Woodrow Wilson and his critics, a mission to trick Hitlers generals, canine-themed reading for kids and more.

Be like the monkeys Research monkeys still having a ball days after busting out of lab, policy say They pose no risk to human health, and they're living their best lives. Beth Mole Nov 8, 2024 5:51 pm | 8 Credit: Getty | DEA / C.DANI / I.JESKE Credit: Getty | DEA / C.DANI / I.JESKE Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreIf you need any inspiration for cutting loose and relaxing this weekend, look no further than a free-wheeling troop of monkeys that broke out of their South Carolina research facility Wednesday and, as of noon Friday, were still "playfully exploring" with their newfound freedom.In an update Friday, the police department of Yemassee, SC said that the 43 young, female rhesus macaque monkeys are still staying around the perimeter of the Alpha Genesis Primate Research Facility. "The primates are exhibiting calm and playful behavior, which is a positive indication," the department noted.The fun-loving furballs got free after a caretaker "failed to secure doors" at the facility.Alpha Genesis staff have been keeping an eye on the escapees, trying to entice them back in with food. But, instead of taking the bait, the primates have been playing on the perimeter fence while still keeping in touch with the monkeys inside by cooing to them."They're just being goofy monkeys jumping back and forth playing with each other," Alpha Genesis CEO Greg Westergaard told CBS News Thursday. "It's kind of like a playground situation here."Yemassee police note that the monkeys are very young and smallonly about 6 or 7 pounds each. They have not been used for any testing yet, don't carry any disease, and pose no health risk to the public. Still, area residents have been advised to keep their doors and windows locked in case the wee primates try to pay a visit.This isn't the first timeor even the second timeAlpha Genesis has had trouble keeping its monkeys under control. In 2018, the US Department of Agriculture fined the company $12,600 for violations between 2014 and 2016 that included four monkey breakouts. In those incidents, a total of 30 monkeys escaped. One was never found.Beth MoleSenior Health ReporterBeth MoleSenior Health Reporter Beth is Ars Technicas Senior Health Reporter. Beth has a Ph.D. in microbiology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and attended the Science Communication program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. She specializes in covering infectious diseases, public health, and microbes. 8 Comments Prev story

Defense confabulations Claude AI to process secret government data through new Palantir deal Critics worry Anthropic is endangering its "ethical" AI stance due to defense associations. Benj Edwards Nov 8, 2024 5:08 pm | 16 Credit: Yuichiro Chino via Getty Images Credit: Yuichiro Chino via Getty Images Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreAnthropic has announced a partnership with Palantir and Amazon Web Services to bring its Claude AI models to unspecified US intelligence and defense agencies. Claude, a family of AI language models similar to those that power ChatGPT, will work within Palantir's platform using AWS hosting to process and analyze data. But some critics have called out the deal as contradictory to Anthropic's widely-publicized "AI safety" aims.On X, former Google co-head of AI ethics Timnit Gebru wrote of Anthropic's new deal with Palantir, "Look at how they care so much about 'existential risks to humanity.'"The partnership makes Claude available within Palantir's Impact Level 6 environment (IL6), a defense-accredited system that handles data critical to national security up to the "secret" classification level. This move follows a broader trend of AI companies seeking defense contracts, with Meta offering its Llama models to defense partners and OpenAI pursuing closer ties with the Defense Department.In a press release, the companies outlined three main tasks for Claude in defense and intelligence settings: performing operations on large volumes of complex data at high speeds, identifying patterns and trends within that data, and streamlining document review and preparation.While the partnership announcement suggests broad potential for AI-powered intelligence analysis, it states that human officials will retain their decision-making authority in these operations. As a reference point for the technology's capabilities, Palantir reported that one (unnamed) American insurance company used 78 AI agents powered by their platform and Claude to reduce an underwriting process from two weeks to three hours.The new collaboration builds on Anthropic's earlier integration of Claude into AWS GovCloud, a service built for government cloud computing. Anthropic, which recently began operations in Europe, has been seeking funding at a valuation up to $40 billion. The company has raised $7.6 billion, with Amazon as its primary investor.An ethical minefieldSince its founders started Anthropic in 2021, the company has marketed itself as one that takes an ethics- and safety-focused approach to AI development. The company differentiates itself from competitors like OpenAI by adopting what it calls responsible development practices and self-imposed ethical constraints on its models, such as its "Constitutional AI" system.As Futurism points out, this new defense partnership appears to conflict with Anthropic's public "good guy" persona, and pro-AI pundits on social media are noticing. Frequent AI commentator Nabeel S. Qureshi wrote on X, "Imagine telling the safety-concerned, effective altruist founders of Anthropic in 2021 that a mere three years after founding the company, they'd be signing partnerships to deploy their ~AGI model straight to the military frontlines." Anthropic's "Constitutional AI" logo. Credit: Anthropic / Benj Edwards Anthropic's "Constitutional AI" logo. Credit: Anthropic / Benj Edwards Aside from the implications of working with defense and intelligence agencies, the deal connects Anthropic with Palantir, a controversial company which recently won a $480 million contract to develop an AI-powered target identification system called Maven Smart System for the US Army. Project Maven has sparked criticism within the tech sector over military applications of AI technology.It's worth noting that Anthropic's terms of service do outline specific rules and limitations for government use. These terms permit activities like foreign intelligence analysis and identifying covert influence campaigns, while prohibiting uses such as disinformation, weapons development, censorship, and domestic surveillance. Government agencies that maintain regular communication with Anthropic about their use of Claude may receive broader permissions to use the AI models.Even if Claude is never used to target a human or as part of a weapons system, other issues remain. While its Claude models are highly regarded in the AI community, they (like all LLMs) have the tendency to confabulate, potentially generating incorrect information in a way that is difficult to detect.That's a huge potential problem that could impact Claude's effectiveness with secret government data, and that fact, along with the other associations, has Futurism's Victor Tangermann worried. As he puts it, "It's a disconcerting partnership that sets up the AI industry's growing ties with the US military-industrial complex, a worrying trend that should raise all kinds of alarm bells given the tech's many inherent flawsand even more so when lives could be at stake."Benj EdwardsSenior AI ReporterBenj EdwardsSenior AI Reporter Benj Edwards is Ars Technica's Senior AI Reporter and founder of the site's dedicated AI beat in 2022. He's also a widely-cited tech historian. In his free time, he writes and records music, collects vintage computers, and enjoys nature. He lives in Raleigh, NC. 16 Comments

John Edwards, Technology Journalist & AuthorNovember 8, 20246 Min ReadPanther Media GmbH via Alamy Stock PhotoThe food services industry might seem an unlikely candidate for AI adoption, yet the market, which includes full-service restaurants, quick-service restaurants, catering companies, coffee shops, private chefs, and a variety of other participants, is rapidly recognizing AI's immediate and long-term potential.AI in food services is poised for widespread adoption, predicts Colin Dowd, industry strategy senior manager at Armanino, an accounting and consulting firm. "As customer expectations shift, companies will be forced to meet their demands through AI solutions that are similar to their competitors," he notes in an email interview.Mike Kostyo, a vice president with food industry consulting firm Menu Matters, agrees. "It's hard to think of any facet of the food industry that isn't being transformed by AI," he observes via email. Kostyo says his research shows that consumers want lower costs --making it easier to customize or personalize a meal -- and faster service. "We tell our clients they should focus on those benefits and make sure they're clear to consumers when they implement new AI technologies."Seeking InsightsOn the research side, AI is being used to make sense out of the data deluge firms currently face. "Food companies are drowning in research and data, both from their own sources, such as sales data and loyalty programs, and from secondary sources," Kostyo says. "It's just not feasible for a human to wade through all of that data, so today's companies use AI to sift through it all, make connections, and develop recommendations."Related:AI can, for example, detect that spicy beverages are starting to catch on when paired with a particular flavor. "So, it may recommend building that combination into a new menu option or product," Kostyo says. It can do this constantly over time, taking into account billions of data points, creating innovation starting positions. "The team can take it from there, filling their pipeline with relevant products and menu items."Data collected from multiple sources can also be used to track customer preferences, providing early insights on emerging flavor trends. "For example, Campbells and Coca-Cola are currently using AI in tandem with food scientists to create new and exciting flavors and dishes for their customers based on insights collected from both internal and external data sources," Dowd says. "This approach can also be applied to restaurants and other locations that rely on recipes."Management and InnovationAI can also optimize inventory management. "AI is being used to determine when to order, and how much inventory a company needs to purchase, by analyzing historical data and current trends," Dowd says. "This allows the restaurant to maintain ideal inventory levels, reduce waste and better ensure that the restaurant always has the necessary ingredients."Related:When used as an innovation generator, AI can inspire fresh ideas. "Sometimes, when you get in that room together to come up with a new menu item or product, just facing down that blank page is the hardest part," Kostyo observes. "You can use AI for some starter ideas to work with." He says he loves to feed outlandish ideas into AI, such as, 'What would a dessert octopus look like?' "It may then develop this really wild dessert, like a chocolate octopus with different-flavored tentacles."Customer ExperienceAI promises to help restaurants provide a consistently positive experience to consumers, says Jay Fiske, president of Powerhouse Dynamics, an AI and IoT solutions provider for major multi-site food service firms, including Dunkin', Arby's, and Buffalo Wild Wings. He notes in an email interview that AI and ML can be used to flag concerning data, indicating potential problems, such as frozen meat going into the oven before it should, or predicting a likely freezer breakdown sometime within the next two weeks. "In these situations, facility managers have time to quickly preempt any issues that could cost them money, as well as their reputations with consumers," he says.Related:Another way AI is transforming the food services industry is by providing more efficient and reliable energy management. "This is important, because restaurants, ghost kitchens, and other food service businesses are extremely energy intensive," Fiske says. Refrigerators, freezers, ovens, dish washers, fryers, and air conditioners all consume massive amounts of power that can be controlled and optimized by AI.Future OutlookThe sky is the limit for food services industry AI, Kostyo states, noting that market players are taking various approaches. Some are excited about AI, and afraid to get left behind, so they're jumping right into these tools, while others are a little more skittish, concerned about ethical and privacy issues.Kostyo urges AI adopters to periodically monitor their customers' AI acceptance level. "In some ways, customers are very open to AI," he says. "Forty-six percent of consumers told us they're already using AI to assist with food decisions in some fashion, such as deciding what to cook or where to eat." Kostyo adds that 59% of surveyed consumers believe that AI can develop a recipe that's just as delicious as anyhuman chef could create.On the other hand, people still often crave a human touch. Kostyo reports that 66% of consumers would still rather have a dish that was created by a human chef. "Consumers frequently push back when they see AI being used in a way that would take a human job."Service FirstKostyo urges the food industry to use AI in ways that will enhance the overall consumer experience. "At the end of the day, we are the hospitality industry, and we need to remember that."About the AuthorJohn EdwardsTechnology Journalist & AuthorJohn Edwards is a veteran business technology journalist. His work has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post, and numerous business and technology publications, including Computerworld, CFO Magazine, IBM Data Management Magazine, RFID Journal, and Electronic Design. He has also written columns for The Economist's Business Intelligence Unit and PricewaterhouseCoopers' Communications Direct. John has authored several books on business technology topics. His work began appearing online as early as 1983. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, he wrote daily news and feature articles for both the CompuServe and Prodigy online services. His "Behind the Screens" commentaries made him the world's first known professional blogger.See more from John EdwardsNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports

Phong Nguyen, Chief AI Officer, FPT SoftwareNovember 8, 20244 Min ReadBrain light via Alamy StockGenerative AI is reshaping the future of the automotive industry. For industry leaders, this is not just some cutting-edge technology, but a strategic enabler poised to redefine the market landscape. With 79% of executives expecting significant AI-driven transformation within the next three years, harnessing GenAI is no longer optional but essential to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving sector.As AI continues to make its mark, it transforms how vehicles are designed, secures them against evolving threats, and enhances the overall driving experience. From enabling cars to anticipate and respond to cyber risks to accelerating innovation in design, and creating more personalized driving experiences, AI is redefining the key aspects of automotive development and usage.Stopping Security BreachesWith the automotive industry undergoing rapid transformation, the cybersecurity risks it encounters are also increasing and becoming more complex. High-profile breaches, such as the Pandora ransomware attack on a major German car manufacturer in March 2022, highlight the urgent need for more advanced security strategies. The attackers compromised 1.4TB of sensitive data, including purchase orders, technical diagrams, and internal emails, exposing vulnerabilities within the sector.AI-driven systems, including predictive and generative models, process vast amounts of data in real-time, making them indispensable for detecting unusual patterns that signal potential attacks. By continuously learning from past threats and dynamic adaptation to emerging risks, AI-driven systems detect intrusions and work alongside rule-based or supervised models to predict outcomes and simulate attack scenarios for training purposes. These include isolating compromised nodes, blocking malicious IP addresses, and mitigating threats before they escalate. For this reason, 82% of IT decision-makers intend to invest in AI-driven cybersecurity within the next two years.GenAI's abilities to generate data and patterns empower organizations to stay ahead of cybercriminals by anticipating attacks before they occur. A prime example is a leading automotive manufacturer that has significantly improved the security of its vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication systems by leveraging generative models to simulate various network attack scenarios. This approach allows the network's defensive mechanisms to be trained and tested against imminent breaches.By utilizing models such as variational autoencoders (VAEs) and generative adversarial networks (GANs), which can generate synthetic attack data for simulations, the company could mimic various cyberattack scenarios. This allowed them to detect and mitigate up to 90% of simulated attacks during the testing phases, demonstrating a robust improvement in the overall security posture.Redefining Automotive DesignGenerative AI is ushering in a new wave of innovation in automotive architecture, transforming vehicle design with cutting-edge capabilities. By leveraging generative design techniques, AI-driven systems can automatically produce multiple design iterations, enabling manufacturers to identify the most efficient and effective solutions. GenAI design optimizes engineering and aesthetic decisions, helping manufacturers reduce development time and costs by up to 20%, according to Precedence Research, giving companies a competitive edge in expediting time-to-market.Toyota Research Institute has integrated a generative AI tool that enables designers to leap from a text description to design sketches by specifying stylistic attributes such as sleek, SUV-like, and modern. Tackling the challenges where designs frequently fell short of meeting engineering requirements, this tool integrates both aesthetic and engineering requirements. That allows designers and engineers to collaborate more effectively while ensuring that the final designs meet critical technical specifications. By bridging the gap between creative and engineering teams, companies can ensure that final designs meet essential specifications while enhancing both the speed and quality of design iterations, enabling faster and more efficient innovation.A More Connected and Personalized Driver ExperienceOriginal equipment manufacturers are transforming the customer experience with GenAI in an increasingly demanding market. Unlike traditional voice command systems that rely on static and pre-programmed responses, AI-powered voice technology offers dynamic, natural conversations. Integrated into vehicles, GenAI enhances GPS navigation, entertainment systems, and other in-car functionalities, allowing drivers to interact meaningfully with their vehicles AI assistant.Volkswagen, for example, became the first automotive manufacturer to integrate ChatGPT into its voice assistant IDA. This offers drivers an AI-powered system that manages everything from infotainment to navigation and answers general knowledge questions.As GenAI continues to become more advanced, delivering an exceptional driver experience is now a key differentiator for manufacturers looking to stay competitive. Despite the significant advancements in leveraging AI to enhance customer interactions, many original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) struggle to meet customer expectations. A recent Boston Consulting Group study revealed that, while the quality of the car-buying experience is the most critical decision factor for many customers, only 52% of customers say they are completely satisfied with their most recent car-buying experience. This underscores the need for OEMs to refine the integration of AI-driven systems further to enhance both the purchasing and ownership experience.About the AuthorPhong NguyenChief AI Officer, FPT SoftwarePhong Nguyenis FPT Softwares chief artificial intelligence officer. He is an influential leader with vast managerial and technical experience, listed as Top150 AI Executives by Constellation Research 2024. Phong holds a PhD from the University of Tokyo and a master's degree from Carnegie Mellon University.See more from Phong NguyenNever Miss a Beat: Get a snapshot of the issues affecting the IT industry straight to your inbox.SIGN-UPYou May Also LikeWebinarsMore WebinarsReportsMore Reports

A robot dog chased down a ball and clambered over obstacles after learning the skills from images and video generated by artificial intelligence.Ge Yang at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and his colleagues developed their training platform LucidSim by taking a popular computer simulation software that follows the principles of real-world physics and inserting a generative AI model to produce artificial environments such as a stone pathway.They also used OpenAIs ChatGPT to generate thousands of text descriptions that were fed into the

LifeAn analysis of thousands of cognitive tests carried out by chimpanzees finds that the number of spectators influenced their performance in different ways depending on the difficulty of the task 8 November 2024 A chimpanzee tackling a number test on a touch screenAkiho MuramatsuThe pressure of a watching audience can have positive or negative effects on human performance, and it turns out the same is true of our closest relatives.Christen Lin at Kyoto University, Japan, and his colleagues tested a group of six chimpanzees housed at the universitys primate research institute on three numerical tasks with varying difficulty. AdvertisementIn the first task, the numbers 1 to 5 appeared on the screen in random locations and the chimps simply had to touch the numbers in the correct order to get a food reward.In the second task, the numbers werent adjacent: for example, 1, 3, 5, 7, 11 and 15 might appear on the screen. Again, the chimps had to press the numbers from smallest to largest in order to receive a reward.Finally, in the hardest test, when the first number in the sequence was pressed, the rest of the numbers were hidden behind chequered squares on the screen. This meant the chimps had to memorise the location of the numbers in order to press them in the correct order. A monthly celebration of the biodiversity of our planets animals, plants and other organisms.Sign up to newsletterThe chimps were tested on the tasks thousands of times over a six-year period with varying audiences from one to eight human observers, some familiar to the chimps and others who were new.When the task was easy, the chimps performed worse when there were more people watching. But on the most difficult task, all six of the chimps did better as the size of the audience grew.It was very surprising to find a significant increase in performance as human experimenter numbers increased, because we might expect more humans being present to be more distracting, says Lin. However, the results suggest that this may actually motivate them to perform even better.For the easiest task, the humans may be distracting to them, but for the most difficult task it is possible that the humans are a stressor that actually motivates them to perform better.Team member Shinya Yamamoto, also at Kyoto University, says they were very surprised to find this effect in the chimps.Such an audience effect is often thought to be unique to humans, who live in a reputation-based normative society, where we sometimes perform better in front of an audience and sometimes perform worse than we expected, he says. But our study shows that this audience effect may have evolved in the ape lineage before the development of this kind of normative society.Yamamoto says it is difficult and sometimes dangerous to draw direct implications for humans from non-human studies. But, in a casual way, we may be able to ease the tension of those who are extremely nervous in public by saying chimpanzees are the same!Miguel Llorente at the University of Girona, Spain, suggests further studies could explore how the audience effect is related to chimpanzees individual personalities.It would also be fascinating to explore these effects with chimpanzee audiences to understand more fully how these dynamics play out in a natural social context in order to generalise these results to the natural behaviour of chimpanzees, he says.Journal reference:iScience DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.111191Topics:animals

This is today's edition ofThe Download,our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology. Why AI could eat quantum computings lunch Tech companies have been funneling billions of dollars into quantum computers for years. The hope is that theyll be a game changer for fields as diverse as finance, drug discovery, and logistics. But while the field struggles with the realities of tricky quantum hardware, another challenger is making headway in some of these most promising use cases. AI is now being applied to fundamental physics, chemistry, and materials science in a way that suggests quantum computings purported home turf might not be so safe after all. Read the full story. Edd Gent Whats next for reproductive rights in the US This week, it wasnt just the future president of the US that was on the ballot. Ten states also voted on abortion rights. Two years ago, the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, a legal decision that protected the right to abortion. Since then, abortion bans have been enacted in multiple states, and millions of people in the US have lost access to local clinics. Now, some states are voting to extend and protect access to abortion. Missouri, a state that has long restricted access, even voted to overturn its ban. But its not all good news for proponents of reproductive rights. Read the full story. Jessica Hamzelou This story is from The Checkup, our weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all things biotech. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Thursday. The must-reads Ive combed the internet to find you todays most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Black Americans received racist texts threatening them with slavery Some of the messages claim to be from Trump supporters or the Trump administration. (WP $)+ What Trumps last tenure as president can teach us about whats coming. (New Yorker $)+ The January 6 rioters are hoping for early pardons and release. (Wired $)2 China is shoring up its economy to the tune of $1.4 trillion Its bracing itself for increased trade tensions with a Trump-governed US. (FT $)+ The countrys chip industry has a plan too. (Reuters)+ Were witnessing the return of Trumponomics. (Economist $)+ Heres how the tech markets have reacted to his reelection. (Insider $)3 How crypto came out on topTrump is all in, even if he previously dismissed it as a scam. (Bloomberg $) + Enthusiasts are hoping for less regulation and more favorable legislation. (Time $)4 A weight-loss drug contributed to the death of a nurse in the UKSusan McGowan took two doses of Mounjaro in the weeks before her death. (BBC)+ Its the first known death to be officially linked to the drug in the UK. (The Guardian) 5 An academics lawsuit against Meta has been dismissed Ethan Zuckerman wanted protection against the firm for building an unfollowing tool. (NYT $)6 How the Republicans won onlineThe right-wing influencer ecosystem is extremely powerful and effective. (The Atlantic $) + The left doesnt really have an equivalent network. (Vox)+ X users are considering leaving the platform in protest (again.) (Slate $)7 What does the future of America's public health look like?Noted conspiracy theorist and anti-vaxxer RFK Jr could be in charge soon. (NY Mag $) + Letting Kennedy go wild on health is not a great sign. (Forbes $)+ His war on fluoride in drinking water is already underway. (Politico)8 An AI-created portrait of Alan Turing has sold for $1 millionJust why? (The Guardian) + Why artists are becoming less scared of AI. (MIT Technology Review)9 How to harness energy from space A relay system of transmitters could help to ping it back to Earth. (IEEE Spectrum)+ The quest to figure out farming on Mars. (MIT Technology Review)10 AI-generated videos are not interesting Thats according to the arbiters of what is and isnt interesting over at Reddit. (404 Media)+ Whats next for generative video. (MIT Technology Review)Quote of the day "That's petty, right? How much does one piece of fruit per day cost?" A former Intel employee reacts to the news the embattled company is planning to restore its free coffee privileges for its staffbut not free fruit, Insider reports. The big story Recapturing early internet whimsy with HTML December 2023 Websites werent always slick digital experiences. There was a time when surfing the web involved opening tabs that played music against your will and sifting through walls of text on a colored background. In the 2000s, before Squarespace and social media, websites were manifestations of individualitybuilt from scratch using HTML, by users who had some knowledge of code. Scattered across the web are communities of programmers working to revive this seemingly outdated approach. And the movement is anything but a superficial appeal to retro aestheticsits about celebrating the human touch in digital experiences. Read the full story. Tiffany Ng 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 tweet 'em at me.) + Sandwiches through the ages is a pretty great subject for a book.+ Art Garfunkel and Paul Simon are getting the band back together! (kind of)+ Instant mashed potatoes have a bad reputation. But it doesnt have to be this way.+ Heres what an actual robot apocalypse would look like (thanks Will!)

This is today's edition ofThe Download,our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology. Trumps win is a tragic loss for climate progress James Temple Donald Trumps decisive victory is a stunning setback for the fight against climate change. The Republican president-elects return to the White House means the US is going to squander precious momentum, unraveling hard-won policy progress that was just beginning to pay off, all for the second time in less than a decade. It comes at a moment when the world cant afford to waste time, with nations far off track from any emissions trajectories that would keep our ecosystems stable and our communities safe. Trump could push the globe into even more dangerous terrain, by defanging President Joe Bidens signature climate laws, exacerbating the dangers of heat waves, floods, wildfires, droughts, and famine and increase deaths and disease from air pollution. And this time round, I fear it will be far worse. Read the full story. The US is about to make a sharp turn on climate policy The past four years have seen the US take climate action seriously, working with the international community and pumping money into solutions. Now, were facing a period where things are going to be very different. This is what the next four years will mean for the climate fight. Read the full story. Casey Crownhart This story is from The Spark, a newsletter we send out every Wednesday. If you want to stay up-to-date with all the latest goings-on in climate and energy, sign up. The must-reads Ive combed the internet to find you todays most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Tech leaders are lining up to congratulate Donald Trump In a bid to placate the famously volatile President-elect. (FT $)+ Many are seeking to rebuild bridges that have fractured since his last tenure. (CNBC)+ Particularly Jeff Bezos, who has had a fractious relationship with Trump. (NY Mag $)+ Expect less regulation, more trade upheaval, and a whole lot more Elon Musk. (WP $)2 Election deniers have gone mysteriously silent Its almost as if their claims of fraud were baseless in the first place. (NYT $)+ It looks like influencer marketing campaigns really did change minds. (Wired $)3 How Elon Musk is likely to slash US government spending He has a long history of strategic cost-cutting in his own businesses. (WSJ $)+ His other ventures are on course for favorable government treatment. (Reuters)+ Its easy to forget that Musk claims to have voted Democrat in 2020 and 2016. (WP $) 4 Google could be spared being broken up Trump has expressed skepticism about the antitrust proposal. (Reuters)+ Its far from the only reverse-ferret were likely to see. (Economist $)5 How progressive groups are planning for a future under Trump Alliances are meeting today to form networks of resources. (Fast Company $)6 Australia wants to ban under-16s from accessing social media But its not clear how it could be enforced. (The Guardian)+ The proposed law could come into power as soon as next year. (BBC)+ Roblox has made sweeping changes to its child safety policies. (Bloomberg $)+ Child online safety laws will actually hurt kids, critics say. (MIT Technology Review)7 It looks like OpenAI just paid $10 million for a urlWhy ChatGPT when you could just chat.com? (The Verge) + How ChatGPT search paves the way for AI agents. (MIT Technology Review)8 Women in the US are exploring swearing off men altogetherSocial media interest in a Korean movement advocating for a man-free life is soaring. (WP $) 9 Gen Z cant get enough of manifesting TikTok is teaching them how to will their way to a better life. (Insider $)10 Tattoo artists are divided over whether they should use AI AI-assisted designs have been accused of lacking soul. (WSJ $) Quote of the day "Don't worry, I won't judge much. Maybe just an eye roll here and there." Lily, a sarcastic AI teenage avatar and star of language learning app Duolingo, greets analysts tuning into the companys earning call, Insider reports. The big story The great commercial takeover of low-Earth orbit April 2024 NASA designed the International Space Station to fly for 20 years. It has lasted six years longer than that, though it is showing its age, and NASA is currently studying how to safely destroy the space laboratory by around 2030.The ISS never really became what some had hoped: a launching point for an expanding human presence in the solar system. But it did enable fundamental research on materials and medicine, and it helped us start to understand how space affects the human body. To build on that work, NASA has partnered with private companies to develop new, commercial space stations for research, manufacturing, and tourism. If they are successful, these companies will bring about a new era of space exploration: private rockets flying to private destinations. Theyre already planning to do it around the moon. One day, Mars could follow. Read the full story. David W. Brown 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 tweet 'em at me.) + Who doesnt love a smeared makeup look?+ Time to snuggle up: its officially Nora Ephron season. + Walking backwardsdont knock it til youve tried it. Its surprisingly good for you.+ Feeling stressed? Heres how to calm your mind in times of trouble.

Elon Musk and Donald Trump are both enthusiastic about space exploration opportunities amid a desire to slash regulations.It's not yet clear how powerful Musk's role in the new Trump administration will be.Still, Musk's influence could advance his business plans, including sending Starships to Mars. Thanks for signing up! Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. Now that president-elect Donald Trump is set to return to power in the US, Elon Musk's plans for sending humans beyond Earth's orbit may be more likely to come to fruition.Space industry experts told Business Insider that Musk's influence over Trump could help advance his business interests, including sending the first crewed mission to Mars."I'm hugely optimistic about what's going to happen in space now," Michelle Hanlon, executive director of the Center for Air and Space Law at the University of Mississippi School of Law, told Business Insider.Hanlon's optimism isn't unfounded, especially if Trump's second term focuses on space as much as his first.During his first term, from 2017 to 2021, Trump's administration founded the Space Force, re-launched the National Space Council, and established NASA's Artemis program. This program is set to return astronauts to the moon and lay the groundwork for the first crewed mission to Mars.But space isn't the only interest Trump and Musk share. They also want to slash government regulations.Musk's 'Department of Government Efficiency'Trump has said that he would cut 10 regulations for every new one his administration creates.Musk and his businesses, meanwhile, have clashed with regulators, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the Federal Aviation Administration."There is a lot of waste and needless regulation in government that needs to go," Musk wrote on X after Trump announced that he planned to put the billionaire at the helm of a new "department of government efficiency."It's unclear how much influence Musk would have over regulations if this department came to fruition. Trump's trust in Musk to run such a department, however, is a testament to the pair's burgeoning relationship.The two men teamed up on the campaign trail, with Musk contributing millions to Trump's reelection campaign and appearing with him at a rally in Pennsylvania.In his election-night victory speech, Trump praised Musk for SpaceX's Starship vehicle, designed to shuttle the first humans to Mars, and for the company's Starlink internet satellites, which are designed to offer fast, cheap internet to remote locations worldwide.Musk also joined a call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday underscoring how influential Musk could be once Trump returns to office, Axios reported.Whether that influence translates to Trump founding a new "department of government efficiency" for Musk, though, is unclear. Elon Musk jumps for joy at Trump's recent rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images SpaceX and Musk did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for Trump's campaign said that Musk's ideas and efficiency will benefit federal bureaucracy but his role in Trump's administration remains under wraps."It's a crazy situation, but you can't just create a new department," Deborah Sivas, the director of the Environmental Law Clinic at Stanford, told BI. She said Congress would have to approve it,whichmay be more likely since Republicans won the Senate majority.Changing a government agency's powers or rules, Sivas said, requires making new rules or passing a law through Congress. That can take months, and it's not guaranteed to work.So, it's unlikely that Musk would be able to single-handedly eliminate key steps in regulatory processes, like the typical environmental review requirement for building a new rocket launchpad."I think Elon Musk will be more likely in the background, whispering in his ear," Sivas said of the billionaire's relationship with Trump."Is he going to be able to influence space policy? Yes, no question," Hanlon said, adding that she sees that as a "good thing" because of Musk's experience.In other arenas, like environmental regulation, Sivas isn't so sure."I feel like he should stay in his business lane and stay out of the government lane," Sivas said. "When you put those two together, it's like putting church and state together."Smoothing potholes on the road to MarsEven if Musk can't change regulations, a space-friendly Trump administration could smooth the path to Musk's goal of building a city on Mars.Musk recently said that he plans to launch Starships to Mars for the first time in just two years. If those flights go well, he said that the first human crews would follow four years from now."That's a pretty ambitious timeline," George Nield, former associate administrator of the FAA's Office of Commercial Space Transportation, told BI. To meet it would probably require "different regulatory frameworks or contractual arrangements than we've used in the past," he added. Elon Musk spoke at Donald Trumps rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images "If anybody can do it, it will be Elon Musk," Hanlon said. But the government can help, she said, by making regulators more efficient.To help even further, she added, "It can become a policy of the US government to support commercial flight to Mars."With Trump's interest in Starship, the chances of that look better than ever.Regulations aren't the only obstacle. There are still a lot of technical hurdles to overcome before we can reach Mars, Nield said.The moon, on the other hand, is more achievable, and Trump has had his eye on it. Weeks after Musk endorsed Trump, the president-elect told reporters that the moon was the first step toward his ultimate goal to reach Mars.The next moon landingFor the Artemis program's first human moon landing, NASA plans to launch four astronauts toward the moon using its Space Launch System and Orion spaceship.In lunar orbit, the ship would meet up with SpaceX's Starship, which would carry two astronauts to the moon's surface, putting boots in the lunar dust for the first time since 1972.The date for that mission has been repeatedly pushed back, with September 2026 being NASA's current target.There's no indication that Trump is considering this, but if he wants a faster moon landing, he could ditch the NASA hardware and send astronauts aboard Starship alone, Nield said."If we see rapid progress with Starship and encouragement from the administration and Congress, I don't see any reason why that couldn't happen in a small number of years," Nield said.