Scientists edit mosquito gene to impede spread of malaria
This isn’t the first time a mosquito’s gene has been tweaked to prevent the spread of disease. However, it is one of the few solutions that saves both mosquitoes and people alike from malaria. The world-renowned CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing tool has once again put its mind-blowing capabilities to use. This...
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Meta set to invest hundreds of billions on AI data centres
The company’s CEO Mark Zuckerberg has announced that it will be investing hundreds of billions on AI centres that will cover an area almost as large as Manhattan. Mark Zuckerberg has announced that Meta will be splashing out the cash and investing heavily in AI data centres across the...
UK treads genetic grey area with three-person IVF milestone
The deliveries of eight infants in the UK via a three-person IVF technique have astonished the world. Nonetheless, its connection to a largely prohibited type of genome editing has raised concerns among the scientific community. Science has once again expanded its frontiers in a landmark procedure that conceived babies via...
Why Gen Z is ditching real friends for AI companions
Teens are turning to chatbots for comfort. It might sound dystopian, but in our increasingly isolated world it makes a lot of sense. It starts innocently enough. A 15-year-old girl downloads an AI chatbot app like Replika or Character.AI, just to see what all the TikTok buzz is about. Maybe...
Sam Altman warns against young people using ChatGPT for therapy
ChatGPT chief, Sam Altman, just warned against using the generative AI as a therapist or life coach. The technology ‘isn’t ready yet,’ he said. The media had us believe we would be jobless thanks to artificial intelligence by now, but the fearmongering of 2023 didn’t quite land. On the contrary, people...
AI ‘nudify’ websites are reportedly making millions
People continue to seek out ‘nudify’ websites to create explicit AI images without a person’s consent. A recent analysis of 85 such platforms revealed that, collectively, they could be making up to $36 million annually. We’ve been writing about nonconsensual deepfakes for well over seven years now, and the problem...
US government strikes $200m Grok deal to modernise Defense Department
A week after Grok’s ‘MechaHitler’ debacle, the US government has announced a $200m contract with the AI platform to modernise the Defense Department. The chaotic relationship between Donald Trump and Elon Musk is throwing out some ridiculous headlines, and this is just the latest. If you’re chronically online, like me, you’ll be familiar with Grok’s peculiar crash out last week, in which the chatbot anointed itself ‘MechaHitler’ and generated a...
How a ban on smartphones is transforming Dutch schools
As global leaders become more concerned about the impact of smartphones on children’s development, many have moved to ban their use in schools. Nearly two years into its own ban, the Dutch government is measuring the results. It’s no secret that smartphones are addictive, even to adults. The constant buzz of notifications tempts us out of the current moment, out of productivity, and social media apps steal time we’d otherwise...
Jack Dorsey’s launches Bluetooth messaging app Bitchat
Bitchat is a decentralised and encrypted chat service able to send and receive messages through Bluetooth signal – and without WiFi or phone service. Will it become an instant hit? Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey has just launched a new peer-to-peer massaging app that works without WiFi or phone service. Bitchat instead utilises a phone’s Bluetooth signal to allow for messages to be sent and received between contacts in the same...
Zuckerberg school closures reflect wider shift among US billionaires
The quiet decision to retract funding for a US primary school has caused the institution to shutter – leaving disadvantaged kids in the crossfire. By all accounts, The Primary School in East Palo Alto, California, was designed to be an ambitious experiment in breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty. Founded in 2016 with the backing of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), the school offered something few public institutions could: not...
