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.
Coming soon: our 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now
For years, MIT Technology Review’s newsroom has been ahead of the curve, tracking the developments in AI that matter and explaining what they mean. Now, our world-leading AI team is creating something definitive: the 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now.
Publishing in April to be launched at our flagship AI event, EmTech AI, this special report will reveal what our expert journalists are tracking most closely, what breakthroughs have excited them, and what transformations they see on the horizon. It’s our authoritative snapshot of where AI is heading in the year ahead—a curated expert list of 10 technologies, emerging trends, bold ideas, and powerful movements reshaping our world.
Attendees at EmTech AI will get much more than an exclusive heads-up of what made our 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now list. We’re at a pivotal moment as AI moves from pilot testing into core business infrastructure, and to reflect that we’ve curated a program that will help you navigate what’s going on, and get ahead of what’s coming next.
We’ll hear from top leaders at OpenAI, Walmart, General Motors, Poolside, MIT, the Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) and SAG-AFTRA. Topics will include everything from how organizations are preparing for AI agents to how AI will change the future of human expression. As well as networking with speakers, you’ll have the chance to mingle with MIT Technology Review’s editors too. Download readers get 10% off tickets, so what are you waiting for? See you there!
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 Anthropic says it plans to sue the Pentagon
It believes the DoD’s ban on its software is unlawful. (BBC)
+ CEO Dario Amodei has nonetheless apologized for a leaked memo criticizing Trump. (Axios)
+ Trump, meanwhile, says he fired Anthropic “like dogs.” (The Guardian)
+ In happier news for Anthropic, its models can remain in Microsoft products.(CNBC)
2 The Pentagon has been secretly testing OpenAI models for years
Which shows exactly how effective OpenAI’s ban on military use of its models has been. (Wired $)
3 A new lawsuit says Trump’s TikTok deal helped firms that ‘personally enriched’ him
The suit aims to reverse the sale of the app’s US operations. (CBS News)
+ It could shed light on the majority American-owned joint venture for TikTok. (Reuters)
4 AI could give smart homes a reboot
Google and Amazon are betting on smarter assistants—but not everyone’s convinced (NYT)
5 Iran has struck Amazon data centers, rattling the Gulf’s AI ambitions
The first military hit on a US hyperscaler has shaken the region’s tech sector. (FT $)
+ The conflict has thrown a spotlight on AI’s current use in warfare—and what’s next. (Nature)
6 Trump and tech CEOs have promised to protect consumers from AI’s energy costs
Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, Oracle and xAI have all signed the pledge. (Axios)
+ But what is AI’s true energy footprint? We did the math. (MIT Technology Review)
7 Meta’s getting sued over surveillance through smart glasses
The suit claims Meta misled users over the devices’ privacy features. (toptechtrends.com/2026/03/05/meta-sued-over-ai-smartglasses-privacy-concerns-after-workers-reviewed-nudity-sex-and-other-footage/?mc_cid=e5b8aa03a6&mc_eid=UNIQID”>TechCrunch)
8 There’s a new field of study: researching ‘AI societies’
Scientists are examining human behavior without even involving humans. (Nature)
+ Hundreds of AI agents built their own society in Minecraft. (MIT Technology Review)
9 Oh great, teenage boys are using ChatGPT to chat up girls
Of all the things to outsource to AI, flirting surely ain’t it. (Vox)
10 The mythical Nintendo PlayStation has a new home
The US National Video Museum has bought the fabled console’s development kit. (Engadget)
Quote of the day
“It’s sort of bitterly ironic.”
—Dean Ball, a former Trump administration AI adviser, tells Politico that the Anthropic spat contradicts the president’s pledge to cut bureaucratic red tape for tech.
One more thing
These scientists are working to extend the life span of pet dogs—and their owners
Gavesh’s journey began with a Facebook job advert promising a better life. Instead, he was trafficked into “pig butchering”—a form of fraud where scammers build close relationships with online targets to extract money.
We spoke to Gavesh and five other workers from inside the scam industry, as well as anti-trafficking experts and technology specialists. Their testimony reveals how global tech platforms have industrialized this criminal trade—and why those same companies now hold the key to dismantling it. Read the full story.
—Peter Guest and Emily Fishbein
We can still have nice things
A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line or skeet ’em at me.)
+ The Blood Moon of March 3 was sublime.
+ Orysia Zabeida’s imperfect animations, drawn frame-by-frame from memory, are hypnotizing.
+ This stunning snap of a white whale calf scooped the top prize at the World Nature Photography Awards.
+ Two “Lazarus” marsupial species just came back from the dead in a big win for biodiversity.
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