July 18, 2025

The Download: how to run an LLM, and a history of “three-parent babies”

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 to run an LLM on your laptop In the early days of large language models, there was a high barrier to entry: it used to be impossible to run anything useful on…

Is AI Worth the Layoffs? Inside a CEO’s Ethical Nightmare

July 14, 2025
AI-driven workforce cuts are spreading across major corporations such as Amazon, Microsoft, IBM and Walmart. But for smaller business CEOs, it’s not just strategy — it’s deeply personal. How do you tell employees you consider friends that AI might replace them?

California is set to become the first US state to manage power outages with AI

July 14, 2025
California’s statewide power grid operator is poised to become the first in North America to deploy artificial intelligence to manage outages, MIT Technology Review has learned.  “We wanted to modernize our grid operations. This fits in perfectly with that,” says Gopakumar Gopinathan, a senior advisor on power system technologies at the California Independent System Operator—known…

UK launches £500 package to support diverse, underrepresented investors and founders

July 13, 2025
The British Business Bank, owned by the UK government, is creating a £500 million (around $674 million) economic package to help support diverse and underrepresented fund managers and founders in the country.  Fifty million pounds will be set aside for female-led venture funds, which means the BBB has now committed at least £100 million (around […]