Google Deepmind is using Gemini to train agents inside Goat Simulator 3
Google DeepMind has built a new video-game-playing agent called SIMA 2 that can navigate and solve problems in a wide range of 3D virtual worlds. The company claims it’s a big step toward more general-purpose agents and better real-world robots. Google DeepMind first demoed SIMA (which stands for “scalable instructable multiworld agent”) last year. But…
Four thoughts from Bill Gates on climate tech
Bill Gates doesn’t shy away or pretend modesty when it comes to his stature in the climate world today. “Well, who’s the biggest funder of climate innovation companies?” he asked a handful of journalists at a media roundtable event last week. “If there’s someone else, I’ve never met them.” The former Microsoft CEO has spent…
It’s never been easier to be a conspiracy theorist
The timing was eerie. On November 21, 1963, Richard Hofstadter delivered the annual Herbert Spencer Lecture at Oxford University. Hofstadter was a professor of American history at Columbia University who liked to use social psychology to explain political history, the better to defend liberalism from extremism on both sides. His new lecture was titled “The…
Can “The Simpsons” really predict the future?
According to internet listicles, the animated sitcom The Simpsons has predicted the future anywhere from 17 to 55 times. “As you know, we’ve inherited quite a budget crunch from President Trump,” the newly sworn-in President Lisa Simpson declared way back in 2000, 17 years before the real estate mogul was inaugurated as the 45th leader…
How conspiracy theories infiltrated the doctor’s office
As anyone who has googled their symptoms and convinced themselves that they’ve got a brain tumor will attest, the internet makes it very easy to self-(mis)diagnose your health problems. And although social media and other digital forums can be a lifeline for some people looking for a diagnosis or community, when that information is wrong,…
Why it’s so hard to bust the weather control conspiracy theory
It was October 2024, and Hurricane Helene had just devastated the US Southeast. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia found an abstract target on which to pin the blame: “Yes they can control the weather,” she posted on X. “It’s ridiculous for anyone to lie and say it can’t be done.” There was no word…
Chatbots are surprisingly effective at debunking conspiracy theories
It’s become a truism that facts alone don’t change people’s minds. Perhaps nowhere is this more clear than when it comes to conspiracy theories: Many people believe that you can’t talk conspiracists out of their beliefs. But that’s not necessarily true. It turns out that many conspiracy believers do respond to evidence and arguments—information that…
IntrCity SmartBus lands $30M at $140M valuation to deepen its grip on India’s intercity travel market
IntrCity SmartBus grew revenue by 67% last year and is targeting full profitability this year, as intercity travel booms across India.
India’s Snabbit valuation doubled to $180M in 5 months on its quick house-help bet
Snabbit has raised its third funding round in nine months.
Cluely’s Roy Lee on the ragebait strategy for startup marketing
Cluely’s Roy Lee has a message for startup founders: you should be thinking harder about how to go viral.