June 2023

Job title of the future: metaverse lawyer

June 28, 2023
Lot #651 on Somnium Space belongs to Zannes Law, a Toronto-based law firm. In this seven-level metaverse office, principal lawyer Madaline Zannes conducts private consultations with clients, meets people wandering in with legal questions, hosts conferences, and gives guest lectures. Zannes says that her metaverse office allows for a more immersive, imaginative client experience. She…

China’s AI firms might further lose chip access in new US ban

June 28, 2023

The U.S. is weighing additional restrictions on AI chip export to China amid rising concerns over the use of advanced semiconductors for military modernization. The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Commerce could prohibit shipments of chips from manufacturers including Nvidia to customers in China as soon as early next month. […]

China’s AI firms might further lose chip access in new US ban by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch

Bluu Seafood reels in $17.5M to bring cultivated fish products to market

June 28, 2023

Bluu Seafood, a German company creating cultivated (i.e. “lab-grown”) fish products, today announced it has raised €16 million ($17.5 million) in a Series A round of funding. Founded out of Berlin in 2020 originally as Bluu Biosciences, Bluu Seafood starts with a “one-time” fish biopsy — which, it says, doesn’t require killing any fish — […]

Bluu Seafood reels in $17.5M to bring cultivated fish products to market by Paul Sawers originally published on TechCrunch

Flowie wants to make invoices flow freely

June 28, 2023

Meet Flowie, a new French startup that wants to facilitate money movements between companies. The company centralizes everything related to accounts receivable and accounts payable so that everyone in the company can see relevant information when it comes to getting paid by clients and receiving money from suppliers. Flowie was started by Yann Ravel-Sibillot, Rémi […]

Flowie wants to make invoices flow freely by Romain Dillet originally published on TechCrunch

Zoox begins testing robotaxis on public roads in Las Vegas

June 27, 2023

Amazon subsidiary Zoox has begun testing its purpose-built, electric, autonomous robotaxis on public streets in Las Vegas, the company announced Tuesday. Zoox says this marks the first time that an autonomous vehicle built without pedals or a steering wheel has operated on public roads in Nevada. Zoox is starting small with a one-mile loop around […]

Zoox begins testing robotaxis on public roads in Las Vegas by Rebecca Bellan originally published on TechCrunch

Curiosity unbounded

June 27, 2023
“It only takes a few hours on this campus to learn that what propels MIT is an irresistible force: the sheer motive power of curiosity, on every subject, at every scale, across disciplines and without limits. Curiosity unbounded.  “It’s the passion to understand how things work, and why, and how they can work better. “In this…

When MIT met Sally

June 27, 2023
On May 1, the MIT community gathered in Killian Court beneath what Sally Kornbluth dubbed “the world’s largest umbrella” to officially welcome her as the Institute’s 18th president. But the predicted rain held off, and crabapple blossoms fluttered down from the trees as she was brought into the MIT fold with all the formality and…

Now playing: DribbleBot

June 27, 2023
It’s no Lionel Messi, but a four-legged robot developed at CSAIL’s Improbable Artificial Intelligence Lab can dribble a soccer ball on surfaces including grass, sand, gravel, mud, and snow.  To develop these hard-to-script skills, the researchers turned to a simulation—a digital twin of the natural world. “DribbleBot” started out with no idea how to dribble,…

Nanoparticles target lung disease

June 27, 2023
A nanoparticle developed by MIT chemical engineer Daniel Anderson and colleagues can deliver messenger RNA encoding CRISPR gene-editing proteins to the lungs of mice. With further development, the researchers say, such particles could offer an inhalable treatment for cystic fibrosis and other lung diseases, snipping out and replacing the faulty genes that cause them. The…