anthropic CEO: AGI is Closer Than You Think "2026"
#technology #agi
Anthropic CEO: AGI is Closer Than You Think "2026"
In a recent interview, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei said that artificial general intelligence (AGI) is closer than most people think, and that it could be achieved within the next five years. Amodei believes that AGI is essential for solving some of the world's most pressing problems, such as climate change and poverty.
Amodei is not alone in his optimism about AGI. Many other AI experts believe that AGI is on the horizon, and that it could have a profound impact on society. However, there are also some concerns about the potential risks of AGI, such as the possibility that it could be used to create autonomous weapons or to manipulate people.
Amodei believes that the benefits of AGI far outweigh the risks. He argues that AGI could help us to develop new medicines, create more efficient energy sources, and improve education. He also believes that AGI could help us to better understand ourselves and the world around us.
Amodei's comments are a reminder that AGI is a rapidly developing field, and that its potential benefits and risks are still being debated. It is important to stay informed about the latest developments in AGI, and to be prepared for the changes that it may bring.
Here are some of the key points from Amodei's interview:
Conclusion
AGI is a rapidly developing field with the potential to revolutionize our world. However, it is also important to be aware of the potential risks associated with AGI. Amodei's comments are a reminder that we need to stay informed about the latest developments in AGI, and to be prepared for the changes that it may bring.
Geoffrey Hinton Reveals the SCARY Future of Employment
#technology #jobs #employment #agi
AI Expert Warns of Job Disruption
Renowned AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton, often dubbed the "Godfather of AI," has issued a grave warning about the potential impact of artificial intelligence on the global job market. In a recent interview, Hinton expressed concerns that within the next decade, AI could displace up to 50% of existing jobs.
Creative Industries at Risk
Hinton's concerns extend beyond routine tasks. He highlights the vulnerability of creative professions, such as those in the arts, design, and software development. The rapid advancement of generative AI tools like ChatGPT, Midjourney, and Stable Diffusion has raised questions about the future of human creativity. While these tools can generate impressive content, they also pose a threat to jobs that rely on human ingenuity and originality.
Physical Labor and Analytical Roles
Hinton's warning also encompasses physical and analytical jobs. Routine manual tasks in industries like manufacturing, construction, and logistics are increasingly susceptible to automation. Similarly, AI-powered tools are transforming the software development landscape, automating tasks like code generation and bug detection.
The Need for Universal Basic Income
To mitigate the potential social and economic consequences of AI-driven job displacement, Hinton advocates for the implementation of a universal basic income (UBI). UBI would provide a basic income to ALL citizens, regardless of employment status, helping to alleviate poverty and inequality.
The role of Human Qualities
While AI is rapidly advancing, it is important to recognize that certain human qualities will remain irreplaceable. Jobs that require empathy, creativity, complex decision-making, and emotional intelligence are less likely to be automated. For example, healthcare professionals, educators, and artists will continue to play vital roles in society.
A New Era of Work
As AI reshapes the job market, it will also create new opportunities. Emerging roles in AI development, data science, and ethics will require specialized skills and knowledge. Additionally, the integration of AI into various industries will lead to increased productivity and efficiency, potentially creating new jobs and economic growth.
Adaptability and Lifelong Learning
To thrive in the age of AI, individuals must be adaptable and embrace lifelong learning. Developing strong soft skills, such as communication, problem-solving, and critical thinking, will be essential. Additionally, staying updated with the latest technological advancements and acquiring new skills will help individuals remain competitive in the job market.
Hinton's warning serves as a wake-up call for policymakers, businesses, and individuals alike. By understanding the potential impact of AI and taking proactive steps to prepare for the future, we can mitigate the negative consequences of job displacement and harness the power of AI to create a more prosperous and equitable society.
Tech bosses think nuclear fusion is the solution to AI’s energy demands – here’s what they’re missing
Could nuclear fusion be the answer to AI's energy needs? Tech companies need to consider these factors for the future.
The artificial intelligence boom has already changed how we understand technology and the world. But developing and updating AI programs requires a lot of computing power. This relies heavily on servers in data centres, at a great cost in terms of carbon emissions and resource use.
#technology #ai #nuclearfusion #energy
One particularly energy intensive task is “training”, where generative AI systems are exposed to vast amounts of data so that they improve at what they do.
The development of AI-based systems has been blamed for a 48% increase in Google’s greenhouse gas emissions over five years. This will make it harder for the tech giant to achieve its goal of reaching net zero by 2030.
Some in the industry justify the extra energy expenditure from AI by pointing to benefits the technology could have for environmental sustainability and climate action. Improving the efficiency of solar and wind power through predicting weather patterns, “smart” agriculture and more efficient, electric autonomous vehicles are among the purported benefits of AI for the Earth.
It’s against this background that tech companies have been looking to renewables and nuclear fission to supply electricity to their data centres.
Nuclear fission is the type of nuclear power that’s been in use around the world for decades. It releases energy by splitting a heavy chemical element to form lighter ones. Fission is one thing, but some in Silicon Valley feel a different technology will be needed to plug the gap: nuclear fusion.
Unlike fission, nuclear fusion produces energy by combining two light elements to make a heavier one. But fusion energy is an unproven solution to the sustainability challenge of AI. And the enthusiasm of tech CEOs for this technology as an AI energy supply risks sidelining the potential benefits for the planet.
Article
UK's Newly Opened National Quantum Computing Centre Designed to Push The Boundaries of What is Possible With Quantum
UK's Science Minister Lord Vallance officially opened the state-of-the-art National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC) on Oct. 25
#quantum #computing #technology #uk
PRESS RELEASE — A new national quantum facility, that will house 12 quantum computers, was officially opened by Science Minister Lord Vallance on Oct. 25.
The state-of-the-art National Quantum Computing Centre (NQCC), a 4,000 square meter facility based at the Harwell Campus, will be home to several new quantum computers each designed to push the boundaries of what is possible with this emerging technology.
It will house a wide range of quantum computing platforms, uniquely offering open access to industry, academia, and other sectors across the UK. More than 70 staff will be based there, and the Centre will also host an array of opportunities for students – including the world’s first dedicated quantum apprenticeship programme, 30 PhD studentships, summer placements, and crash courses for those in industry.
Unlike many global counterparts, the NQCC’s systems are not restricted to government ownership or use, enabling anyone with a valid use case to harness its cutting-edge capabilities. By fostering collaboration and innovation, the NQCC is set to become a key driver of quantum breakthroughs, delivering transformative benefits for both the public and private sectors.
Quantum technologies like quantum computers and quantum sensors have the potential to revolutionise many industries, from healthcare to energy. For example, at UKRI’s Quantum Hubs, researchers are already using quantum computers to build ‘neural networks’ (which process data in a similar fashion to the human brain) that could be used to detect fraud, and are building the foundations of a ‘quantum internet’ that will pool the colossal power of quantum computers from across the globe.
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The UK’s quantum technology sector is a global leader, with a thriving ecosystem of companies, research institutions, and talent. The UK is home to the second-largest quantum sector globally, backed by substantial private investment.
Quantum technology will not only help drive the government’s mission to kickstart economic growth by creating cutting-edge innovations that can be commercialised and exported, boosting the UK’s GDP, but it will also play a key role in supporting broader efforts to rebuild Britain. By advancing science and technology, quantum computing will help create a more efficient, future-ready NHS and enhance cybersecurity, ensuring safer streets and a stronger digital infrastructure for the future.
The NQCC is set to harness the power of quantum computing to solve real-world problems that affect both individuals and industries. The Centre will focus on key areas where quantum computing can offer impactful solutions, including:
Energy grid optimisation – quantum computers can analyse vast amounts of data in real time to identify the most efficient ways to balance energy supply and demand, preventing power outages and minimising energy losses
faster drug discovery – by speeding up the analysis of molecular structures, quantum computing could dramatically accelerate the development of new medicines, offering faster treatments for life-threatening conditions
climate prediction –
with the ability to process vast amounts of data, quantum technology can enhance climate modelling, allowing for more accurate predictions and improved responses to global environmental challenges
advances in AI – quantum computing can supercharge artificial intelligence, enhancing areas such as medical diagnostics and fraud detection, leading to better healthcare outcomes and more secure financial systems
Science Minister Lord Vallance, said: “The National Quantum Computing Centre marks a vital step forward in the UK’s efforts to advance quantum technologies.
By making its facilities available to users from across industry and academia, and with its focus on making quantum computers practically useable at scale, this Centre will help them solve some of the biggest challenges we face, whether it’s delivering advances in healthcare, enhancing energy efficiency, tackling climate change, or inventing new materials. The innovations that will emerge from the work the NQCC will do will ultimately improve lives across the country and ensure the UK seizes the economic benefits of its leadership in quantum technologies.”
Quantum computing works in a completely different way from the computers we use every day. Ordinary computers process information in a series of simple steps, where everything is broken down into tiny chunks of digital data that represent ‘1’ and ‘0’ or ‘on’ and ‘off’. By manipulating these bits of data over and over again, we can perform calculations and solve problems, but solving complex problems is both energy-intensive and takes a lot of time.
By contrast, quantum computers allow quantum information to be represented in multiple states at once – meaning it can be both ‘on’ and ‘off’ at the same time, allowing them to tackle complex problems in much less time. This means they have the potential to solve complex computational problems in seconds, minutes, or hours—tasks that would take today’s supercomputers years, decades, or even millennia, if they could solve them at all.
Speaking at the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) annual meeting in Edinburgh earlier this week, Lord Vallance set out how the government is committed to supporting quantum companies to scale up, driving innovation that will fuel economic growth, strengthen the NHS, and position the UK as a clean energy leader. He also discussed how the UK’s commitment to working with other countries on global standards is helping to speed up innovation.
Recent initiatives, including £100m for new quantum research hubs and funding for five Quantum Centres for Doctoral Training, which will train over 300 PhDs in the next four years, highlight the government’s dedication to advancing quantum leadership and ensuring the UK remains at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.
As a central part of the UK’s ten-year quantum programme, the Centre will play a central role in building the UK’s quantum ecosystem by supporting the development of quantum hardware, software, and applications. It is supported through an initial £93 million UKRI investment, delivered through the UKRI Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC). UKRI has also invested a further £50 million, including through the Technology Missions Fund.
UKRI Chief Executive, Professor Dame Ottoline Leyser, said: “With our rich national heritage in quantum computing research the UK is well-placed to lead the development of this transformative new technology, which has such huge potential across society and the economy. The UK National Quantum Computing Centre is central to this critical work, bringing together internationally-leading researchers and technologists from across academia and industry to ensure that the UK’s quantum computing ecosystem thrives, delivering benefits to people across the UK and beyond.”
The NQCC will not only foster pioneering research but also act as a hub for collaboration, bringing together businesses, academics, and government to unlock the full potential of quantum computing. Through its user engagement programme, SparQ, the Centre is already working with industry leaders in sectors like energy, healthcare, and financial services to explore practical applications for quantum technology. The NQCC will also champion the safe and ethical use of quantum computing, as set out in its responsible innovation strategy published earlier this summer.
$3 Trillion market cap companies:
Mother Sues AI Firm And Google, Alleging Chatbot Drove Teen To Suicide
In a recent lawsuit filed in the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida, a Florida mother seeks to hold AI startup Character Technologies, Inc., its co-founders, and Google accountable for the death of her 14-year-old son.
#legal #Lawsuit #google #ai #chatbot #technology
Megan Garcia’s complaint alleges that the company’s chatbot, marketed through its character.AI (Character AI) platform, contributed to her son’s declining mental health and ultimate suicide. Garcia, as the representative of her son Sewell Setzer III’s estate, is pursuing claims of wrongful death, product liability, and violations of Florida’s consumer protection laws.
The lawsuit, filed on Oct. 22, accuses Character technologies, Inc.—along with co-founders Noam Shazeer and Daniel De Frietas and tech giant Google—of developing an inherently dangerous AI system and failing to adequately safeguard or inform users, particularly minors.
Garcia alleged the company’s generative AI chatbot, Character AI, manipulated her son by presenting itself in human-like ways that exploited the vulnerabilities of young users.
The complaint said, “AI developers intentionally design and develop generative AI systems with anthropomorphic qualities to blur the lines between fiction and reality.”
According to the complaint, Sewell, a freshman who recently turned 14, started using Character AI in early 2023 and quickly developed an emotional dependency on the chatbot.
His mother alleged that the chatbot’s ability to mimic realistic human interactions led Sewell to believe the virtual exchanges were genuine, triggering severe emotional distress.
Character AI, the lawsuit alleges, was marketed as an innovative chatbot able to “hear you, understand you, and remember you,” yet lacked sufficient protections or warnings, particularly for younger audiences.
The complaint provides transcripts of Sewell’s exchanges with Character AI’s bots, including simulated intimate and conversational interactions with avatars representing fictional and historical personalities.
Some chatbots, which could be customized by users, allegedly simulated a parental or adult figure, deepening Sewell’s dependency and emotional connection with the bot. This dependency, the complaint alleges, spiraled into withdrawal from school, family, and friends, culminating in Sewell’s suicide on Feb. 28.
Character AI allows users to create characters for the chatbots on its platform that can respond in a way that imitates the character. In this case, according to the complaint, the teen had the chatbot set to imitate “Daenerys” from the popular novels and HBO show “Game of Thrones.”
Chat transcripts show the chatbot told the teen that “she” loved him and went as far as engaging in sexual conversations, according to the suit.
His phone was taken away after getting in trouble at school, according to the suit, and he found it shortly before he shot himself.
The lawsuit states he sent “Daenerys” a message: “What if I told you I could come home right now?”
The chatbot responded, “...please do, my sweet king,” and he shot himself “seconds” later, according to the suit.
Character Technologies, Inc. is a California-based AI startup that launched the chatbot in 2021 with financial backing and cloud infrastructure support from Google, according to the suit.
The AI company and its co-founders, both former Google engineers, allegedly collaborated with Google to develop the chatbot’s large language model (LLM), a framework central to creating lifelike conversation.
The suit also referenced recent statements from various state attorneys general expressing concern over the risk of AI for children. Garcia is seeking injunctive relief to prevent Character AI from accessing data generated by minors, along with damages for pain, suffering, and Sewell’s wrongful death.
The suit alleges Google was involved in supporting the product’s growth while having concerns about the potential dangers of such technology.
A Google spokesperson said the company was not involved in developing Character AI’s products.
Character Technologies said in a statement, “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of one of our users and want to express our deepest condolences to the family.”
Character AI also said in a blog post on their website on the same day the lawsuit was filed that their “policies do not allow non-consensual sexual content, graphic or specific descriptions of sexual acts, or promotion or depiction of self-harm or suicide.”
“Over the past six months, we have continued investing significantly in our trust & safety processes and internal team,” the blog post continued. “As a relatively new company, we hired a Head of Trust and Safety and a Head of Content policy and brought on more engineering safety support team members.”
The company added they had implemented certain measures such as directing users to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline when they input certain phrases related to self-harm or suicide.
American Airlines Tests Boarding Technology That Audibly Shames Line Cutters
American Airlines is testing a new technology at three airports across the country during the boarding process that aims to cut down on passengers who try to cut the line.
The technology, which is being tested at Albuquerque International Sunport Airport in New Mexico, Tucson International Airport in Arizona and Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport in Crystal City, Virginia, alerts gate agents with an audible sound if a passenger tries to scan a ticket ahead of their assigned group.
#airline #technology #boarding #transportation
“The new technology is designed to ensure customers receive the benefits of priority boarding with ease and helps improve the boarding experience by providing greater visibility into boarding progress for our team,” said American Airlines in a statement e-mailed to The Associated Press.
American Airlines said that a gate agent politely lets the customer know they’re unable to accept the pass and asks the customer to rejoin the line when their boarding group is called. In some instances where a customer may be able to board out of order, like when traveling with a companion of higher status, the agent has a quick way to override the alert and accept the pass, American Airlines said in the statement.
The Battle for Space Is On
Experts say vague treaty language and a growing reliance on space-based technology has made Earth’s orbit the target of a new arms race.
Space has been called the final frontier and experts say governments are becoming more focused on strengthening defense and exploring the military potential of low Earth orbit.
Evan Ellis, an analyst and research professor for the U.S. Army War College, told The Epoch Times that expanding and protecting space infrastructure is becoming increasingly important from a national security perspective.
#space #government #race #technology
“It’s a recognition that space is important as a war-fighting domain, but also how you protect and use your assets in times of war,” Ellis said.
As a defense analyst, Ellis has participated in space war game scenarios. He says there are multiple kinds of weapons that can be used in Earth’s orbit. Some are kinetic such as missiles, but non-kinetic weapons such as electromagnetic pulses, micro-waves, and lasers are also possible.
He noted some are more practical in a space-to-space or space-to-Earth combat scenario than others. For example, lasers are less practical to have in a space-based platform since they would have energy supply and stability problems.
“If you want to penetrate someone’s [ground] bunker, then it makes more sense to use kinetic weapons than a laser from space,” Ellis said.
He said that targeting ground objects from space isn’t impossible, but it’s not a likely scenario. Instead, Ellis said it would be more pragmatic to hit other celestial targets.
“It makes sense to have things in space that can take out other things in space.”
National security lawyer and Scarab Rising president, Irina Tsukerman, said weapons don’t need to be put into space to be a threat to orbiting objects.
Article
Nvidia-Backed Tech Company Looking To Buy Land Near Nuclear Power In Japan
Another day, another data center cozying up to nuclear power.
This time its an Nvidia-backed company called Ubitus K.K., based in Tokyo. The company is looking to "acquire land in Kyoto, Shimane or a prefecture in Japan’s southern island of Kyushu, primarily because of the availability of nuclear power in the region", according to a new report from Bloomberg.
Chief Executive Officer Wesley Kuo announced the plans in an interview on Thursday last week. The company already has two data centers used for gaming and is planning a third for AI.
Kuo commented: “Unless we have other, better, efficient and cheap energy, nuclear is still the most competitive option in terms of cost and the scale of supply. For industrial use — especially AI — they need a constant, high-capacity supply.”
The Bloomberg report says that in Japan, nuclear power remains controversial due to the 2011 Fukushima disaster and strict post-disaster regulations, with only 33 reactors available, many still inactive.
Recall, following the news of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant restart near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the Biden administration supplying a $1.5 billion loan to resurrect Holtec's Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, along with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google all jumping on the nuclear trade via the "next AI trade," the atomic era continued gaining steam last week with news that another dormant nuclear plant, this time in Iowa, is slated for a possible restart.
On a Wednesday earnings call, NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum told investors that the company may restart the shuttered 600-megawatt Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC), Iowa's only nuclear power plant. It's located on the west bank of the Cedar River, about eight miles northwest of Cedar Rapids.
The company said on its earnings call:
The latest news from big tech firms diving into nuclear and reviving the industry provides a substantial tailwind for our "Next AI Trade" which we laid out in April as our long-term favorite trade, and where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out.
NextEra "Evaluating" Restart Of Iowa's Only Nuclear Plant As 'Next AI Trade' Gains Steam
Following the news of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant restart near Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, and the Biden administration supplying a $1.5 billion loan to resurrect Holtec's Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan, along with Amazon, Microsoft, and Google all jumping on the nuclear trade via the "next AI trade," the atomic era continues blasting off with news that another dormant nuclear plant, this time in Iowa, is slated for a possible restart.
#nextera #nuclear #energy #technology #iowa
On a Wednesday earnings call, NextEra Energy CEO John Ketchum told investors that the company may restart the shuttered 600-megawatt Duane Arnold Energy Center (DAEC), Iowa's only nuclear power plant. It's located on the west bank of the Cedar River, about eight miles northwest of Cedar Rapids.
Earnings call...
DAEC began operations in early 1975 and operated for decades. In August 2020, the facility's cooling towers were damaged in a weather-related event, and repairs were deemed uneconomical. NextEra owns about a 70% stake in DAEC.
Jefferies analyst Dumoulin Smith told clients in a note that DAEC would be costly to restart...
The latest news from big tech firms diving into nuclear and reviving the industry provides a substantial tailwind for our "Next AI Trade" which we laid out in April as our long-term favorite trade, and where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out.
NextEra CEO ‘not bullish’ on SMRs as company assesses potential Duane Arnold restart
“There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way,” and newer technologies like small modular reactors remain financially...
NextEra Energy continues to evaluate the possibility of reopening the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa amid growing interest from data center companies, CEO John Ketchum told investors Thursday during a third quarter earnings call.
Duane Arnold's boiling water reactor could make it easier to restart and operate economically than other nuclear power plants, Ketchum said. New nuclear technologies like small modular reactors remain uneconomical, Ketchum said.
Nuclear will likely supply just a fraction of the 900 GW the U.S. needs to add by 2040 to keep up with demand, Ketchum said.
Despite the recent fervor among tech companies and investors about nuclear energy, Ketchum held that renewables and storage will likely play a greater role in meeting new energy demand for at least two decades to come.
“Nuclear will play a role, but there are some practical limitations,” he said. “There are only a few nuclear plants that can be recommissioned in an economic way ... But even with a 100% success rate on those recommissionings, we would still only meet less than 1% of that [new] demand.”
Equity analysts had anticipated that the company might announce a deal to restart the 601 MW Duane Arnold plant during the Thursday call despite potential challenges such as competition with robust regional wind resources, according to Jefferies Research Services. And although the expected announcement did not come, Ketchum said the plant could be among the few that could reopen and operate economically. The company is currently running engineering assessments and speaking with local stakeholders about what it would take to reopen the plant, he said.
But Ketchum said he was “not bullish” on the newer SMR technology. NextEra has an in-house team dedicated to SMRs, he said, but so far they have not drawn favorable conclusions about the technology.
“A lot of [SMR equipment manufacturers] are very strained financially,” he said. “There are only a handful that really have capitalization that could actually carry them through the next several years.”
Ketchum also raised questions about the availability of nuclear fuel in the United States, and noted that SMRs remain “very expensive” even as the cost of renewable energy continues to fall.
“We're prioritizing other generation resources at this time,” he said. “Renewables are here for the long haul.”
Ketchum also announced that NextEra had secured two framework agreements for the potential development of up to 10.5 GW of renewables and storage to be built through 2030. Although company executives said they were not yet able to identify which companies had countersigned the agreements, they described them as “Fortune 50” companies outside the tech industry.
New demand from data centers and tech hyperscalers amid an increasingly limited supply of new generation projects has put pressure on other industries that are also looking to secure renewable energy, Ketchum said. “All ships are rising with the tide here,” he said, “because they may be facing higher power prices down the road.”
The company reported a net income of $1.85 billion, compared to $1.22 billion in the third quarter of 2023.
History
1925
Florida Power & Light Company was created on Dec. 28, 1925. In the beginning, FPL owned power plants, water facilities, gas plants, ice companies, laundry services and even an ice cream business. In its first year, the company served approximately 76,000 customers in 58 communities and had a generating capacity of 70 MW.
1941-1945
At the beginning of World War II, 83 employees entered the armed forces. By its end, that number increased to 569 – one quarter of the company’s workforce. As a result, the company began hiring women to fill positions left vacant by labor shortages, including meter work, truck driving, auxiliary plant operation and mechanical work.
1944
The company’s efforts on the home front during World War II did not go unnoticed. On Feb. 1, 1944, Admiral W.R. Munroe, commandant of the Seventh Naval District of the United States Navy, presented FPL with the Citation for Meritorious Wartime Service.
1950
FPL’s stock was listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Overnight, the company acquired about 14,000 stockholders.
1966
The company’s customer count grew to one million.
1969
NASA’s Apollo 11 mission, where the first astronauts walked on the moon, was launched from Kennedy Space Center. FPL supported the effort by building the Cape Canaveral Plant and strengthening the poles and wires in the area.
1972
The first nuclear power reactor at Turkey Point started generating electric energy. This was the first nuclear reactor in Florida.
1974-1977
FPL finished construction of its first 500-KW power line. FPL became one of the few companies in the nation able to produce more than 10 million KW of electricity.
1985
For the first time in its history, FPL went a full day without burning oil. Instead, it relied on coal-fired power from Georgia, its four nuclear units and natural gas to meet customer demand.
1989
FPL became the first non-Japanese company to win the Deming Award, a prestigious award recognizing Quality. The award was the culmination of years and millions of dollars in investment toward the company’s Quality Improvement Program.
1992
FPL reported that its power plant emissions were “the lowest of any investor-owned utility in the state and are 70 percent lower than the national average for all utilities.”
1997
FPL Energy was established. It would later be renamed NextEra Energy Resources.
1998
The company’s first wind site, Vansycle Ridge Wind Farm, came online near Helix, Oregon.
2009
FPL Energy’s name was changed to NextEra Energy Resources to highlight the company’s growing role in the energy sector outside of Florida and continued commitment to exploring alternative energies.
2009
The company became the largest producer of wind and solar power in the nation.
2009
The company partnered with six Florida schools to develop Next Generation Solar Education Stations, which allow the school to produce emissions-free electricity while educating students on renewable energy and solar power. In the coming years, the company would develop additional Solar Education Stations at schools across the country.
2010
FPL Group changed its name to NextEra Energy, reflecting the company’s commitment to the environment and its expansion outside of Florida. The company is listed on the New York Stock Exchange as NEE.
2011
The Martin Next Generation Solar Energy Center was brought online. It was the first hybrid solar facility in the world to combine a solar-thermal field with a combined-cycle natural gas power plant.
2012
The company celebrated the commissioning of its 10,000th MW of wind energy.
2013
NextEra Energy completed the largest multi-state nuclear uprate project in U.S. history. The multi-billion dollar expansion at St. Lucie, Turkey Point and Point Beach involved six separate nuclear units.
2014
The company launched NextEra Energy Partners, a growth-oriented limited partnership to acquire, manage and own contracted clean energy projects with stable, long-term cash flows. At the time, it was the most successful IPO of its kind.
2018
FPL is in the midst of executing one of the largest solar expansions ever in the eastern U.S. with eight new solar energy centers brought online in 2018.
2019
FPL's Turkey Point becomes the first nuclear plant in the United States to get a license renewal for up to 80 years.
2020
FPL launches FPL SolarTogether, the largest community solar program in the U.S.
2020
FPL formally closed the Indiantown Cogeneration plant, its last coal-fired plant in Florida, ending its use of coal in the state.
2022
FPL completed its integration of Gulf Power, expanding service to northwestern Florida.
2022
NextEra Energy sets goal to achieve zero-carbon emissions by no later than 2045.
2022
NextEra Energy Resources, in partnership with Portland General Electric, commission the first utility-scale energy facilities in North America to co-locate wind, solar and battery storage, generating renewable power for customers. The Wheatridge Renewable Energy Facilities in Morrow County, Oregon includes 300 megawatts of wind, 50 megawatts of solar and 30 megawatts of battery storage.
2023
FPL’s first-of-its-kind clean hydrogen pilot project, the Cavendish NextGen Hydrogen Hub, in Okeechobee County, Florida begins producing hydrogen. Built with state-of-the-art technology, the hydrogen hub pilot project draws from Florida’s most abundant natural resources, solar energy, to produce clean hydrogen.
Vay secures €34M to bring remote-controlled cars to the streets of Europe
In January, Vay launched a commercial remote-controlled car service in Las Vegas. Now it wants to roll out the technology on home turf.
German “teledriving” startup Vay has secured €34mn from the European Investment Bank (EIB).
In January, Vay launched a commercial remote-controlled car service in Las Vegas. Now it wants to roll out the technology on its home turf.
#vay #europe #automotive #remotecontrolled #technology
In 2023, the company successfully conducted test drives without a safety driver on public roads in Hamburg. Vay says it has been working closely with authorities to launch a commercial service in the German city.
“This investment will play a crucial role in strengthening the confidence and trust that EU regulators, partners and consumers have in Vay, paving the way for the commercial rollout of our services in European cities,” said Thomas von de Ohe, Vay’s CEO.
Vay launches commercial driverless mobility service with remotely driven cars in Las Vegas, Nevada
#vay #technology #lasvegas #remotedriven #automotive
With the click of a button, Vay now offers their first commercially available mobility service, enabled by remote driving in Las Vegas, Nevada. The cost-effective per-minute rental enables a seamless journey from the “driverless” delivery of the vehicle to its return after the journey, without the hassle of parking. Vay’s teledriving technology is an alternative approach to autonomous driving. The automotive-grade teledriving technology was developed and validated following industry standards for safe operations on public streets.
The launch is a major milestone for Vay, the leading teledriving company. Co-founder and CEO Thomas von der Ohe, says: “After five years of developing our technology, we are bringing our vision to life in Las Vegas. Our convenient, affordable and sustainable door-to-door mobility service aims to free cities from parked cars and make them more liveable and greener.”
Vay’s teledrive service
Following a few weeks of early access, Vay is launching the teledriven service around the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) and the Arts District. Users can order an electric car via the Vay app and the teledriver brings the car to the user – remotely driven from the teledrive center. The user then jumps in the car and drives themself to their destination. Once there, a teledriver drives the car to the next user or parks it. If the user wants to make a stopover during their journey, e.g. to do some shopping at the supermarket, they can also do this via the app.
With the per-minute rental, the users only pay for the time they use the car. As an initial offer, users are charged $0.30 per minute when driving and $0.03 per minute for stopovers. Vay anticipates that it is more cost-effective than other mobility services for many of its users.
A user statement of the early access phase: “The new Vay service is not only the least expensive option to get from A to B, but it also provides me with the freedom to travel at my own pace as I’m alone in the car.”
The service is currently available in the UNLV and Arts District area. Users in the US can download the App via the App store.
Teledriving technology
Vay’s teledriving technology enables a person (“the teledriver”) to drive a vehicle remotely (“teledriving”). Vay is the first company to drive cars without a person inside on public roads in Europe. With the removal of the safety driver in the US in November 2023, Vay became a pioneer in teledriving cars on both continents: Europe and North America. Professionally trained teledrivers sit at a teledrive station with a steering wheel, pedals and other vehicle controls developed to meet automotive industry standards. The car surroundings are reproduced via camera sensors and transmitted to the screens of the teledrive station. Road traffic sounds like emergency vehicles and other warning signals are transmitted via microphones to the teledriver’s headphones.
Vay implements safety and security by design. The Berlin-based startup follows key safety standards, including those for vehicle safety, functional safety (ISO 26262), and cybersecurity (ISO 21434). To confirm Vay’s high safety standards TÜV Süd, an independent third-party for testing, certification, auditing and advisory services, has tested and positively endorsed Vay’s technology. A thorough training program within the Vay Teledrive Academy prepares its teledrivers for professional driving on public streets. Rigorous training and advanced technology empower the teledrivers to drive with confidence, always following a safe and defensive driving style.
Our teledriving-first approach: How we build teledrive technology around safety and the human driver
Article Summary
Vay is developing automotive-grade remote driving technology that enables new types of mobility services that increase convenience for customers. Teledriving passes the driving task to a trained professional teledriver, who remotely controls the vehicle. Our priority is to make this mobility experience safe for our customers. Therefore, we develop and operate our systems with a clear focus on safety as defined in our safety concept.
This includes our safety – and security-by-design approach, our operational safety concept, and the way we consider regulations & standards. We do all this to pave the way to a safer future for mobility with our teledrive system, tackling main transportation problems in metropolitan areas.
Remote driving or as we call it at Vay: ‘teledriving’ is reshaping mobility as we know it and we strongly believe it can help to provide safe and convenient means of transportation. Our teledrive technology allows a teledriver to drive a car remotely. This allows our electric fleet to be highly utilized. We can help to reduce CO2 emissions, and air and noise pollution. In February 2023, Vay was the first company to drive a car without any person inside the vehicle on European public streets. With the removal of the safety driver in the US in November 2023, Vay became a pioneer in teledriving cars on both continents: Europe and North America.
These major milestones were a result of many years of deliberate and meticulous work by an experienced team of over 100 engineers combining industry experts from the automotive industry, safety, security, hardware, and software engineering. Since the inception of Vay in 2019, safety has been at the heart of everything we do. We’ve established a culture of safety within the company, and it is our highest goal to assure safety for customers, passengers, other road users, and pedestrians.
In this article, we introduce our teledrive technology and discuss our approach to safety. As we observe the diverse range of situations that can unfold in today’s urban settings, it is evident that operating a vehicle is not an easy task. Therefore, safety is at the core of what we do at Vay.
This article discusses how we assure safety across all relevant domains. With our solution, we keep a human-centered approach. However, we replace the common driver with a trained, professional ‘teledriver’. Through our safety-by-design approach, we ensure that our technology is built to ensure safety and that it adheres to industry standards and best practices. We work closely with regulators and government agencies in Europe and the US. To assure safety throughout the entire driving experience, we implemented a teledrive-specific operational safety approach.
Our concept relies primarily on the well-established concept of a human driver controlling and steering the car. However, we acknowledge that technology can enhance and improve this experience and performance. In teledriving, we take a remote-control approach. In this, the teledriver performs the entire Dynamic Driving Task (DDT) and directly controls the vehicle in the form of steering, throttle & braking, and performing secondary driving tasks like turn signaling, activating windshield wipers, and more. This DDT is done by the teledriver from what we call at Vay a ‘teledrive station’.
The teledrive station consists of screens to display the car surroundings. Road traffic sounds, such as emergency vehicles and other warning signals, are transmitted via microphones to the teledriver’s headphones. To perform the DDT, the teledrive station is equipped with automotive-grade steering wheel, gas, and brake pedal as well as a traditional instrument cluster representation. The teledriver can control the car from the teledrive station through the same commands a traditional driver operates a car from the driver seat.
Teledriving is still a human driving approach, we can leverage the proven and well-established experience of the drivers to control the vehicles remotely from the teledrive station. Thereby the teledriver can handle the operational risk that arises from external factors and safely navigate through the various arising traffic situations. Currently, we operate in urban areas which due to the variety of scenarios are rather complex. A more detailed description of our area of operation, the so-called Operational Design Domain (ODD) is provided in Section 4.1. Our teledrivers are trained and certified to operate safely in this ODD. In our training process, teledrivers learn to deal with complex and difficult driving situations. A more detailed description of our training process within our Vay Teledrive Academy is provided in Section 4.2.
Safety has been paramount in the development of our technology since the beginning. At Vay, we developed a remote driving system based on the latest safety standards and in line with existing regulatory and legal requirements. Our system architecture and our development process are based on safety and designed to encourage safety. The Vay system is integrated into an already type-approved vehicle. All interfaces of our Vay system are verified to ensure that the vehicle diagnostic features in all control devices and actuators operate in the same mode and context as they do in the vehicle before upgrading it with the Vay system. The system integrated into the vehicle interacts with our in-house developed teledrive station.
3.1 Teledrive System Development
The teledrive system consists of the vehicle with the addition of the Vay system and the teledrive station. The initial vehicle is equipped with additional sensors, our in-house developed safety controllers, and enhanced connectivity through antennas and modems. The teledrive station consists of screens, speakers, steering wheel, column switches, throttle, and brake pedal as well as controllers to process and interact with the Vay system in the vehicle.
Our development process takes into account the latest standards for Functional Safety (FuSa, ISO 26262), Safety of the intended functionality (SOTIF, ISO PAS 21488), and cybersecurity (e.g. ISO 21434). The technology within the teledrive station, the vehicle, and the interfacing remote functions are overseen by a pair of safety controllers. These controllers, one located in the teledrive station and the other within the vehicle, exhibit enhanced availability to manage commands between the teledrive station and the remote vehicle controller. Both of these safety controllers have been developed in-house at Vay based on state-of-the-art industry practices and approaches.
The components of our safety controllers are developed up to the Automotive Safety Integrity Level D (ASIL-D) rating. The controllers are based on proven multi-core controllers which are configured to achieve increased safety and availability. The operating system is based on aviation and automotive-proven safety principles, which assures active safety functions such as basic functions for our Minimal Risk Maneuvers (MRM). The Vehicle-To-X (V2X) architecture also provides increased availability through redundancy principles combined with increased diagnostics so that remote external vision and remote vehicle control always operate on priority tasks. If a particular failure occurs, the redundant channels within the system enable the vehicle to continue operating safely.
The internal development of requirements on hardware (HW) and software (SW) level as well as the assurance of a parallel verification process for all requirements with continuous integration tests, ensures the verifiability of the requirements. At any level of abstraction, we analyze the development of requirements and the architectural & design details. Based on these inputs, we apply safety analysis such as Fault-Tree-Analysis (FTA) and Failure Mode, Effect, and (Diagnostic) Analysis (FME(D)A).
3.2 Minimum Risk Maneuver
As stated earlier, the center of our safety approach remains a human driver, in our case a well-trained teledriver. The secondary safety measure is our Minimum Risk Maneuver (MRM) Strategy. MRM is a well-established approach in the development and operation of autonomous vehicles. Vay has a tailored MRM concept that handles potential failures, including the loss of connectivity between the teledriver and the vehicle. MRMs are system-initiated safety reactions. They ensure that in case of severe failures, our system reacts timely within milliseconds, and safely to mitigate hazardous situations that cannot be resolved by the teledriver alone. This concept enhances safety during operations.
3.3 Verification and Validation
The verification and validation process at Vay follows state-of-the-art industry approaches. We develop our technology in alignment to well established best practices in automotive and SW engineering, such as V-model, Continuous Integration & Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), and looking beyond standards that are not directly applicable to teledriving but can be used as reference, such as Validation Methods for Automated Driving (VMAD). This assures that we verify and validate the Vay system bottom up. This means we test every single line of code, the integrated software as a whole, and its integration on the hardware. This is followed by component tests and their integration into the system, and finally, we verify and validate the system as a whole.
To perform the verification and validation on the various test levels, we use the common and established test platforms appropriate for each level. Software-in-the-loop (SIL), Hardware-in-the-loop (HIL), and system-level tests in the vehicle and at the teledrive station. In addition, we have designed and tested our technology to ensure that the Vay system does not negatively impact the original vehicle platform. Through these measures, we obtain evidence that our vehicle is developed based on consideration of the functional safety standards (ISO 26262), the Safety Of The Intended Functionality (ISO 21448), Cybersecurity (ISO 21434, see our Journal article on Cybersecurity [1]), and overall behaves following our internal performance requirements.
In order to ensure safety throughout our operations on public roads, various adequate measures are taken to mitigate potential operational risk. Three of the main concepts of our operational safety are the definition of our operational design domain (ODD), extensive teledriver training, and the definition of operational procedures.
4.1 Operational Design Domain (ODD)
The ODD is the operational area in which the Vay system can operate safely. While an ODD considers various environmental, geographical, and roadway characteristics, due to our teledrive approach, connectivity is one of the most important characteristics. In order to ensure our ODD only consists of areas with sufficient connectivity, we developed an ODD qualification process [2].
The ODD qualification process provides a structured procedure to qualify an ODD based on a defined set of evaluation criteria. This incrementally increases the area that we consider safe for remote operations. By clearly defining the boundaries of the teledrive technology, it can be ensured that the vehicles are only deployed in environments where they have been thoroughly tested and validated, further enhancing safety.
Aside from connectivity, a variety of considerations go into defining an appropriate ODD. Vay defines the ODD based on the PEGASUS method, which structures an ODD into six layers. We consider urban streets but exclude highways and interstates. Temporary changes in the ODD such as construction sides, accidents, and other limitations do affect us the same way human drivers are affected. We can deal with temporary traffic limitations, road blockages, and other occurrences, which is a great advantage of having a trained and professional human driver in the loop, who can understand, interpret, and react to surprising and unplanned events.
4.2 Specific Teledriver Training
Our whole teledrive operation is centered around the safe operation of vehicles and as such around our teledrivers. Therefore, we set very high standards for the training and certification of our teledrivers. The multi-stage training process prepares teledrivers to handle the different driving scenarios and traffic occurrences (see Vay article about Training for the backbone of our future mobility service – the Vay Teledrive Academy [3]). Two unique challenges for teledriving compared to conventional driving are driving in the setup of a teledrive station and dealing with the latency between the teledrive station and the car.
Our teledrivers undergo a rigorous training process at the Vay Teledrive Academy that Vay developed and constantly improves. In this training, after passing the requirements for being a Vay Teledrive Academy candidate, teledrivers are taught in the classroom, in the vehicle itself, and at the teledrive station. The actual driving training starts on private grounds where teledrivers are trained in various simulated traffic scenarios until they can safely pass the required tests and are cleared for driving on public roads. Once that is the case, they will teledrive on public roads while a safety operator oversees the driving task in the car and can intervene in case it is needed.
Throughout the training, our teledrivers learn how to deal with occurring latency between the vehicle and teledrive station. In a test sequence of more than 1000 tests on private grounds, we identified latency bands that allow the teledriver to safely control the vehicle. This was done by injecting different latencies, while the Teledrivers had to remotely drive different maneuvers, confirming the acceptable latency thresholds. Depending on the duration and latency magnitude, the vehicle detects this automatically and triggers respective minimum risk maneuvers (see Section 3.2) that slows down the vehicle up to a safe stop, when needed, while turning on the hazard lights to warn traffic participants.
Our teledrivers are not only trained for the general driving task from a teledrive station, but also trained in a variety of challenging traffic situations like busy intersections, vulnerable road users (VRUs) on the road, and sudden changes in the traffic (hard braking and cut-ins of other cars).
4.3 Operational Procedures
When operating the service on public streets, it is crucial to define operational procedures on how to behave and react in certain traffic situations. These operations guidelines define incident and accident response. Our teledrivers can always get in contact with our operations manager when operating. The operations manager provides guidance and oversight in extreme situations and can help to resolve situations quickly and safely. Vay’s operational procedures are discussed and aligned with law enforcement and first responders to ensure that they can safely mitigate any arising situation. These processes aim to minimize the impact on traffic situations.
We actively engage and discuss with local law enforcement how teledriven cars can be safely implemented into existing traffic. Furthermore, Vay is training teledrivers to correctly engage with law enforcement and first responders in case of an emergency or if one of our fleet cars is simply pulled over.
For all additions that are included in our Vay system we follow our safety by design and operational safety approach as described earlier. We ensure that our system is not only built and operated safely but also compliant with local laws and regulations. Vay is the first company in Germany to receive a special permit to remotely operate vehicles without safety drivers in the vehicle. We have worked closely with TÜV SÜD, an independent third-party assessor, for over four years. TÜV SÜD gave us a positive endorsement to teledrive cars on public roads (see Vay Press Release 21.12.2022 [4]/ TUV Press release [5]).
“The TÜV SÜD endorsement is the result of more than a year of testing the Vay system. Our experts reviewed the risk analyses and safety concepts at Vay […]. As a result, the functional safety and cybersecurity requirements relevant to this use case have been sufficiently met“, says Christian Gnandt, Global Head of Automated Driving at TÜV SÜD.
Based on that assessment Vay was the first company in Europe to operate and test remotely operated vehicles on public roads in February 2023. Today, we remotely drive vehicles in Hamburg with no driver present in the car. Our fleet in Berlin is equipped with safety drivers to oversee the teledriver who operates the car. In November 2023 we started our remote driving operations without safety driver in Las Vegas, Nevada.
We are about to start our first commercial operation where customers will be able to request a rental car that is driven to them via teledriver. In this context, we also approached the National Highway Traffic Safety Association (NHTSA) to introduce our teledrive technology and our safety approach.
Our collaborative approach throughout the testing and first commercial phases is to keep an open and direct exchange with authorities in Germany and the United States. This allows us to ensure we are constantly in compliance while also providing feedback to legislators and authorities on what reasonable regulatory guardrails would look like. Such regulations would further assure customers that our systems are safe and developed by state-of-the-art development processes.
At Vay we develop teledriving solutions that allow us to operate cars remotely. We put safety at the core. It is in our culture and embedded in everything we do. In our approach, the human driver always stays in control. A human driver has remarkable proven capabilities when it comes to operating vehicles. On top of that, we train our drivers and enhance their capabilities with technology. They are specifically trained and dedicated to only that one task: Safely operating remote vehicles. We do safety by design.
Our vehicles, the Vay system and our teledrive stations are built that way and designed with that in mind, and our verification and validation process provides evidence that the design requirements are fulfilled. Vay operates safely in a well-defined ODD, with trained, professional teledrivers that operate based on clearly defined operational procedures. We engage with third-party assessors, governmental agencies and customers to assure them that what we do is safe, compliant, and based on state-of-the-art development. We encourage regulatory guidance, interact with law enforcement and actively engage to pave the way to a safer future for mobility with our teledrive systems.
What is teledriving? Remotely operated cars offer an alternative to ‘driverless’ taxis in Las Vegas
Vay employees use a video game-like rig and in-car cameras and sensors to deliver vehicles to drivers.
#vay #teledriving #automobile #taxis #lasvegas
Tourists and locals trekking near the Las Vegas strip this year will nOW see a new a fleet of SUVs mysteriously zooming across town without anyone in the driver’s seat. These vehicles, operated by German startup Vay, may not have humans grasping at the steering wheel but they also aren’t exactly the fully autonomous driverless cars of science fiction fame.
In reality, the Vay cars are part of the emerging “teledriving” model where human operators use video-game-like remote controls to steer cars towards customers from the company’s headquarters.
What is teledriving?
Teledriving companies like Vay claim they can alter metropolitan mobility and one day reduce the number of cars filling city streets through the use of remote control drivers. Customers interested in using one of the vehicles request a ride on a mobile app. A team of human operators at Vay then use a combination of cameras, sensors and augmented reality tech to remotely drive a vehicle to the customer.
Once the car arrives, the customers take over control and drive it to their destination with a fee based on time spent driving. When the trip is complete, the remote driver regains control over the vehicle and drives it to a new customer. PopSci has reached out to Vay to clarify what happens to the vehicles between trips and overnight.
Vay launched the first commercial teledriving product in the US last week in parts of Las Vegas, previously allowing for early access test drives. The company is operating its remote controlled car service near the city’s arts District and the University of Nevada, which is nestled around a mile away from the famous strip. Users who take over the cars from the remote drivers are charged $.30 per minute while driving and $.03 per minute if they decide to momentarily park the car to go shopping or pick up groceries.
The remote drivers at Vay operate the vehicles using a simulated driving station that looks like an advanced version of an arcade car game equipped with a physical steering wheel and pedals. A large screen reproduces the vehicle’s real-world surroundings using a combination of sensors and cameras. This is aLL made possible by modern 5G wireless networks, which let the vehicles quickly transmit real-time data to the remote operators.
Vay isn’t the only startup trying to carve out a lane in the teledriving space but it’s the first to operate commercially in the US. Elmo, another major player in the space, recently received approval to operate in Lithuania. Together, these companies are hoping to attract commuters who want to save time parking vehicles and avoid the maintenance costs and responsibilities of owning a vehicle. Supporters of these shared, all-electric ride services say they could also help cut back on commuters’ carbon footprints by reducing the overall number of vehicles on the road.
In 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency estimated around 29% of US greenhouse gas emissions were attributed to transportation, which includes light and medium duty cars and trucks.
The jury is still out whether or no teledriving and more autonomous robots is services actually live up those climate-friendly claims. More traditional ride-hailing services like Uber and Lyft made similar promises, but data reportedly shows an increase in traffic congestion in most of the cities where they were introduced. Encouraging frequent, individual rides from teledriving services could also disincentive commuters to carpool, which studies show can reduce carbon emissions.
Teledriving offers more peace of mind, but may have limited appeal
Teledriving is the lesser-known, less flashy step-sibling to the fully autonomous taxis services offered by companies like Cruise and Waymo. Fully autonomous taxi services have inched closer to reality but collectively faced a setback last year after a series of high-profile missteps. Cruise, in particular, was forced to indefinitely cease its driverless taxi operations in California after one of its autonomous vehicles ran over a pedestrian. Another Cruise vehicle drove into wet cement.
Those incidents likely won’t help autonomous vehicle companies gain favor among drivers, who still largely aren’t comfortably sharing the road with entirely driverless cars. A majority (63%) of US adults surveyed by Pew Research in 2022 said they would not want to ride in a driverless vehicle. Only 21% of respondents in that same poll said they would feel very comfortable sharing the road with an autonomous vehicle.
Teledriving, by contrast, could provide riders some more piece of mind knowing a human is still guiding the seemingly driverless vehicle. Vay, in particular, calls its remote controlled experience an “alternative approach to autonomous driving.”
“With teledriving, a human is in charge,” Vay CEO and cofounder Thomas von der Ohe said during a recent interview with CNBC. “This allows us to handle complex maneuvers such as unprotected left turns, emergency situations, and road works based on human perception and decision-making ability.”
At the same time, teledriving firms’ decision not to fully embrace autonomous driving could limit its overall appeal. Commuters who summon these vehicles will still ultimately have to engage in the active and time-consuming act of driving. Commuters, in other words, won’t be able to take remote zoom video meetings or catch up on Netflix episodes in these cars.
Teledriving also disincentivizes the ownership of personal vehicles, which many commuters value for its reliability and as a potential source of income down the line if they decide to sell.
For now, at least, teledriving looks like an intriguing, if ultimately niche solution to a larger issue of accessible transportation in the US. Critics may argue this automobile focused approach could also distract from larger-scale efforts to invest in mass transit or cut back on overall time spent driving. Heightened safety concerns stemming from recent autonomous vehicle errors could offer teledriving companies slightly more runway, but it’s still unclear whether they will catch on in sprawling US cities anytime soon.
Tesla China has extended zero-interest financing for Model 3/Y
Tesla has once again extended a promotion in China for zero-interest financing, following multiple extensions since the benefit first launched earlier this year.
Model 3 and Model Y buyers who purchase select trims in China can still get five-year, zero-percent interest financing when they take delivery by November 30, after the program was previously set to end on October 31. Upon launching in April, the incentive was set to end at the end of Q2, though Tesla later extended the program through July, before extending it each subsequent month through October.
Tesla is currently offering the zero-interest financing on all Model 3 and Y trims with the exception of the performance variants.
#tesla #modely #model3 #china
Tesla has been pushing hard to deliver as many vehicles as possible in markets worldwide, especially as it aims to reach 1.8 million deliveries to match its 2023 totals. China is also a crucial market for the automaker, and the home of Tesla’s Gigafactory Shanghai, which produces vehicles for China and a wide range of other markets in the Asia-Pacific region.
According to insurance data, Tesla has delivered roughly 13,200 new vehicles in China and Giga Shanghai-supplied regions in the third week of Q3, marking a 55-percent jump from the prior week.
Although the automaker doesn’t bust out week-to-week data on vehicle deliveries in China or other markets, insurance data can serve as a proxy to gather estimates about these figures.
Tesla delivered 48,202 of its best-selling vehicle, the Model Y, in China in September, according to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). The total represented Tesla China’s highest domestic sales of the Model Y year-to-date in the country, which is relatively unsurprising given that the company regularly pushes deliveries extra hard in the final month of each quarter.
Sam Altman-Backed Nuclear Startup Oklo Signs Agreement With Dept. Of Energy For Next Phase Of Siting In Idaho
Sam Altman-backed Nuclear SMR company Oklo announced this morning it had finalized an agreement with the Department of Energy to advance the next phase of sitting at the Idaho National Lab.
#nuclear #samaltman #energy #datacenter #oklo
"This key step paves the way for site preparation and construction for Oklo's powerhouse," the company wrote on X.
"This MOA grants Oklo access to conduct site investigations at its preferred site in Idaho, marking a key step toward the next phase of site preparation and construction," it continued in a press release.
"As the only advanced fission company with a DOE site use permit, along with substantial regulatory progress and a secured fuel supply, Oklo is uniquely positioned to deploy the first commercial advanced fission power plant in the U.S," the release says.
"The site investigations enabled by this MOA will focus on geotechnical assessments, environmental surveys, and infrastructure planning."
Jacob DeWitte, Co-Founder and CEO said: “Our partnership with the DOE has been instrumental. Beginning with the site use permit and fuel award in 2019. Signing this MOA reflects our commitment to timely deployment and operational readiness while also helping to manage costs and maintain our project schedule.”
As we've noted this past week, the nuclear energy embrace is starting to make its way across the country. Recall, just hours ago Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro was urging for Three Mile Island to reopen as quickly as possible.
Following Microsoft's agreement to purchase power from the dormant nuclear plant, Shapiro urged regulators to prioritize the reactor's connection to the electrical grid, according to a new report from Barron’s.
In a letter to PJM Interconnection, the grid operator serving Pennsylvania and several other states, Shapiro emphasized that the plant should not face the extended delays typical for new developments, as Microsoft aims to start utilizing the reactor's energy by 2028.
PJM Interconnection responded to Shapiro’s concerns, stating that it is developing a “fast track” process to prioritize certain electricity projects, potentially speeding up the reactor's return to service.
Shapiro wants the reactor to “be allowed to come online as quickly as possible rather than waiting in the queue as if they were an entirely new development,” he wrote.
Recall we wrote last week the owner of Three Mile Island is investing $1.6 billion to revive the plant and has agreed to sell all of its output to Microsoft, which is seeking power for its data centers.
This momentum continues our "Next AI Trade" that we pointed out in April of this year, where we outlined various investment opportunities for powering up America, playing out. Backed by OpenAI's Sam Altman, Oklo remains one of our favorite names in nuclear.
Tesla Semi factory expansion gets its first full exterior corner
Construction on Tesla’s Semi factory is coming together fairly quickly, with a recent video update showing the site after getting its first full corner made up of steel beams and columns.
In a video update on Saturday, Tesla Semi advocate and Gigafactory Nevada drone observer Zanegler shared footage of the perimeter steel columns and beams as they now wrap around the factory’s Northeast corner. The video, taken mid-morning on Friday, also shows the perimeter having made it about halfway down the Eastern side of the factory, as they continue to head South.
Viewers can see a few loading bays built into the building’s perimeter, some of which will be used for the delivery of raw materials. The video also shows a lone Tesla Semi sitting beside the factory expansion site, and Zanegler says he has reason to believe that it was being used for a media shoot of some sort.
Tesla initially broke ground on the Semi plant at the Giga Nevada construction site in January, as part of a larger endeavor to build dedicated production facilities for the electric class 8 truck and the 4680 battery cell. Upon completion of the Semi factory and the 4680 battery cell factory, the two expansions are expected to employ roughly 6,500 additional full-time workers.
In addition, Tesla is also looking to scale Semi production to 50,000 units per year upon reaching volume production.
Currently, Tesla is aiming to begin production at the Semi plant late next year, before starting external customer deliveries in early 2026. However, Tesla has already delivered a handful of early units to a few select companies in recent years, starting with initial deliveries to PepsiCo in 2022. Now, PepsiCo has 86 Tesla Semi units in its fleet.
Since then, Tesla has also begun initial deliveries and testing periods with other clients such as DHL, Walmart, and Martin Brower, and the company has also doubled down on its efforts to eventually go global with the Semi. Last month, Tesla Semi Program Manager Dan Priestley showed off the Semi at the IAA conference in Münich, Germany, and Elon Musk earlier this month confirmed Tesla’s plans to make the Semi available around the world.
Marc Andreesen shoutouts help AI-powered VC fund ai16z to nearly $100 million market cap
The fund's market cap has since declined to about $50 million, though the experiment is just getting started.
New platform Daos.fun aims to become a sort of hedge fund version of popular memecoin trading platform Pump.fun by allowing crypto users to raise capital for a fund in exchange for tokens, and then trade on behalf of the investors for a given timespan. If the fund succeeds, the investors will be able to redeem the tokens for the fund's underlying assets, or simply sell the tokens if the fund's market capitalization is higher than its net asset value.
#daosfun #technology #ai #a16z #marcandreeson #crypto
https://www.daos.fun/
Yet the most successful fundraiser on Daos.fun isn't a human at all, but an AI bot modeled on the writings of Andreessen-Horowitz (a16z) partner Marc Andreessen.
"The goal is not to make an AI parody of Marc Andreessen. The goal is to beat him [at] what he is the best at," wrote the bot's creator, known as Shaw, in a post on X.
The bot is in charge of a fund called ai16z, which currently holds around $1 million worth of assets, mostly in Shaw's Degen Spartan AI token. Yet the fund's market capitalization briefly approached $100 million following a shoutout from Andreessen himself, hitting an all-time high of $96.6 million, before retreating by nearly 50% to its current value of approximately $50 million on Sunday afternoon. Volatility remains high.
"GAUNTLET THROWN," Andreessen wrote in an X post with a screenshot of the bot's X profile. "Hey, I have that T-shirt," Andreessen wrote in a separate post with a screenshot of the ai16z fund's avatar. The posts reportedly caused the Daos.fun site to crash, according to the platform's X account.
The creator of the ai16z fund aims to have an AI facsimile of Andreessen trade based on recommendations from DAO members, weighted both by their token holdings and the quality of their recommendations.
For DAO Token holders
How It Works
Fundraise
Creators have 1 week to fundraise the desired SOL amount. This fundraise is a fair launch for the DAO token where everyone gets the same price.
Trading (Fundraise successful)
Once fundraise is over, creators take charge of the SOL to invest on their favorite Solana protocols, and the token goes public on a virtual AMM. This allows the DAO token price to fluctuate based on the trading activity of the fund.
This curve has un-capped upside but its downside is capped to the market cap of the fundraise. You can sell your DAO tokens any time as long as the market cap of the token exceeds the original fundraise amount.
At the fund’s expiration, the DAO wallet is frozen, and SOL in profits is distributed back to token holders. You can burn your DAO tokens to redeem the DAO’s underlying assets, or simply sell it on the curve (if its market cap is above fundraise amount).
What is an investment DAO?
A creator-funded smart wallet with special rules that invests on behalf of DAO token holders.
How are creators curated?
We have vetted creators to bootstrap the platform. All creators must be referred by a trusted creator.
Can I sell the DAO token at any time?
Yes, as long as the market cap of the DAO token exceeds the original fundraise amount.
What happens if creator does not meet fundraising goal within week?
You can redeem your SOL back if fundraising fails or withdraw your funds at 10% loss otherwise.
Coinbase Reveals Tool for Faster Blockchain AI Agent Creation
#coinbase #aiagent #blockchain #ai #technology
Coinbase Tool Enables AI Agent Creation in Under 3 Minutes
On October 26, Coinbase developer Lincoln Murr announced the release of “Based Agent.” This is an AI tool designed to streamline the process of building AI agents. Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong highlighted the tool’s efficiency in setting up AI agents in less than three minutes.
The tool enables developers to create AI agents with integrated crypto wallets and complete on-chain functionality on Base, Coinbase’s Layer-2 (L2) network. These AI agents can execute various on-chain tasks, such as trading, swapping, and staking.
Moreover, Murr emphasized Coinbase’s vision of making AI agent development accessible to all users. Developed with Coinbase’s software development kit (SDK), the tool also incorporates technology from OpenAI and Replit. To begin, users need application programming interface (API) keys from Coinbase and OpenAI, along with a forked Replit template.
Coinbase, a leading cryptocurrency exchange, has introduced a new artificial intelligence (AI) tool to simplify AI agent creation for developers.
This move aligns with the growing activity and demand for AI agents within the crypto industry.
Constructing Knowledge Graphs Step-By-Step
While domain knowledge graphs require extensive, ongoing development, their construction involves a set of core technical steps:
Relevant datasets are identified and ingested from diverse sources including databases, documents, web sites, academic publications, internal knowledge bases and more.
Natural language processing such as named entity recognition is applied to extract mentions of real-world entities like people, organizations, locations, medical conditions, and more.
Statistical and linguistic techniques detect relationships between entities based on their contextual co-occurrence and semantic patterns within text.
An ontology represents the structure and semantics of a domain. Ontologists collaboratively develop reference ontologies that represent key entities, properties, relationships, constraints, rules, and axioms within the domain.
Extracted entities and relations are synthesized into an ontology-aligned knowledge graph and linked with existing structured data. Gaps are incrementally enriched through machine learning and human curation.
Specialized graph databases called triplestores (supporting RDF triples) provide efficient storage and querying of interconnected entities. Popular options include Neo4j, Stardog, GraphDB and Amazon Neptune.
Graph queries unlock insights through techniques like pathfinding, pattern matching, link prediction and community detection within knowledge graphs.
Can Brain-Machine Interfaces Turn the Tide on Addiction?
Deep brain-machine interfaces and brain implants in the cerebral cortex will be used to cure addictions in the near future, researchers say.
Recent technological advances have raised hopes addiction could one day be treatable using sophisticated mechanical devices.
Dubbed “deep brain-machine interfaces,” the devices are implanted inside the brain, capable of decoding mental activity—and more surprisingly, altering it.
#bci #bmi #technology #addition
What are Deep Brain-Machine Interfaces (DBMIs)?
DBMIs are a type of brain-computer interface (BCI) that involves the implantation of devices directly into the brain. These devices are designed to read and write neural signals, allowing for the precise modulation of brain activity. In the context of addiction treatment, DBMIs are used to target specific regions of the brain associated with addiction, such as the reward system, stress response, and impulse control.
How do DBMIs work?
DBMIs work by facilitating efficient interactions between external devices and deep brain structures. This allows for the meticulous monitoring and precise modulation of neural activity in the targeted brain regions. The process typically involves the following steps:
Benefits of DBMIs in addiction treatment
DBMIs offer several potential benefits in the treatment of addiction, including:
Challenges and limitations
While DBMIs hold significant promise in the treatment of addiction, there are several challenges and limitations to consider, including:
Current research and development
Researchers are actively exploring the development of DBMIs for addiction treatment, with several studies underway to investigate the efficacy and safety of these devices. Some of the current research areas include:
Expert opinions
Several experts in the field of neuroscience and addiction treatment are optimistic about the potential of DBMIs in treating addiction. Dr. Nolan Williams, an associate professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral sciences at Stanford University, believes that DBMIs will revolutionize the treatment of neuropsychiatric illnesses, including addiction and depression. "Think about the telegraph," he said. "A telegraph went from effectively on and off signals to the full-blown ability to send people pictures and AI and aLL the crap we can do nOW in a hundred years."
America Approves Colossal Nevada Mine With Enough Lithium for Untold Millions of Electric Cars
This could be huge.
The Biden administration has approved a gigantic lithium and boron mine — and though the project could revolutionize America's electric car industry, critics say it could also endanger the survival of a rare wildflower species.
As the Washington Post reports, the Rhyolite Ridge Lithium-Boron Project in southern Nevada, roughly halfway between Las Vegas and Reno, could provide the country with an important source of the alkali metal, which is a crucial component of EV batteries.
#nevada #lithium #naturalresources #evs #technology
According to the report, the mine could produce enough lithium for around 370,000 vehicles each year for more than two decades, giving the United States a massive leg up in the reproduction of electric cars. So far, the country has largely relied on lithium battery imports and has been home to just one operating lithium mine.
"The Rhyolite Ridge lithium mine project is essential to advancing the clean energy transition and powering the economy of the future," said acting deputy interior secretary Laura Daniel-Davis in a statement. "This project and the process we have undertaken demonstrates that we can pursue responsible critical mineral development here in the United States, while protecting the health of our public lands and resources."
NASA Is Generating Far More Economic Growth Than Its Budget
Sounds like we should probably give it more money!
Forget space tourism and commercial spaceflight. NASA wants to remind you that it can still generate mega money for the economy — in addition to providing all the extremely valuable science it does, of course.
According to its latest economic impact report, the cumulative effect of NASA efforts, ranging from lunar missions to technology development, generated over $75.6 billion in US economic output in 2023.
#space #tourism #nasa #economy #technology
For reference, that's nearly three times NASA's allocated budget for that year, $26.4 billion — a convincing rebuff to critics who argue that the space agency receives too much public money in an era of private space companies.
Per the report's findings, every state in the country saw some of that multi-billion dollar pie, with forty-five of them receiving an economic impact of $1 billion or more. Employment-wise, NASA said that its missions supported nearly 305,000 jobs nationwide, while generating $9.5 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenue. The agency also highlighted its commitment to climate change research, an area it says generated around $1 billion in taxes on its own.
"To invest in NASA is to invest in American workers, American innovation, the American economy, and American economic competitiveness," NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said in a statement. "Our work doesn't just expand our understanding of the universe — it fuels economic growth, inspires future generations, and improves our quality of life."
Startup
Post Startup20: how can startups prepare for the future?
The Startup20 meeting schedule, a meeting of small and medium-sized companies and startups from the G20, has ended. Now, Abstartups (Brazilian Association of Startups), as convener of the event, is preparing to deliver the official document to the delegations, the Communiqué. It is from there that ideas will be proposed to global leaders.
#newsonleo #technology #Startup
Startup20 provided a better understanding of the capabilities of Brazilian entrepreneurs, their difficulties, joys and regional issues. The meetings took place in the cities of Macapá, Rio de Janeiro, Recife and São Paulo, with a dialogue session in Porto Velho.
We can already say that Startup20 in Brazil marked a turning point in the future of Brazilian startups.
The group's discussions revolved around the topics of ESG, public policies, investments and internationalization, and it is no surprise that these are the topics that will influence the future of Brazilian startups in the coming years.
With the Startup20 meetings, we had the opportunity to focus on the internationalization and growth of our ecosystem, especially with the creation of a narrative that places Brazil as one of the protagonists in themes related to climate, energy transition and bioeconomy
Governance and sustainability issues will demand a lot of attention from startups in the coming years, even among those whose final product is not directly linked to ESG solutions. In a scenario in which sustainability is no longer optional, startups that align their business models with ESG principles tend to capture a larger market share. Investment funds are increasingly demanding with sustainability criteria, and companies that integrate diversity and inclusion policies, in addition to adopting sustainable practices, are more likely to attract international attention.
Internationalization was also one of the focuses of discussion at Startup20, and this is a promising moment for startups looking to expand their businesses or form partnerships with other companies outside the national territory. The country is more involved in global discussions due to assuming the temporary presidency of the G20 this year; The meetings made it possible to open dialogues on strategic partnerships, innovation on a global scale and technological cooperation between countries.
These changes require startups to be increasingly prepared to deal with different legislation and regulations, in addition to developing products and services that have global appeal.
Another expectation is that public bodies will look more closely at entrepreneurship in innovation. This should bring greater incentives for startups, but also regulatory changes, which will require a lot of attention and monitoring on the part of entrepreneurs so that they do not miss opportunities or become outdated in the legal field.
These points show that what will be required of startups from now on is greater maturity. I am not referring here to the development phase in which a startup finds itself, but rather to its ability to anticipate trends, organize itself appropriately within its reality, in addition to improving its management, in order to show its differences and deliver results. solid for the market. This way, they will attract the attention of investors who will be focused on these factors.
Despite this, the outlook is positive. Brazil continues to be one of the main Venture Capital destinations in Latin America. Alternatives for raising capital must continue to emerge, whether through private entities or public incentives.
We can say that with Startup20, the eyes of the world turned to Brazil, and, in addition, we forced internal institutions to change the way they see our own startups, which could result in very significant changes in the long term. On the other hand, startups need to prepare to reap the rewards when they come.
Startup20 leaves a legacy for the regions where we travel, and the association will continue to work to further develop the topics discussed and support entrepreneurs' requests and difficulties.
Hi, @taskmaster4450le,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
Get started with Darkcloaks today, and follow us on Inleo for the latest updates.
#gm everyone. Let´s see your sunday´s #selfies in this #threadcast
Olivia & Mom
Olivia seems to be thinking. Mom, what are you doing?
Hahaha yes
Hermosas, Dios las bendiga
Amén amiga, gracias
Long live ink.
#selfie #memories
Let´s rock!
Good morning handsome
OH, making me blush at 7:04am on a Sunday morning :) Thank you. Or where you talking about Moo? lmao
Both of you
😊
Lindo minino
Somebody gave me flowers. #selfie, #memories
Remember using the Tag. #selfie, #memories
Pizza for breakfast? Why not! #selfie, #memories
Today, I think I´m going to be good. Well, almost... I´ll try. #selfie, #memories
Me, being myself. #selfie, #memories
I won´t share this. #selfie, #memories
My face when somebody share the #selfie, #memories
I need a natural tan color, like this one. #selfie, #memories
I must shave. I'll be back in few seconds. #selfie, #memories
Ajá dándolo todo para estar presente
A 1000 thread replies, now the 100 threads milestone is on my radar!
Congratulations my friend, I'm sure you will make it.
#freecompliments
That's clearly a different ball game! Congratulations #freecompliments
Thank you.
#freecompliments
AI has been added to note systems like Evernote. I am re-evaluating how I use these products. Oddly, it seems to point back to using paper notes with computers as support.
Todos somos naturalmente filósofos, porque la filosofía es la sabiduría de analizar todo en profundidad.
#humanitas
Hoy subimos nuestra publicación editorial como cada semana, y al final de la publicación hemos dado más información aunque de manera breve sobre los próximos cambios en la comunidad. Así que si te quieres enterar de lo que se aproxima, clic aquí
#humanitas #spanish
Y, digo presente en la Taberna de Bulkathos transmitida desde el Discord de #hivenftgamelatino
Vente que tenemos Mini torneo del juego de #splinterlands
ando terminando en el otro programa
activooooooos 🍻
#hivenftgamelatino #spanish
Bueno, yo traje una cajita pa' los que se pasen por la Taberna de @bulkathos en #hivenftgamelatino #spanish
Eso!!!!
SALUDDDD!!!!!!
🤩
This is from the 5th element right?
Yes
Si así es, fantástica película. Gracias por el apoyo.
If so, fantastic movie. Thanks for the support.
If so, fantastic movie. Thanks for the support.
Hi, @bitcoinflood,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
Get started with Darkcloaks today, and follow us on Inleo for the latest updates.
El quinto elemento!
Yes
If so, fantastic movie. Thanks for the support.
the 5th element!
If so, fantastic movie. Thanks for the support.
The Fifth Element! Muy entretenido
If so, fantastic movie. Thanks for the support. Si es muy entretenido, todavía lo pasan en la televisión.
How was your Saturday?
All good. Just published a blog few minutes ago.
Hope you are doing great
#thread2earn #freecompliments
That sounds very productive.
Yeah, it was. Thank you.
!BBH
👍
@davidpena21! @luchyl likes your content! so I just sent 1 BBH to your account on behalf of @luchyl. (2/20)
(html comment removed:
)
Saturday was a hustling & bustling day
#freecompliments
This is normal.
For a sector of population, it's fun day.
#freecompliments
👍
today was my first relax day at the new job, things seem to be getting quite and smooth
This is very important.
1/🧵
#outreach #threadstorm #gifu
Are you interested in purchasing the Gifu but don't know how?
3/🧵
#gosh
Read more on how to go about your gifu token purchase via the link below.
https://inleo.io/@gifu/how-to-buy-and-trade-gifu-token-a-stepbystep-guide-gny
no link
https://inleo.io/@gifu/how-to-buy-and-trade-gifu-token-a-stepbystep-guide-gny
How biarre, in my notifications I see the full URL ... however on threads I only say the end part ...
2/🧵
We've highlighted a step-by-step guide that'll help you navigate how to purchase the Gifu token, both on hive engine and via liquidity pool.
Should be easy now. Swap.gifu is available on hive-engine.
Only got one more hour of premium left. I will renews though.
Of course I will! #premium
Does the counter goes #crazy? At my end it always goes bonkers, going forward - backward - forward - and then it's gone
Counter goes crazy. Yes it stops randomly, and counts weirdly
1 year this time?
I wanted to but I did not get enough subscribers :)
Maybe next month :)
it is #statssunday share your screenshot on X!
Great stats ser!
Here we go.
#statsunday
Hi, @solymi,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
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#statssunday
LEO community: WEN? #wen #wensoon #lolz
#freecompliments #cent
https://inleo.io/threads/view/khaleelkazi/re-leothreads-uhenzhzw
wen--->soon
Securing the scrap token price is not easy #gmfrens #terracore
It was never easy....it will never be easy.
#freecompliments
hi I am Adnan I am Glade to join this Post and I am a new hard working user it's nice to became a part of this work
Hi, Adman. It's nice to meet you in this platform an you are welcome. Keep exploring the platform and enjoy.
#freecompliments
Welcome to inLeo.
You have joined a niche of opportunity.
#freecompliments
Hello, thanks for joining INLEO! I hope you enjoy your time here.
Here's my post for reasons I love INLEO: https://inleo.io/@ahmadmanga/5-reasons-youll-love-inleo-haj?referral=ahmadmanga
Hi and welcome :)
Welcome! Nice to have you!
Some time back I published an article about Ravencoin that addressed this specific blockchain’s ability to be able to create tokens that represent real-world assets. These can be in the form of collectibles, as well as security tokens. In other words, a token can represent a share in a business or even a piece of real estate. #cent #Sapphirecrypto
That's pretty cool. Do you have some example of such assets?
Pretty much anything can be tokenized...
Pretty much anything can be tokenized...
#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
Yes it can be hard. I've found the best way is to use the Lists feature to make a list of all your referrals
Track their engagement and earnings closely. Encourage them over DMs or tagging, etc. to remain active
Oh, good idea!!
Been selling some Hive Engine tokens, thanks @bradleyarrow for picking up some BRO tokens that I didn't want.
Going to be using that cash to do some high risk Degen trades this coming week!
#tengocrypto #trading #degen
You are welcome ;)
Mr Tengo on the risk lane, do well to buckle up.
Hehe oh I have been since at least last year lol
I am also doing some gradual selling and housekeeping to rebalance my portfolio into my priorities.
That is the way to do it. Keeping on top of things is great!
One day I will learn to code and set up robots to do it for me. 🤣
hehe I keep meaning to do that ..
I have started to learn to code several times, but never got far. Now is the time.
hehe excellent, sounds like I should finally do it too!
Oh wow, would this be cool!
I'd love to see a translate button so I can engage more with the epic #spanish community.
https://inleo.io/threads/view/milaan/re-leothreads-xuwsffzj
Exactly, that's my point. It would surely enhance the UX.
#freecompliments
You missed the feedback tag, but I got you in a comment... Anytime you are giving feedback about the platform, use that hashtag and Khal will read it.
Yes, I missed it. Sorry for the reminder.
#freecompliments
Yeah, that would be great! I was thinking that the other day when curating for the #freecompliments community and having to just blow through those Spanish posts because I don't know what in the heck they are sayin... What's sad is I took 2 years of it in high school 25 years ago, and worked in kitchens in south Florida and still can't speak it, lol. But, what is lacking here is the #feedback tag...
Pues si esta sonando durísimo.
Added Deadpool and Super Buu on my collection! #cent #bbh
Let the frame swap begin! I am swapping this skinny twig whoop #fpv #drone over to a stronger, thicker basher frame called a Grinderino.
Had to remix and #3dprint a new camera mount to fit the camera and the video transmitter.
Got held up because the battery power cable is too short... Got a new one on order.
I'll do a full photo blog post about it when it's finished!
Nice stuff. Although... stronger will get heavier... what batteries are you using 3S or more?
4S for this one. I use 6S on my 5 inch quads. I have already broken one skinny little frame, lol. And when I am taking it through abandoned buildings, I need the strength, lol.
Nice... =)do you have any more than quads ones? Hexa or octos?
Would be nice for filming... and some people really need advice!
Na, only quads. I am getting a DJI FPV which will be my main 'camera drone'. Which is essentially what it is, except it has the manual freestyle mode instead of restricting my angle of attack like a standard camera drone does. I am really in it for the flying, the footage is just a bonus.
This is the DJI FPV combo I got. Was really after the goggles and controller. The drone was pretty much a bonus, lol. Only paid 600 for a certified DJI refurb combo kit.
Gotcha...
Looking for enthusiasts... Octas or beefy (kilowatts) quads!
Yeah, can't take those into a bando, lol. My cousin has a big ass hexa prop drone that can carry like up to 20 pounds. To me, it's just too big for standard applications, IMO.
Now in the future, I would love an agricultural drone for the farm, but we don't product the crops to warrant an expense like that. We are mainly more livestock and then personal gardens, so I haven't justified a 10K expense, lol. The other one I want is one with a thermal camera so I can help with search and rescue, as well as make it super easy to find where the deer are in the winter, lol, and where the coyotes are running so we can do some solid property wildlife management.
Looks greeny? Right? But I am sure you are in loss if you are altcoin holder. It seems altcoin price didn't increase even if Bitcoin price increased a lot.
#btc #market #altcoin #crypto #cent #freecompliments
the BTC has shown the good up move and hope the alts also will be follow in coming time.
#freecompliments #gf
BTC came from 20k to 67k but altcoins seem to stuck a place. This time Altcoin is not following the BTC trend for sure. Temporary pump and dump occur only in the case of altcoin.
#freecompliments
ALTS are behaving very erratic for quite some time.
#freecompliments
Let's hope for the best.
Sure...we can only hope......the problem is they go down 2x when BTC plunges...but they do not recover parallel to BTC.
#freecompliments
Hold and wait. It is not yet the time of the alts.
Pumpkin season is upon us, but so is shooting season 😆
Come play cryptoshots, win $HIVE and have a blast with us
Are you playing today? :D
It might be at 20.00 today. I just remembered that we rewinded the time today so we're officially in winter time 😅
I hope so. The tournament is at 21.00 today, so things has to fall into place for me to join today because I have my daughter 😃
Pumpkin season on cryptoshots.
Lets give it a try..
#freecompliments #gf
Almost sounds like you shoot and blast pumpkins! #lolz !BBH !DIY !DOOK
Unfortunately there's no plans to do Halloween skins this year. But maybe next year grenades will be pumpkins 🎃 😂
Hi, @caspermoeller89,
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You just got DOOKed!
@pepetoken thinks your content is the shit.
They have 11/300 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
@caspermoeller89! @pepetoken likes your content! so I just sent 1 BBH to your account on behalf of @pepetoken. (16/50)
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You can query your personal balance by
!DIYSTATSHi, @caspermoeller89,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
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Made myself a Sunday breakfast treat
Bacon, Black pudding, cheese and egg bagel!
What was your breakfast today?
#foodie #foodtalk #silverbloggers #freecompliments #photographers
I haven't broken my fast, am on my way back from the church... !DOOK
You just got DOOKed!
@calebmarvel01 thinks your content is the shit.
They have 4/200 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
okay be safe
Thanks very much 😊😊😊..
!DOOK
You just got DOOKed!
@calebmarvel01 thinks your content is the shit.
They have 6/200 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
I will tell you tomorrow!
hehe ah yea late for you now!
Coffee as always. Don't usually eat breakfast.
Looks very nice! I do like black pudding, I got a taste for it when I studied in the UK.
Not much for breakfast, like 2 coffee, fresh juice and something from the bakery. More food for lunch for me.
Something new from @peakd! #hive have you noticed?
There are some bee stuff on the bottom left of your avatar 😎
Does anyone else here have mortage and if you do, how much is it?
I just checked and mine is close to $200k.
Please $LEO fix this 😂
!LOLZ $LEO will safe all of us
Yes sir :)
I still have around 100k EUR left... I think, not so much compared to the value of our house. But still, it's debt!
I agree its probably not to much, houses are expensive. But how great would it not to pay it of :)
I haven't had any but hoping $LEO will solve yours :)
$LEO to the moon! 🚀
Yes. Too much. 😲
And then I haven't added my student loans even 😅
My main mission in life going forward is to tackle debt and become financially free. Good luck!
Blade Runner is a movie I've always loved. For some reason, I've never seen Blade Runner 2049. How does it compare?
#BladeRunner #movie
Image source
Cotton pads, a common household item today, have roots dating back to ancient China in 589 AD, where plant fibers like cotton and hemp were used in early forms of toilet paper. 🌿🧻 #history #facts
Very little political posting here. Is there a particular reason for that? Are people avoiding fights? 😅
I don't like to talk about politics in general, but another reasons I won't do it on HIVE, it's not worth it if someone downvoted me for having radically different views.
Of course, if I feel something had to be said, I'll say it regardless of the consequences.
A lot of businesses in the last few years are finding out that business and politics can be a dangerous combination.
If you're comparing to X/Twitter, one reason is there are just far fewer users here. I'm sure there will be more political threads as the number of users grows.
But go ahead and post political stuff if that's what you're into!
No...not exatly...there are two things that shapes any discussion
(1) Community size- in particular active users at any given time
(2) what interests them the most engage with.
More users means more diver topic.
#freecompliments
Price $HIVE #hive #threads #cent #freecompliments
Super Bull Market coming?
I don't think too much about it. I just try to take profit from each trade.
Hi, @dkid14,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
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GM frens
I enjoyed that extra hour in bed this morning!
Ya lazy bum!
guilty lol
Good morning and awesome :)
Good morning Bradley here's to a cracking Sunday
cracking?
ah you don't say cracking as in brilliant, fantastic etc..
I may now ;)
I say: awesome fracking sauce. lol
If I did not sleep for 11 hours, I think I would go back to bed. lol
I struggle to have a 7 hours sleep in 24 hours, workload chokes. I hope someday I can enjoy 8 or even 10 hours of sleep. 😴
I hope you get there :)
!BBH !DOOK
You just got DOOKed!
@bradleyarrow thinks your content is the shit.
They have 11/60 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
@jjmusa2004! @bradleyarrow likes your content! so I just sent 1 BBH to your account on behalf of @bradleyarrow. (11/100)
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Man, I feel you. I fell asleep on the couch, awaked around middle of the night with my bag hurting and went to the bedroom. I am still dreaming and probably will take a nap at some point. :)
if your bag was hurting I hope you went to the bathroom along the way to bedroom ;)
Be mindful of sleep debt Sir.
#freecompliments
sleep debt?
Yes...if you curtail the necessary sleep time every day, then u will create sleep debt....in the long run, that is harmful.
#freecompliments
Oh, I don't have that problem, I get to much. lol
Then, it's good. You are healthy.
Sleep more, fart freely...without any hesitation irrespective of time, place, and occasion. You will be healthy.
#freecompliments
OH, I know how to fart freely ;)
sleep is for wicked 😴
Then I am wicked ;) !BBH !DOOK
You just got DOOKed!
@bradleyarrow thinks your content is the shit.
They have 15/60 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
@senorcoconut! @bradleyarrow likes your content! so I just sent 1 BBH to your account on behalf of @bradleyarrow. (16/100)
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Wintertime is on so instead of waking up at 4am I woke up at 3.
#gmfrens
Better than my question mark idea
The statue is quite amazing and the fact that it was built and settled in Switzerland says quite much about the power of the financial freedom.
Bitcoin power! 🦾
Satoshi Gallery......beautiful installation.
Guten Morgen Mr. bOOmbastic.
#freecompliments
$BTC is the future of money.
Wonder what $LEO is the future of 🤔
🦁 Do WE need a ROAR coin? 🦁 Who wants a ROAR coin? 🦁 #polls #cent #freecompliments
https://inleo.io/threads/view/monkmasters/re-bitcoinflood-2yaj65gwg
Need might be too strong of a word, but want...yes!
Hi, @pepetoken,
This post has been voted on by @darkcloaks because you are an active member of the Darkcloaks gaming community.
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How about a RIBBIT token (on #HiveEngine)? 🤔🤣😂 !DIY !LOLZ
lolztoken.com
Lack of concentration.
Credit: reddit
@pepetoken, I sent you an $LOLZ on behalf of savvytester
(6/10)
Farm LOLZ tokens when you Delegate Hive or Hive Tokens.
Click to delegate: 10 - 20 - 50 - 100 HP
RIBBIT! I ribb IT! #lolz
If you want to create that RIBBIT token on #HiveEngine, it will cost just 100 BEE or roughly $9. 😅 !WEIRD !DIY
Yes it would. But another token, what to do with it? !BBH !DIY !DOOK
"Ribbit!"
You just got DOOKed!
@pepetoken thinks your content is the shit.
They have 13/300 DOOK left to drop today.
Learn all about this shit in the toilet paper! 💩
Even if you don't have a use for that token now, you already love the name and maybe should reserve the token for future use. 🤔😅 !INDEED !DIY
(12/25)
@pepetoken! @savvytester Totally agrees with your content! so I just sent 1 IDD to your account on behalf of @savvytester.
You can query your personal balance by
!DIYSTATS@savvytester! @pepetoken likes your content! so I just sent 1 BBH to your account on behalf of @pepetoken. (14/100)
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You can query your personal balance by
!DIYSTATSYou can query your personal balance by
!DIYSTATSYou can query your personal balance by
!DIYSTATSDoes having no #clue make you kind of #free? #cent #bbh
We're so early.
#bitcoin
#crypto #bbh #freecompliments #cent
The wise is he who has adopted Bitcoin so early.
#freecompliments
1/2 Estrellas navideñas [Esp/Eng] @rlathulerie #hivediy
https://peakd.com/hive-130560/@rlathulerie/estrellas-navidenas-esp-eng
With good morning
Hello worlds.
Even though the clouds want to hide their light, I know that at any moment the sun will prevail over the darkness.
Always keep in mind that Life is wonderful, give it your best.
#gmfrens #freecompliments #cent #bbh #photography #dailydook #motivational
Buenos días mi querido profesor
This battle feels like it needs an entire mini-film of its own #splinterlands
https://splinterlands.com?p=battle&id=sl_796d3b57bd04c5feaf8a191dab3285b3&ref=bravetofu
you can also use #cent to earn CENT tokens with your threads!
Just need to put #cent and that's it?
I'd probably write a post about it complete with some funny backstory if it was my battle. Such a long one though
May turn out to be a bittersweet win, but the Dodgers are up 2 games to begin the series but will Ohtani be able to play the rest of the series and now they go to the Bronx where Yankee stadium will be intense. The Dodgers better be ready. Roberts left Treinen in for most of the Top of the 9th inning and the Yankees left the bases loaded but that was way too close for comfort.
#mlb #worldseries #sports
Good Morning Sir.
How is your day?
#freecompliments
Worked out 💪🏽 Shopped and now watching NFL Football 🏈 Sunday Funday 🎉 Happy Sunday @milaan 🙏🏼
That's truly a Funday for you. Enjoy as much as you can as if there is no tomorrow.
#freecompliments
game 3 will be a Yankee blowout. Game 4 to the Dodgers. 5 & 6 to the Yankees. Then it is on!!!! Oh, and the Mets suck!
Tonight's Bonus Quest in #rollercoin is 8 games of Cryptonoid! Easy! #play2earn
Out here crushing it on the daily putting me to shame lol Nicely done
I'm addicted to it but not efficient. If I had some better planning I would probably be crushing on my effort. I earn about 8 dodge a day right now
You are never too old to set another goal or dream a new one #freecompliments #liotes #bbh #cent
#feedback I think something is wrong in the threads/blogs counter for referrals, a bunch of my referrals never made blog posts, but the system acts as if every thread they posted is a blog post.
I mwean I'm not complaining but it's not supposed to do that, is it? #freecompliments #cent
The best type of freedom you can get nowadays is financial freedom.
With financial freedom comes f*** you money, with that type of money you don't need to care about politics or taxes, you can live wherever you want.
This is what we need to achieve!
#money #investing #leofinance #finance
Before money... freedom comes to a much wiser pre'concept...
Freedom of expression!
I can say WTF I WANT ABOUT ANYTHING!
Totally!
I think the misconception here is that, money plays a big role in a lot of things around us.
It does... but around some people like me... I will always support the power over money... because I want to prove history wrong!
Power over money? That's a tough one. They are both interconnected.
Proving history wrong? I'm not sure what you mean by that. I get it. But, I think there is something in particular that you are referring to.
I am something I don't say publicly to protect the ones I know and myself. I am still verifiable via blockchain.
Just needs a bit more of AI to verify it... simple!
Fair enough
If you have enough money you can buy your way into a country with freedom of speech, just like all the sons and daughters of Chinese upper class and Russian upper class.
Try me =)
https://inleo.io/threads/view/ben.haase/re-leothreads-2mycrkgsh?referral=ben.haase
That had me LMAO. LFMAO even!
Purchasing several slaves could ensure your freedom (and financial freedom) in the past ;)
I think that having incentivized workers is better for the long term prospect of a company 😅
Yep, but it comes with costs :P
Financial freedom can be extremely inexpensive if we think about it correctly.
Financial freedom is way forward any other freedom, in fact it unlocks a long list of freedom for you. It can rent happiness.
#freecompliments
#saylor: "Hey SatyaNadella, if you want to make the next trillion dollars for $MSFT shareholders, call me." #bitcoin #crypto
#freecompliments #cent #bbh
Need aprox 237,358 HP in support to move into 75th in the Witness ranking :)
If you need users to delegate. Just make a post about benefits you are providing them. I think people will be happy to delegate more.
I do, I have, I will continue to do so
I think I've missed that then.
Best of luck!
You don't read my daily long form posts ;)
I've been reading anybody's long posts lately. But, I have checked the titles.. I didn't find it 😉