Tag: Government / public service

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The Download: AI-generated lawsuits and virtual power plants for data centers

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.

How courts are coping with a flood of AI-generated lawsuits

Most days in her chambers, Judge Maritza Braswell, a federal magistrate judge in Colorado, sifts through stacks of documents written by people without a lawyer. The number of these filings has more than doubled compared to before 2023. She puts that jump down to AI. 

But while AI appears to be expanding access to justice, it doesn’t seem to be improving people’s chances of winning. Judges are starting to question what rights and duties chatbots should have as they stand in for lawyers. Lawmakers, meanwhile, are grappling with who should pay the price when chatbots produce bad legal advice.

Read the full story on how AI is reshaping access to the law.

—Michelle Kim

How virtual power plants could provide energy for data centers

Would you take a payment to ramp down your electricity use? Would it change anything if you were doing so to help power a local data center? A new project backed by Google will put those questions to the test.

The company has signed a deal to fund a virtual power plant in the largest power grid in the US. The system will group together devices like electric vehicles and smart thermostats, paying customers to adjust their usage when the grid is stretched.

The project could free up capacity for Google’s data centers—but there’s a catch: people might not play along. Find out what the future holds for these virtual power plants.

—Casey Crownhart

This story is from The Spark, our weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all things climate. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 The EU has proposed new legislation to end its Big Tech dependence
The laws aim to boost domestic ​cloud, AI and semiconductors. (CNBC)
+ US firms would be blocked from critical public tenders. (Reuters $)
+ It also wants to make sure non-EU actors cannot disrupt tech services with a “kill switch.” (The Guardian)
+ But the proposal needs to be negotiated with EU member states. (Politico $)

2 Intelligence agencies warn Chinese spies are recruiting on LinkedIn
The Five Eyes alliance said Beijing is using job platforms for espionage. (BBC)
+ The spies are allegedly recruiting government and military staff. (Politico $)
+ The Chinese embassy in the UK condemned the accusations. (Bloomberg $)
+ Meet the man hunting the spies in your smartphone. (MIT Technology Review)

3 AI CEOs have called for a law protecting against biological weapons
They warn that synthetic DNA could be used for bioweapons. (Wired $)
+ Sam Altman, Dario Amodei, and Demis Hassabis joined the call. (WSJ $)
+ No one’s sure if synthetic mirror life will kill us all. (MIT Technology Review)

4 Firms are using Reddit to manipulate ChatGPT and Google AI search
They’re spamming subreddits to get posts scraped by chatbots. (404 Media)
+ What we’ve been getting wrong about AI’s truth crisis. (MIT Technology Review)

5 Meta keeps delaying the launch of its new AI model
The new Muse Spark ‌AI model API still has no release date. (WSJ $)
+ Which is hampering Meta’s plans to monetize its AI investments. (Reuters $)

6 For the first time, a US city has voted to permanently ban data centers
Monterey Park, California, voted in favor of the move. (LA Times)
+ Should we be moving data centers to space? (MIT Technology Review)

7 China is betting on household chore training to advance robotics
Data harvested in homes and factories provides a scaling edge. (Rest of World)
+ Gig workers are training humanoids at home. (MIT Technology Review)

8 Sam Altman will urge US lawmakers not to require AI model approvals
He’s advocating against proposals for new AI rules. (Reuters $)
+ His move comes after President Trump signed a new AI order. (Wired $)

9 Quantinuum raised $1.68 billion in an IPO as quantum computing rises 
Investors flocked to one of the fast-growing sector’s leaders. (Reuters $)

10 Someone finally wants to hire philosophers: Silicon Valley
Big tech hopes they will help build better machines. (The Atlantic $)

Quote of the day

“Historically, these companies have been very willing to play Russian roulette—and they’re playing another round.”

—Connor Leahy, an AI researcher, former hacker and US director of ControlAI, tells the Financial Times why he’s concerned about Anthropic’s relentless race to the top.

One More Thing

Tentacle of Octopus

HENRY HORENSTEIN/GETTY


What an octopus’s mind can teach us about AI’s ultimate mystery

Emily Bender, a linguist at the University of Washington, has developed a thought experiment she calls the octopus test. It involves an octopus learning to copy patterns in human writing and produce squiggles in response. But does the animal actually understand the language or are we merely projecting meaning onto it?

Bender’s octopus is a stand-in for AI systems like ChatGPT. The intelligence we see in these machines is also projected on them by us. The same applies to consciousness: we may claim to see it, but it remains unclear whether it is really there.

Read the full story on the debate over machines with minds.

—Will Douglas Heaven

We can still have nice things

A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.)

+ Discover where iconic sound effects actually came from in this fabulous audio history.
+ Need a serotonin boost? Then tune into this live puppy cam from Denali National Park.
+ Linux lovers can try 570 extinct operating systems at a new virtual museum.
+ Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” becomes something entirely different in this lightning-fast bass guitar performance.

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The Download: Trump’s new AI order, and smart glasses for warfare

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.

5 key points in Trump’s new AI order

Less than two weeks after scrapping an executive order on AI, President Donald Trump signed a new one on Tuesday. Promising to promote innovation and security, the policy represents a turning point in the White House’s AI governance—but is likely to attract criticism from both opponents and supporters of stricter regulation. Here are five key points from the order:

1. It’s created a voluntary review system: tech companies will be asked to share frontier models with the government for review 30 days before they plan to release them.
2. There’s no mandatory licensing: the government will not require permits before software can be deployed.
3. It establishes a dedicated AI cybersecurity clearinghouse: the new hub will coordinate security checks with the private sector.
4. It’s a watered-down version of the order Trump shelved last month: the earlier version requested models 90 days before their release.
5. But it’s still a move towards stronger AI oversight: the policy marks a clear departure from the White House’s previous hands-off approach.

Plus: here’s why a previous Trump administration’s AI policy was a distraction and how AI is already making online crimes easier. 

MIT Technology Review Narrated: inside Anduril and Meta’s quest to make smart glasses for warfare

The defense-tech company Anduril has shared new details about the augmented-reality headset for the military it’s prototyping with Meta, including a vision for ordering drone strikes via eye-tracking and voice commands.

Quay Barnett, who leads the effort at Anduril following a career in the Army’s Special Operations Command, aims to optimize “the human as a weapons system.” His vision is cyborg-inspired: drones and soldiers will see together, share information seamlessly, and make decisions as one.

—James O’Donnell

This is our latest story to be turned into an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which we publish each week on Spotify and Apple Podcasts. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform, and follow us to get all our new content as it’s released.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 President Trump has signed an AI order that expands model oversight
The long-awaited executive order aims to mitigate security threats. (NYT $)
+It asks companies to submit models voluntarily for tests before release. (NPR)
+ It’s a slimmed-down version of the order Trump shelved in May. (WSJ $)
+ And marks a strategic shift in his AI strategy. (Reuters $)
+ A war over AI regulation is coming to the US. (MIT Technology Review)

2 SpaceX plans to raise $75 billion in IPO at $135 per share
The company intends to sell 555.6 million shares. (Reuters $)+ The fixed price breaks from the traditional IPO process. (Bloomberg $)
+ Morningstar says the valuation should be nearly 50% lower. (BI)

3 Meta has scaled back plans to track workers’ clicks and keystrokes to train AI
All staff can pause it for 30 minutes, with some fully exempt.(The Information $)
+ The changes follow a fierce backlash to the tracking plans. (Reuters $)
+ AI is supercharging surveillance. (MIT Technology Review)

4 Microsoft wants to ‘make users addicted’ to its new AI assistant
According tointernal documents for the “Scout” tool. (404 Media)
+ Microsoft launched the assistant on Tuesday. (TechCrunch) 

5 Mathematicians fear that AI threatens their field
A new declaration raises concerns about AI’s trustworthiness. (Ars Technica)
+ It arrives a week after OpenAI said it solved a famous math problem. (WSJ $)
+ A startup wants to change how mathematicians do math. (MIT Technology Review)

6 Scientists have found a way to supercharge computer worms with AI
The worm could target any known flaw in the world’s computers. (NYT $)
+ AI supercharging scams. (MIT Technology Review)

7 Google must let UK publishers opt out of AI search features
Online publishers can choose not to appear in the AI Overviews. (BBC)
+ Google is now testing features for sites to exit AI search. (Reuters $)

8 America’s data center build-out is falling way behind schedule
60% of those planned for completion in 2027 aren’t yet under construction. (WSJ $)
+ Nobody wants a data center in their backyard. (MIT Technology Review)

9 EVs are getting cheaper worldwide—except in the US
The US is short on supportive policies and affordable Chinese EVs. (Rest of World)

10 The European Parliament is ditching Google for… Quant
The French search engine is the new default on in-house computers. (Politico)
+ The switch comes amid a broader push to wean the EU off US tech. (FT $)

Quote of the day

“SpaceX’s valuation could be richer than a plate of dauphinoise potatoes.”

—Dan Coatsworth, head of markets at AJ Bell, tells CNBC that SpaceX’s IPO price looks overloaded with expectations.

One More Thing

Marseille’s battle against the surveillance state

Heading toward Marseille’s central train station, Eda Nano points out what looks like a streetlamp on the Rue des Abeilles. But this sleek piece of urban furniture is not a lamp. It’s a video camera, with a 360-degree view of the narrow street.

Nano, a 39-year-old developer, wants to make Marseille residents more aware that they’re being watched. She’s part of a growing group of activists resisting the rise of policing cameras in their hometown.

Find out how the rebellious port city of Marseille is fighting the surveillance state.

—Fleur Macdonald

We can still have nice things

A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.)

+ These aerial photos of solar farms transform renewable energy into abstract art.
+ Open a window over Earth’s water with this hypnotic 4K atmospheric film made from satellite imagery.
+ Spend three relaxing hours with David Attenborough narrating this collection of extraordinary wildlife moments.
+ Radiohead sounds beautiful on traditional Japanese instruments in this koto performance of “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi”.

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Top ultra-processed food researchers call for sweeping policy change: ‘The system is rigged’

The all-star lineup of ultra-processed food researchers who teamed up on a new special edition of the American Journal of Public Health have an overarching message for policymakers: “Do policy!”

That directive, offered by food politics scholar Marion Nestle during a press call ahead of the issue’s release, is accompanied by new polling that shows broad cross-partisan concerns over the health harms associated with ultra-processed foods. 

A survey of 2,000 U.S. adults included in the new issue found that the overwhelming majority of Democrats, Republicans, and independents agreed that ultra-processed foods are addictive and a major cause of obesity, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease. The survey also found majority support in all parties for government interventions including testing additives for safety before they can be included in food products, banning artificial dyes, requiring warning labels, and ordering companies to reduce the amount of sugar and salt in their foods.

Read the rest…

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Senior NIH scientist, research fellow charged with bringing deactivated mpox virus into U.S.

DETROIT — Two scientists at a U.S. government lab were charged with smuggling vials of deactivated mpox virus into the country from Africa and lying about it during interviews with investigators at a Michigan airport, authorities said Tuesday.

A criminal complaint was unsealed in federal court in Detroit against Vincent Munster, who is chief of the virus ecology section at Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana, and Claude Kwe, who works with him as a research fellow.

Read the rest…

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STAT+: Eli Lilly warns hospitals to submit claims data in the next five days or lose their 340B drug discounts

Eli Lilly has told about 50 hospitals participating in a federal drug discount program to submit comprehensive claims data over the next five days or they will no longer receive the mandated price breaks.

The move comes after the company announced a policy last January demanding such data in a bid to reduce what it calls duplicate discounts paid to participating hospitals. The issue has riled the pharmaceutical industry and contributed to a long-standing clash with hospitals over the 340B drug discount program.

For the past few years, more than 2,300 hospitals have complied with the demand, but some of the larger hospitals systems around the U.S. have refused to do so, despite recent follow-up letters regarding the policy that went into effect on Feb. 1, according to Derek Asay, senior vice president for government strategy and federal accounts at Lilly. Up to 1,000 have so far not complied.

Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

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STAT+: As Ebola outbreak grows, Trump administration veers from previous government playbook

WASHINGTON — In January 2025, with the Covid-19 pandemic still top of mind, the Biden administration left behind extensive plans for how the federal bureaucracy should work to stop future disease outbreaks.

The plans were hundreds of pages long and addressed dozens of specific issues, including the government response to diseases like Ebola and how to move Americans from outbreak zones back to the U.S. for care.

But weeks later, the Trump administration took Washington by storm — and began disregarding the plans, according to two former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention officials who worked in the Trump administration and four people familiar with the Biden-era plans.

Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

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STAT+: Trump administration seeks to overhaul federal grantmaking process, alarming researchers

The Trump administration has released a sweeping proposal to overhaul the bedrock regulation for all federal grants, and in doing so is seeking to codify tighter political control of federally funded research. 

The changes, laid out in a 400-plus-page document published this week, would deemphasize the role of peer review in determining what work to fund, limit the ability for scientists to use federal funds to publish their research or travel to conferences, and offer political appointees more latitude to terminate grants at will.

The suite of proposed changes aligns in many respects with policies the administration has attempted to implement through executive orders and one-off announcements, sometimes at individual agencies; if formalized, the revised regulation would be in effect across the government and put the regulatory authority of the White House behind it. 

Continue to STAT+ to read the full story…

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Kenya court suspends U.S. plan for Ebola quarantine facility for Americans

NAIROBI, Kenya — A court in Kenya on Friday suspended a U.S. plan to establish a quarantine facility for Americans exposed to a rare type of Ebola virus spreading in northeastern Congo, following a backlash by medical workers and activists.

A U.S. administration official said on Wednesday that the U.S. was planning to send Americans who are exposed to Ebola while abroad to a new facility in Kenya instead of flying them home. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to share the administration’s plans. It was unclear where in Kenya the new facility will be built or whether the Kenyan government has signed off on the plan.

Read the rest…