February 7, 2025

These documents are influencing the DOGE-sphere’s agenda

Reports from the US Government Accountability Office on improper federal payments in recent years are circulating on X and elsewhere online, and they seem to be a big influence on Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency and its supporters as the group pursues cost-cutting measures across the federal government.  The payment reports have been…

Technology

Human-plus-AI solutions mitigate security threats

August 10, 2023
Fifty years ago, the average business transaction was pretty straightforward. Shoppers handed purchases directly to cashiers, business partners shook hands in person, and people brought malfunctioning machines to a repair shop across the street. The proximity of all participating parties meant that both customers and businesses could verify authority and authenticity with their own eyes.…

The Download: medical ethics, and AI watermarks

August 10, 2023
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. Who gets to decide who receives experimental medical treatments? There has been a trend toward lowering the bar for new medicines, and it is becoming easier for people to access treatments that might…

Uber, Nvidia-backed delivery robot startup Serve Robotics to go public

August 10, 2023
Serve Robotics, the autonomous sidewalk delivery robot startup that spun out of Uber’s acquisition of Postmates, is going public via a reverse merger with a blank check company. The reverse merger with Patricia Acquisition Corp was completed this month, according to regulatory filings. Ahead of the merger, Serve raised $30 million in a round led […]

Inside MIT’s nuclear reactor laboratory

August 10, 2023
This article is from The Spark, MIT Technology Review’s weekly climate newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Wednesday, sign up here. Tucked away behind a brick building on MIT’s campus sits a nuclear reactor. I’ve been hearing about this facility for over a decade, and it’s taken on a somewhat mythic quality in…

Who gets to decide who receives experimental medical treatments?

August 10, 2023
Max was only a toddler when his parents noticed there was “something different” about the way he moved. He was slower than other kids his age, and he struggled to jump. He couldn’t run.  Blood tests suggested he might have a genetic disease— one that affected a key muscle protein. Max’s dad, Tao Wang, a…

VLGE opens SDK for its no-code virtual world builder aimed at fashion, beauty and art industries

August 10, 2023
We’ve seen the rise of no-code and low-code platforms being applied to any number of applications and use-cases. What would happen if this thinking was applied to metaverse-style virtual worlds? What would be built? Certainly, with Apple’s recent announcement of the launch of the Apple Vision Pro headset, there is renewed interest in the ‘metaverse’, […]

Disney+ announces another price hike, says ad-supported tier is coming to more countries

August 10, 2023
Disney is raising prices for its online streaming services across the board amid a declining subscriber base. This is the company’s second price hike in the last 12 months after it increased subscription fees for different offerings including Disney+ and Hulu last October. Here is a handy list of Dinsey’s news price hikes: Disney+ (ad-free): […]