Technology

The Download: fixing ‘evil’ AI, and the White House’s war on science

August 4, 2025
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. Forcing LLMs to be evil during training can make them nicer in the long run Large language models have recently acquired a reputation for behaving badly. In April, ChatGPT suddenly became an aggressive…

The Download: how fertility tech is changing families, and Trump’s latest tariffs

August 1, 2025
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 decades-old frozen embryos are changing the shape of families This week we welcomed a record-breaking baby to the world. Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, who arrived over the weekend, developed from an embryo that…

How decades-old frozen embryos are changing the shape of families

August 1, 2025
This week we welcomed a record-breaking baby to the world. Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, who arrived over the weekend, developed from an embryo that was frozen in storage for 30 and a half years. You could call him the world’s oldest baby. His parents, Lindsey and Tim Pierce, were themselves only young children when that embryo…

The Download: OpenAI’s future research, and US climate regulation is under threat

July 31, 2025
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. The two people shaping the future of OpenAI’s research —Will Douglas Heaven For the past couple of years, OpenAI has felt like a one-man brand. With his showbiz style and fundraising glitz, CEO…

The two people shaping the future of OpenAI’s research

July 31, 2025
For the past couple of years, OpenAI has felt like a one-man brand. With his showbiz style and fundraising glitz, CEO Sam Altman overshadows all other big names on the firm’s roster. Even his bungled ouster ended with him back on top—and more famous than ever. But look past the charismatic frontman and you get…

An EPA rule change threatens to gut US climate regulations

July 30, 2025
This story is part of MIT Technology Review’s “America Undone” series, examining how the foundations of US success in science and innovation are currently under threat. You can read the rest here. The mechanism that allows the US federal government to regulate climate change is on the chopping block. On Tuesday, US Environmental Protection Agency administrator…

The Download: a 30-year old baby, and OpenAI’s push into colleges

July 30, 2025
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. Exclusive: A record-breaking baby has been born from an embryo that’s over 30 years old A baby boy has just won the new record for the “oldest baby.” Thaddeus Daniel Pierce, who arrived…