In todays rapidly evolving digital landscape, entrepreneurship isnt just about disruption, innovation, and profitability anymore. As technology and enterprise leaders, we face a new mandate - to align business growth with social responsibility.Technology influences every facet of our lives, from how we communicate and work to how we shop, learn, and even think. With that influence comes a profound responsibility to wield power ethically and thoughtfully. Its no longer just about chasing profits; its about making a meaningful, lasting impact on society.When I first started in the tech world in the mid-2000s, success was often measured by metrics like market share, revenue growth, and valuations. The primary focus was on how quickly a company could scale, outmanoeuvre competitors, and secure investor confidence.But over the years, there has been a profound shift in priorities and expectations. Stakeholders -whether theyre customers, employees, investors, or entire communities - are demanding more from businesses. They expect companies to address critical issues such as climate change, data privacy, diversity and inclusion, and digital accessibility. And this isnt just a moral obligation anymore - its becoming an essential component of long-term business success.From my experience across various industries and as a member of the Forbes Technology Council, I can confidently say that true leadership isnt just about scaling businesses - its about scaling impact.C-suite technologists and entrepreneurs need to recognise that our innovations affect real people and communities in profound ways. Success today is defined by how well we integrate purpose into profit, ensuring that our technological advancements contribute positively to society while driving sustainable growth.Two companies stand out to me as prime examples of how social responsibility and profitability can coexist harmoniously:While not a tech company, outdoor clothing firm Patagonia sets the gold standard for corporate responsibility. Its unwavering dedication to environmental sustainability - using recycled materials in its products and donating a significant portion of profits to environmental causes - proves that businesses can thrive while prioritising the planet. Patagonias success demonstrates that consumers are willing to support companies that align with their values. The pace of change places an even greater responsibility on leaders to ensure that technologies do not inadvertently harm the communities we aim to serve Dax GrantUnder Satya Nadellas visionary leadership, Microsoft has prioritised accessibility, ensuring products and services cater to people with disabilities. Its "AI for good" initiative exemplifies how technology can be leveraged to address global challenges, from healthcare and education to environmental conservation and humanitarian efforts. Microsofts commitment to inclusivity and ethical innovation has not only enhanced its brand reputation but driven financial performance.These companies illustrate that prioritising social good doesnt just enhance brand reputation - it creates resilient, future-proof organisations capable of navigating the complexities of the modern business landscape.Conversely, ignoring social responsibility can have dire consequences for companies. In the tech industry, the speed of innovation often outpaces regulation. This rapid pace places an even greater responsibility on us as leaders to self-regulate and ensure that our technologies do not inadvertently harm the very communities we aim to serve.So, how can technology leaders and entrepreneurs integrate social responsibility into their business models without compromising profitability? Based on my experiences and observations, here are some practical strategies to achieve this balance:Define your purpose early: From day one, be clear about your mission beyond making money. What societal issue are you addressing? How does your product or service improve lives or contribute to the greater good? Embedding purpose early ensures it becomes a guiding principle as you scale. When your mission is deeply ingrained in your companys DNA, it influences every decision, from product development to marketing and customer engagement.Build a diverse and inclusive team: Diverse teams foster innovation, creativity, and resilience. They bring different perspectives and experiences to the table, helping identify blind spots and avoid groupthink. Its not just about diverse hiring practices but ensuring representation in leadership, decision-making, and company culture.Prioritise transparency and accountability: Be open and honest about business practices, from supply chain ethics to data handling and environmental impact. Transparency builds trust with stakeholders and creates a culture of accountability within the organisation. Regularly communicate your progress on social and environmental goals.Align profit with positive impact: Seek business models that tie financial success to positive societal outcomes. For example, consider donating a portion of profits to charitable causes, investing in sustainable practices, or designing technology that increases accessibility for underserved communities. Social enterprises, for instance, are businesses that prioritise social impact while remaining financially viable.Measure what matters: Go beyond traditional key performance indicators and track metrics related to social impact. This could include carbon footprint reduction, diversity and inclusion statistics, community engagement, and employee wellbeing. Measuring and reporting on these metrics not only holds your company accountable but also demonstrates your commitment to stakeholders.Foster a culture of responsibility: Encourage employees to consider the broader impact of their work. Implement volunteer programmes, establish ethical coding guidelines, and set sustainability goals to cultivate a culture where responsibility is valued and celebrated. Recognise and reward employees who contribute to social and environmental initiatives, reinforcing the importance of these values.As technology continues to shape our world, the role of the tech entrepreneur is evolving. The next generation of leaders wont just drive innovation; theyll do so with a deep sense of responsibility and purpose. Technological entrepreneurial leadership today requires balancing ambition with empathy, recognising that every business decision ripples out into society.The future of entrepreneurship lies at the intersection of profit and purpose. As the tech industry continues to influence every facet of our lives, those of us who embrace this dual mandate wont just survive - well thrive.Well leave a lasting, positive impact on the world, creating a legacy of innovation, integrity, and social responsibility. The time to act is now, and the responsibility is ours to lead with conscience, compassion, and conviction.Read more about ethical leadership in techDigital Ethics Summit 2024: recognising AIs socio-technical nature - At trade association TechUKs eighth annual Digital Ethics Summit, public officials and industry figures and civil society groups met to discuss the ethical challenges associated with the proliferation of technology.Swedish CIO contributes best practices for ethical use of artificial intelligence - IT leaders are scrambling to keep up with AI technology, but many are losing sight of its ethical impact and what CIOs need to do to ensure responsible use.Is diversity suffering because of budget management? Many are considering quitting their jobs over the next year because of rising workloads and falling team sizes. Are firms misallocating budgets and causing retention issues?

At Cisco Live EMEA in Amsterdam, the networking giant launched a number of artificial intelligence (AI) and datacentre infrastructure products and opened up over some of the tricky issues around supporting the intense energy demands that AI workloads make of current systems, that have been a subject of discussion and concern since ChatGPT went mainstream at the end of 2022.Last year, National Grid CEO John Pettigrew said AI would be a significant factor in an anticipated sixfold increase in datacentre power requirements between now and the mid-2030s, and a more recently published RAND research report estimated that AI-driven compute would add 68GW (gigawatts) of power demand worldwide by 2027 almost as much electricity as is consumed by California alone and over 325GW by 2030.Tom Gillis, senior vice-president and general manager of Ciscos security, datacentre, internet and cloud infrastructure group, spoke of an approaching inflection point given the astonishing power requirements of building datacentres fit for the AI era.And in conversation with Computer Weekly on the fringes of the show, Cisco executive vice-president and chief product officer Jeetu Patel said that while the firm rightly acknowledges the criticality of sustainability, it believes that it is helping keep things moving in the right direction on this issue.The larger sustainability issue we should keep in mind is that our products are getting more and more efficient from a power perspective, said Patel.However, he continued, if the use case that naturally arises from this improving efficiency is that Cisco users feel comfortable running more and more AI workloads across its infrastructure, the consequential rise in power consumption will quickly wipe out the gains made from the more efficient, probably liquid-cooled, electronics.The way I think about this is that you have to get AI to a point where intelligent outcomes come about from AI because it is smart enough and thats the race right now. Once we get there, AI will be able to help us solve a lot of power problems and sustainability problems, said Patel.Asked whether or not the second Trump administrations environmental policies which include an increased commitment to exploiting the USs fossil fuel reserves and the countrys withdrawal from the Paris Agreement that aims to limit global heating to 1.5C would impact Ciscos sustainability goals, Patel said it was too early to tell how things would pan out over the next four years.However, he said, it is clear that the tech industry today finds itself in both a compute- and energy-constrained environment, particularly in regard to the appetite for power that AI workloads have.We will see some major breakthroughs on that front that reduce the cost of compute, and therefore reduce the cost of power consumption, he said.For example, DeepSeek. DeepSeek might have actually been very good for the environment, because what it did was taught the models to train at a lower cost and identify techniques that can actually be more efficient.This then will allow you to get many, many more models built at a fraction of the cost of what you could do, he suggested.Read more about AI and sustainabilityThe soaring enterprise demand for AI services is causing all sorts of problems for datacentre operators and their sustainability goals, which will need addressing in 2025.Europes datacentre operators need to get their power report cards to comply with the European Commissions drive to greener EU datacentres.While improvements in energy efficiency have kept electricity consumption in datacentres in check, according to theInternational Energy Agency, to reach net zero, emissions must halve by 2030.

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - JULY 06: UFC president Dana White is seen on stage during the UFC 290 press ... [+] conference at T-Mobile Arena on July 06, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)Zuffa LLC via Getty ImagesWeili Zhang destroyed Tatiana Suarez in the co-main event of UFC 312, but now she faces a tough decision.UFC President told the media Weili and her team were waiting for him after the UFC 312 post-event presser, and he knew what they wanted. He said he was likely to give it to her, but it seemed there was a but.The Chinese icon would love to move up to flyweight to challenge future Hall of Famer Valentina Shevchenko in a true super fight, but according to Weili, the UFC has told her that if she moves up to flyweight, they want her to stay there and not attempt to move back down to strawweight.Weili discussed this in a recent interview on The Ariel Helwani Show.If you take a look at this complex issue, everyone involved has a point. Weilis desire to chase greatness and also rid herself of the weight cut to 115 pounds is understandable.SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 09: Tatiana Suarez of the United States of America fights Zhang Weili ... [+] of China in their Strawweight Title Bout during UFC 312 at Qudos Bank Arena on February 09, 2025 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)Getty ImagesMORE FOR YOUIf Weili could successfully move up to 125 pounds and defeat Shevchenko, she would become just the second woman in UFC history to become a two-division champion. If the UFC allows her to make the move before vacating the strawweight title, shed also have a chance to hold both titles simultaneously.Who wouldnt want to add that to their rsum?The UFC is right to safeguard against a champion holding up two weight classes this way. Truthfully, if Weili decides to move up to flyweight, shell need to properly condition herself to compete at 125 pounds.Its highly unlikely shed be able to safely move back down to 115 pounds and compete at the same level she has during her current championship run. Weili is too big of a star in her country and too valuable as a presence to encourage her to be anything but the best version of herself.Weili is beginning to open up with the American public, and her charm is evident to those who couldnt see it beyond the language barrier.LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - SEPTEMBER 14: Valentina Shevchenko of Kyrgyzstan reacts following her fight ... [+] against Alexa Grasso of Mexico for the Women's Flyweight title during UFC 306: Riyadh Season Noche at Sphere on September 14, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)Getty ImagesShevchenko may be intrigued by the opportunity to fight Weili. However, No. 2 contender Manon Fiorot has been waiting for her opportunity, and she is the most deserving of a title shot.If the UFC allows Weili to leapfrog her, it would be a shame. Weili-Shevchenko is the most exciting fight, but Shevchenko-Fiorot is the right fight to make.LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - SEPTEMBER 13: Manon Fiorot of France poses on the scale during the UFC 306 at ... [+] Riyadh Season Noche UFC Official Weigh-in at UFC APEX on September 13, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC)Zuffa LLCIn the ideal scenario, Weili would take some time to prepare herself to compete at 125 pounds and should face the winner of Shevchenko-Fiorot in the third or fourth quarter of 2025.Well see if thats how this plays out.Whats Next for the UFC?Theres an intriguing Fight Night headed to fans on Saturday from the Apex in Las Vegas. Jared Cannonier will try to remain in the top 10 of the UFCs middleweight division as he battles the surging but unranked Gregory Rodrigues in the main event of UFC Vegas 104.The card also features a number of young up-and-comers like Jose Delgado and Elijah Smith. Here is a look at the entire card.UFC Vegas 102 - Fight CardNo. 7 - Jared Cannonier vs. Gregory Rodrigues Middleweight (185 lbs)No. 12 - Calvin Kattar vs. Youssef Zalal Featherweight (145 lbs)Ismael Bonfim vs. Nazim Sadykhov Lightweight (155 lbs)Jose Delgado vs. Connor Matthews Featherweight (145 lbs)Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Dylan Budka Middleweight (185 lbs)Rodolfo Vieira vs. Andre Petroski Middleweight (185 lbs)No. 12 - Julia Avila vs. No. 13 - Jacqueline Cavalcanti Bantamweight (135 lbs)Vince Morales vs. Elijah Smith Bantamweight (135 lbs)Valter Walker vs. No. 15 - DonTale Mayes Heavyweight (265 lbs)Rafael Estevam vs. Jesus Aguilar Flyweight (125 lbs)No. 13 - Angela Hill vs. Ketlen Souza Strawweight (115 lbs)Gabriel Bonfim vs. Khaos Williams Welterweight (170 lbs)Jared Gordon vs. Mashrabjon Ruziboev - Lightweight (155 lbs)Be on the lookout for post-event coverage. I have a sneaky suspicion were going to see some memorable fights and finishes in Vegas.

LAS VEGAS, NV - MAY 24: Dana White speaks with the press following the event for Power Slap 2 - ... [+] Wolverine vs Bell on May 24, 2023, at UFC Apex in Las Vegas, NV. (Photo by Louis Grasse/PxImages/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)Icon Sportswire via Getty ImagesThe UFC is all about giving fighters opportunities, and thats especially the case when the promotion is looking for a replacement on short notice.Mashrabjon Ruziboev will have his chance to make a splash on Saturday at the Apex in Las Vegas. Kau Fernandes was scheduled to take on popular veteran Jared Gordon, but Fernandes withdrew.The UFC wanted to keep the fight on the card and turned to Ruziboev, the brother of UFC welterweight Nursulton Ruziboev, to fill in. Mashrabjon is on a seven-fight win streak, though he hasnt fought since October 2023.The Uzbekistan native hasnt lost a fight since December 2021, and during his streak, hes proven to be a finisher. The 28-year-old lightweight has finished all but one of the opponents hes faced during his win streak.According to Sherdog, 16 of Ruziboevs 19 pro victories have come by stoppage. Quite honestly, Im fully expecting this fight to be one of Dana Whites If You Dont Know, Now You Know picks for the eventif he even does that for Apex shows.MORE FOR YOUGordon, 36, has only won one fight since August 2022, and that was a first-round KO of Mark Madsen in November 2023. Gordon seems to have love and respect in the UFC, but quite honestly, he might be on the cusp of retirement or release.RIYADH, SAUDI ARABIA - JUNE 21: Jared Gordon walks on stage during the UFC Fight Night ceremonial ... [+] weigh-in at Kingdom Arena on June 21, 2024 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. (Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)Zuffa LLC via Getty ImagesA loss could be devastating for his career. On paper, it looks like a fight Ruziboev should win, but he hasnt faced the same level of competition that Gordon has endured through his 18-year MMA career.While Ruziboev and Gordon arent the biggest names, these kinds of stories are sometimes as appealing as the ones that play out at the top of pay-per-view cards.The upcoming card has a few intriguing fights besides the headliner, which will feature Jared Cannonier fighting to keep his spot in the UFC middleweight Top 10 against Gregory Rodrigues.There are 13 fights, and at least five relatively new commodities in action who are definitely worth a look. The Bonfim brothers, Ismael and Gabriel, are both stellar fighters.Elijah Smith was one of the best prospects to emerge from the most recent season of Dana Whites Contender Series. Jacqueline Cavalcanti is newly ranked and looking to make a statement against veteran Julia Avila.Also, Jose Delgado wants to make a splash in his featherweight clash with Connor Matthews. Dont let the lack of big names fool youSaturdays card could be special.UFC Vegas 102 - Fight CardNo. 7 - Jared Cannonier vs. Gregory Rodrigues Middleweight (185 lbs)No. 12 - Calvin Kattar vs. Youssef Zalal Featherweight (145 lbs)Ismael Bonfim vs. Nazim Sadykhov Lightweight (155 lbs)Jose Delgado vs. Connor Matthews Featherweight (145 lbs)Edmen Shahbazyan vs. Dylan Budka Middleweight (185 lbs)Rodolfo Vieira vs. Andre Petroski Middleweight (185 lbs)No. 12 - Julia Avila vs. No. 13 - Jacqueline Cavalcanti Bantamweight (135 lbs)Vince Morales vs. Elijah Smith Bantamweight (135 lbs)Valter Walker vs. No. 15 - DonTale Mayes Heavyweight (265 lbs)Rafael Estevam vs. Jesus Aguilar Flyweight (125 lbs)No. 13 - Angela Hill vs. Ketlen Souza Strawweight (115 lbs)Gabriel Bonfim vs. Khaos Williams Welterweight (170 lbs)Jared Gordon vs. Mashrabjon Ruziboev - Lightweight (155 lbs)

Rumor mill: Rumors have surfaced claiming that AMD is developing an RDNA 4 GPU with up to 32GB of VRAM. It sounds like an exciting prospect, potentially leading to a card that could compete with the monstrous RTX 5090. Unfortunately for gamers, it would likely be an enterprise product designed for data centers and professional applications. This rumor, like many others, comes from Chiphell, the Chinese tech-focused forum, so take it with a grain of salt. It claims that AMD will launch a high-end RDNA 4 GPU sometime in the first half of 2025. The amount of VRAM it will feature has yet to be decided, but it could be as high as 32GB the same amount as Nvidia's RTX 5090.While a rival to the RTX 5090 from Team Red sounds like something the industry and gamers would welcome, it seems almost certain that the rumored GPU will be used as an enterprise product, which requires extra memory. The Radeon Pro W7900, for example, comes with 48GB of GDDR6, while the Instinct MI300X has 192GB of HBM3.The other thing to remember is that AMD said last year that it would not be competing with Nvidia when it comes to the current generation of flagship gaming cards. It confirmed that releasing cards in the Radeon RX 9000 series to match Nvidia's top RTX 5000 GPU won't be a priority. Instead, Team Red will be focusing on its mid-range and lower-end products to increase the company's overall market share.AMD unveiled the Radeon RX 9070 XT and Radeon RX 9070 GPUs at CES last month. The company did not reveal any details beyond stating that the RDNA 4 architecture is built on TSMC's 4nm node while featuring optimized compute units, improved ray tracing per CU, 'supercharged' AI compute, and better media encoding quality.There were reports only a few hours ago that claimed AMD is set to seriously undercut Nvidia's mid-range cards with its Radeon RX 9000 series. The RX 9070 XT could arrive with a $599 MSRP, $150 less than the $749 RTX 5070 Ti, while the RX 9070 is expected to be priced below the $549 RTX 5070. // Related Stories

The Samsung Galaxy A55 is a solid phone for your everyday needs, and the upcoming Galaxy A56 is expected to take the experience a notch higher with slight improvements without a significant price hike. Ahead of its launch, a series of leaked images reveal the official design and colors of the Galaxy A56.A fresh new leak of the Samsung Galaxy A56 comes from notable leaker Evan Blass, showing the mid-ranger in four (likely) official colors. The set of images leaked by Blass includes light and dark gray, a subtle dark green or moss colorway with a chalk-like finish, and a light pink that we have previously seen on the Galaxy S23 as well as the S24 FE. The back is expected to be made of glass instead of plastic.Recommended VideosAlthough the design remains largely unchanged from the previous generation, the rear camera now houses three lenses in a single array, which is black across all color variants. This differs from the Galaxy A55 which uses three distinct rings to separate the cameras, and we could even see other A series phones adopt a similar change in 2025.Evan BlassThe frame, seemingly metal from its looks, also appears flatter than the previous generation. The Galaxy A55 preserves the raised section for the volume and power buttons, which officially called the Key Island. The frame also gets a brushed metal finish, with a previous leak hinting at the use of aluminum.Please enable Javascript to view this contentThe lack of a side-mounted fingerprint scanner also suggests an optical fingerprint reader sits in the AMOLED display.Talking of which, we see sizable bezels around the display, and this could help buyers differentiate the Galaxy A56 from more premium phones.Other specifications of the Galaxy A56 have yet to be confirmed, but it tentatively sports an Exynos 1580 chipset. The three cameras on the back will likely include a 50MP primary, a 12MP ultrawide, and a 5MP macro, which makes up for the same setup as the previous generation. The front camera is said to be downgraded to 12MP.The Galaxy A56 is also the first mid-ranger from Samsung to get faster charging at 45W, up from 25W previously. The battery, however, is expected to be the same 5,000mAh pack as last year. Additionally, the phone is expected to release with One UI 7 based on Android 15 right out of the box. Even though Samsung hasnt given any clear indications about its launch, we can expect it to be among the first A series the company launches this year.As with previous Galaxy A5X phones, this one might not launch in the U.S. But in the UK, the Galaxy A56 is rumored to price around 440 British pounds, which translates to roughly $550 a reasonable price for a well-equipped mid-ranger like this.Editors Recommendations

Paleontologists arent easily deterred by evolutionary dead ends or a sparse fossil record. But in the last few years, theyve developed a new trick for turning back time and studying prehistoric animals: building experimental robotic models of them. In the absence of a living specimen, scientists say, an ambling, flying, swimming, or slithering automaton is the next best thing for studying the behavior of extinct organisms. Learning more about how they moved can in turn shed light on aspects of their lives, such as their historic ranges and feeding habits. Digital models already do a decent job of predicting animal biomechanics, but modeling complex environments like uneven surfaces, loose terrain, and turbulent water is challenging. With a robot, scientists can simply sit back and watch its behavior in different environments. We can look at its performance without having to think of every detail, [as] in the simulation, says John Nyakatura, an evolutionary biologist at Humboldt University in Berlin. The union of paleontology and robots has its roots in the more established field of bio-inspired robotics, in which scientists fashion robots based on modern animals. Paleo-roboticists, however, face the added complication of designing robotic systems for which there is no living reference. They work around this limitation by abstracting from the next best option, such as a modern descendant or an incomplete fossil record. To help make sure theyre on the right track, they might try to derive general features from modern fauna that radiated from a common ancestor on the evolutionary tree. Or they might turn to good ol physics to home in on the most plausible ways an animal moved. Biology might have changed over millions of years; the fundamental laws of nature, not so much. Modern technological advances are pulling paleo-inspired robotics into a golden age. Computer-aided design and leading-edge fabrication techniques such as 3D printing allow researchers to rapidly churn out prototypes. New materials expand the avenues for motion control in an automaton. And improved 3D imaging technology has enabled researchers to digitize fossils with unprecedented detail. All this helps paleo-roboticists spin up more realistic robotsones that can better attain the fluid motion associated with living, breathing animals, as opposed to the stilted movements seen in older generations of robots. Now, researchers are moving closer to studying the kinds of behavioral questions that can be investigated only by bringing extinct animals back to lifeor something like it. We really think that this is such an underexplored area for robotics to really contribute to science, says Michael Ishida, a roboticist at Cambridge University in the UK who penneda review studyon the field. Here are four examples of robots that are shedding light on creatures of yore. The OroBot In the late 2010s, John Nyakatura was working to study the gait of an extinct creature called Orobates pabsti. The four-limbed animal, which prowled Earth 280 million years ago, is largely a mysteryit dates to a time before mammals and reptiles developed and was in fact related to the last common ancestor of the two groups. A breakthrough came when Nyakatura met a roboticist who had built an automaton that was inspired by a modern tetrapoda salamander. The relationship started the way many serendipitous collaborations do: We just talked over beer, Nyakatura says. The team adapted the existing robot blueprint, with the paleontologists feeding the anatomical specs of the fossil to the roboticists to build on. The researchers christened their brainchild OroBot. Fossilized footprints, and features like step length and foot rotation, offer clues to how tetrapods walked.SEBASTIAN VOIGT/URWELTMUSEUM GEOSKOP THALLICHTENBERG A fossilized skeleton of Orobates pabsti, a four-limbed creature that lived some 280 million years ago.THOMAS MARTENS/MUSEUM DER NATUR GOTHA OroBots proportions are informed by CT scans of fossils. The researchers used off-the-shelf parts to assemble the automaton. The large sizes of standard actuators, devices that convert energy into motion, meant they had to scale up OroBot to about one and a half yards (1.4 meters) in length, twice the size of the original. They also equipped the bot with flexible pads for tread instead of anatomically accurate feet. Feet are complex bodily structures that are a nightmare to replicate: They have a wide range of motion and lots of connective soft tissue. A top view of OroBot executing a waddle.ALESSANDRO CRESPI/EPFL LAUSANNE Thanks to the teams creative shortcut, OroBot looks as if its tromping in flip-flops. But the robots designers took pains to get other details just so, including its 3D-printed faux bones, which were painted a ruddy color and given an osseous texture to more closely mimic the original fossil. It was a scientifically unnecessary design choice, but a labor of love. You can tell that the engineers really liked this robot, Nyakatura said. They really fell in love with it. Once OroBot was complete, Nyakaturas team put it on a treadmill to see how it walked. After measuring the robots energy consumption, its stability in motion, and the similarity of its tracks to fossilized footprints, the researchers concluded that Orobates probably sashayed like a modern caiman, the significantly punier cousin of the crocodile. We think we found evidence for this more advanced terrestrial locomotion, some 50 million years earlier than previously expected, Nyakatura says. This changes our concept of how early tetrapod evolution took place. Robotic ammonites Ammonites were shell-toting cephalopodsthe animal class that encompasses modern squids and octopusesthat lived during the age of the dinosaurs. The only surviving ammonite lineage today is the nautilus. Fossils of ammonites, though, are abundant, which means there are plenty of good references for researchers interested in studying their shellsand building robotic models. An illustration of an ammonite shell cut in half.PETERMAN, D.J., RITTERBUSH, K.A., CIAMPAGLIO, C.N., JOHNSON, E.H., INOUE, S., MIKAMI, T., AND LINN, T.J. 2021. BUOYANCY CONTROL IN AMMONOID CEPHALOPODS REFINED BY COMPLEX INTERNAL SHELL ARCHITECTURE. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 11:90 When David Peterman, an evolutionary biomechanist, was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Utah from 2020 to 2022, he wanted to study how the structures of different ammonite shells influenced the underwater movement of their owners. More simply put, he wanted to confirm whether or not [the ammonites] were capable of swimming, he says. From the fossils alone, its not apparent how these ammonites fared in aquatic environmentswhether they wobbled out of control, moved sluggishly, or zipped around with ease. Peterman needed to build a robot to find out. A peek at the internal arrangement of the ammonite robots, which span about half a foot in diameter.PETERMAN, D.J., AND RITTERBUSH, K.A. 2022. RESURRECTING EXTINCT CEPHALOPODS WITH BIOMIMETIC ROBOTS TO EXPLORE HYDRODYNAMIC STABILITY, MANEUVERABILITY, AND PHYSICAL CONSTRAINTS ON LIFE HABITS. SCIENTIFIC REPORTS 12: 11287 Its straightforward to copy the shell size and shape from the fossils, but the real test comes when the robot hits the water. Mass distribution is everything; an unbalanced creature will flop and bob around. To avoid that problem, Peterman added internal counterweights to compensate for a battery here or the jet thruster there. At the same time, he had to account for the total mass to achieve neutral buoyancy, so that in the water the robot neither floated nor sank. A 3D-printed ammonite robot gets ready to hit the water for a drag race. We were getting paid to go play with robots and swim in the middle of a work day, Peterman says. It was a lot of fun.DAVID PETERMAN Then came the fun partrobots of different shell sizes ran drag races in the universitys Olympic-sized swimming pool, drawing the curiosity of other gym-goers. What Peterman found was that the shells had to strike a tricky balance of stability and maneuverability. There was no one best structure, the team concluded. Narrower shells were stabler and could slice through the water while staying upright. Conches that were wider were nimbler, but ammonites would need more energy to maintain their verticality. The shell an ancient ammonite adopted was the one that suited or eventually shaped its particular lifestyle and swimming form. This bichir-inspired robot looks nothing like a bichir, with only a segmented frame (in black) that allows it to writhe and flap like the fish. The researchers gradually tweak the robots features, on the hunt for the minimum physiology an ancient fish would need in order to walk on land for the first time.MICHAEL ISHIDA, FIDJI BERIO, VALENTINA DI SANTO, NEIL H. SHUBIN AND FUMIYA IIDA Robofish What if roboticists have no fossil reference? This was the conundrum faced by Michael Ishidas team, who wanted to better understand how ancient marine animals first moved from sea to land nearly 400 million years ago and learned to walk. Lacking transitional fossils, the researchers looked to modern ambulatory fishes. A whole variety of gaits are on display among these scaly strollersthe four-finned crawl of the epaulette shark, the terrestrial butterfly stroke of a mudskipper. Like the converging roads in Rome, multiple ancient fishes had independently arrived at different ways of walking. Ishidas group decided to focus on one particular gait: the half step, half slither of the bichir Polypterus senegalus. Admittedly, the teams robofish looks nothing like the still-extant bichir. The body consists of rigid segments instead of a soft, flexible polymer. Its a drastically watered-down version, because the team is hunting for the minimum set of features and movements that might allow a fishlike creature to push forward with its appendages. Minimum is a tricky word, Ishida says. But robotic experiments can help rule out the physically implausible: We can at least have some evidence to say, yes, with this particular bone structure, or with this particular joint morphology, [a fish] was probably able to walk on land. Starting with the build of a modern fish, the team simplified the robot further and further until it could no longer sally forth. It was the equivalent of working backwards in the evolutionary timeline. The team hopes to publish its results in a journal sometime soon. Even in the rush to finalize the manuscript, Ishida still recognizes how fortunate he is to be doing something thats simultaneously futuristic and prehistoric. Its every kids dream to build robots and to study dinosaurs, he says. Every day, he gets to do both. The Rhombot Nearly 450 million years ago, an echinoderm with the build of an oversize sperm lumbered across the seafloor. The lineage of that creature, the pleurocystitid, has long since been snuffed out, but evidence of its existence lies frozen among numerous fossils. How it moved, though, is anyones guess, for no modern-day animal resembles this bulbous critter. A fossil of a pleurocystitid, an extinct aquatic animal that lived some 450 million years ago.CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY Carmel Majidi, a mechanical engineer at Carnegie Mellon University, was already building robots in the likeness of starfish and other modern-day echinoderms. Then his team decided to apply the same skills to study their pleurocystitid predecessor to untangle the mystery of its movement. CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY Majidis team borrowed a trick from previous efforts to build soft robots. The main challenge for us was to incorporate actuation in the organism, he says. The stem, or tail, needed to be pliable yet go rigid on command, like actual muscle. Embedding premade motors, which are usually made of stiff material, in the tail wouldnt work. In the end, Majidis team fashioned the appendage out of shape-memory alloy, a kind of metal that deforms or keeps its shape, depending on the temperature. By delivering localized heating along the tail through electrical stimulation, the scientists could get it to bend and flick. The researchers tested the effects of different stems, or tails, on their robots overall movement.CARNEGIE MELLON UNIVERSITY Both Majidis resulting Rhombot and computer simulations, published in 2023, showed that pleurocystitids likely beat their tails from side to side in a sweeping fashion to propel themselves forward, and their speeds depended on the tail stiffness and body angle. The team found that having a longer stemup to two-thirds of a foot longwas advantageous, adding speed without incurring higher energy costs. Indeed, the fossil record confirms this evolutionary trend. In the future, the researchers plan to test out Rhombot on even more surface textures, such as muddy terrain. Shi En Kim is a freelance science writer based in Washington, DC.

Michael Albertshauser co-founded an erotic audio book startup with his wife, Hannah.Albertshauser worked his six-figure tech job by day and spent nights working on his new business.After ending up in hospital, he re-evaluated his work-life balance and went all-in on the startup.This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with Michael Albertshauser, the COO of Bloom Stories, an erotic audiobook startup. Business Insider has verified Albertshauser's employment and financials with documents. The following has been edited for length and clarity.For the past five years, I've been living an exhausting double life.I worked my 9-to-5 at a tech company. I'd then go home and work late into the night on the startup I co-founded in 2019 with my wife, Hannah.Working those long hours wasn't sustainable especially with two young kids, but it took being hospitalized in October 2023 to realize I needed to quit my day job and go all in on our startup.We decided to build an audio book businessHannah and I first came up with the idea for Bloom Stories, our erotic audiobook startup, while searching for audio content for couples. Towards the end of 2019, we were looking for something we could enjoy together. Everything addressed a male or a female, and it felt like one of us was being ignored.We thought, "What if we do this ourselves?" I'm not a good voice actor, so we started looking into narrators that could share some recorded fantasies. Once we found some good people, we realized we could publish this content on a website. We considered using Patreon, but weren't sure if our adult content would fit with their community guidelines.I had previously exited a startup, so I thought we could go beyond creating content and build a business. I knew we needed to have control over the process. I didn't want to rely on third party platforms that might change the rules at any given time.A founder friend recommended our now-CTO. Things were pretty straightforward at Bloom Stories at the beginning. We found some trusted freelancers who could write, voice, and mix the content. We would order it from them, then update the website when it was ready. I would speak to the CTO every couple of weeks to discuss what else we needed to build. We uploaded three or four 'episodes' for free, as we hadn't added a payment function. 17 people instantly downloaded them. A few days later in April 2020, we added a payment mechanism for a $2.99 monthly subscription. By the end of that month, we made $700 in revenue.I had started a new full-time job in February 2020, but this seemed manageable as a side project. Initially, Hannah and I juggled Bloom Stories alongside our day jobs, me at the tech company, and Hannah running her design business.Things grew more quickly than we anticipatedBy the end of 2020, we had a few thousand user sign-ups per week. We worked with freelancers from Fiverr and Upwork. The best of those freelancers eventually joined our core team from 2022 and today, we have around 15 people. Hannah wound down her design business in 2021 to fully commit to her role as CEO of Bloom Stories, and she has been taking a salary since 2023.In parallel, things were also going well in my day job. I was promoted three times, and by the end of 2022, I was making six figures. A higher salary was great for financial stability, with two kids and a mortgage. But it came with more responsibility and late-night calls with the San Francisco team.My day would be wake up, get the kids ready, go on Slack to check in on Bloom Stories at breakfast, do a full day at my tech job, collect the children, have dinner and put them to bed. Then do a night shift for Bloom Stories. Sometimes I'd work until 2 a.m., depending on how much needed to be done.I thought I could manage both until I crashed and burnedIn October 2023, I got a cold I couldn't shake. I worked through it until I woke up and my neck was completely swollen. I saw my doctor, who sent me straight to the hospital. I had an infected lymph node, which didn't go down with antibiotics, so I had to have an operation. I was in the hospital for a week and had to take all of that November off work to recover.I gained a new perspective on life, work, and family. Hannah and I initially reinvested any revenue from Bloom Stories back into the business. I realized I was cheating myself by giving my labor to Bloom Stories for free. You need to invest in yourself at some point.We decided things had to change and made a plan for me to come to Bloom Stories full-time.I chose Bloom because I love building companies and find it more fulfilling than my corporate job. I also love working with my wife Hannah. We complement each other perfectly. She's the creative force, and I bring the data-driven business perspective.I took a pay cut to do a job I lovedWe made a list of financial goals Bloom had to hit by the end of 2024 to be able to invest in my salary as COO. I wasn't willing to take more than a 50% pay cut compared to my tech job. I also wanted to ensure that the launch of our Pride & Prejudice 13-hour erotic audiobookTo begin the transition, I asked for a demotion to my previous role at the tech company, which had a smaller scope and fewer direct reports. There was a pay cut, too. In October 2024, I officially resigned.January 7, 2025, was my first full day at Bloom Stories, and I got my first paycheck at the end of the month. I am making a bit less than my tech job, but not drastically so. The plan is to claim the evenings back. I haven't had a hobby for the past five years.I'm looking forward to getting back into video games and going to gigs again. I'm also looking forward to spending more time with Hannah, that's not work-related. Next is to work out how we tell our kids about what we do. But hopefully, it's a few years before we have to have that conversation.

Fiber-optic and AI drones have come to prominence as countermeasures to jamming and electronic warfare.Ukraine's special drone unit Typhoon said it hasn't seen systematic application of these technologies.But once they become widespread, they'll change drone warfare because they're hard to beat.Constant intense electronic warfare in Russia's war against Ukraine has led to the rise of drones that are resistant to signal jamming. It's still early days, but these things could be game changers, drone operators say.These fiber-optic and artificial intelligence-driven drones are not yet being widely used, a special Ukrainian drone unit told Business Insider, but once they become as prolific as some other technologies, they'll completely change how drone warfare is fought.The war in Ukraine has been defined by the use of uncrewed vehicles, the majority of which rely on radio frequencies to maintain a connection with their operators. In response, both sides have employed electronic warfare capabilities able to jam drones and seize control from the operators or cut video feeds, leaving pilots flying blind.Operators needed a way around electronic warfare.Ukraine first documented the Russians using fiber-optic drones last spring. They became more prominent in the fall. These systems are guided by a hardwire cable similar to a US-made anti-tank TOW missile. The cable maintains a connection between the operator and drone, ensuring the system can't be jammed.At the time, it was unclear if fiber-optic drones would be widely adopted as the next evolution in drone warfare, but it was clear they had promise. Drone experts and top war watchers assessed that they'd have useful applications in some environments and situations but probably weren't a catch-all solution. The cables could get caught or cut, for example, and the systems would have shorter ranges.The development indicated that both Ukraine and Russia would continue coming up with new solutions.As of now, Ukraine's special drone unit Typhoon doesn't see a systematic application of fiber-optic drones or systems controlled by AI, another adaptation to electronic warfare that is highly sought after but still experimental."However," Typhoon told Business Insider, "if widely adopted, these technologies would fundamentally change drone warfare." Fiber-optic drones are hard to beat, requiring interception and destruction. AP Photo/Efrem Lukatsky Typhoon is a newer National Guard of Ukraine drone unit. Unveiled last fall, Typhoon consists of engineers and operators specialized in uncrewed systems. Right now, Typhoon operates a diverse range of uncrewed aerial systems, mostly supplied by the National Guard and domestic innovation outfits.The unit's short-range reconnaissance drones, such as the first-person view DJI Mavic, are used for gathering intelligence, assessing targets, and guiding strikes. Its short-range strike drones are deployed for precision hits on enemy personnel, positions, and equipment, as well as against aerial targets.Typhoon also operates bomber drones like HeavyShot and Vampire, which are mostly used at night because they're larger in size and easier to spot. Fixed-wing reconnaissance drones and strike drones are also often used for longer-range missions.But the unit is also actively integrating emerging technologies, such as fiber-optic drones and"machine vision tracking with homing capabilities," which would help improve targeting. Each drone serves a specific purpose in missions, and partof Typhoon's mission is the training of operators for those specific skill sets. Fiber-optic wires ensure a stable connection between the drone and its operator. Global Images Ukraine/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images With fiber-optic and AI-driven drones, the challenges for front-line forces will be even greater.Both of these systems are harder to take down than the regular radio frequency drones because they are invulnerable to electronic warfare. A drone flown by an autonomous terminal guidance system, once locked onto its target, would still maintain its flight path even if it's jammed, effectively making it a fire-and-forget weapon.Fiber-optic drones are aless-expensive, lower-tech solution, keeping a hard connection so that operators can ignore any electronic warfare and continue to fly the drone towards its target.Typhoon said the options for destroying fiber-optic drones are relatively limited right now. Because they don't "rely on radio signals that can be detected by conventional electronic warfare systems," the unit said,"the only way to counter them is through timely visual detection and physical destruction."Simply put, that means they have to see it and shoot it. The Ukrainians have deployed shotguns as a counter-drone tool. But they aren't always easy to detect, which means warfighters may have limited time to react for a kinetic kill.These systems aren't seeing constant or consistentuse just yet, but the Ukrainian forces have praisedthem for their accuracy and ease of use. Ukrainian and Western drone companiesare now racing to churn them out.

Heatherwick Studio to Revitalize Louisvilles Belvedere in United StatesSave this picture! Heatherwick StudioHeatherwick Studio has unveiled an ambitious vision to transform the Belvedere, a historic elevated riverfront space in downtown Louisville, Kentucky, into a reimagined public park in the United States. The project aims to breathe new life into the site, enhancing its connection to the Ohio River and creating a welcoming environment for both residents and visitors.Originally opened in 1973, the Belvedere has long served as a central gathering place for the city. However, after decades of use and limited updates, the space has begun to show signs of age. The proposed redevelopment seeks to restore its vibrancy, re-establishing it as a key landmark while introducing modern design elements that prioritize accessibility, greenery, and community engagement. Covering an area roughly the size of four football fields, the revitalized space will integrate seamlessly with the surrounding urban landscape, offering an inviting retreat in the heart of Louisville.Save this picture!The concept designs for the new Belvedere include a distinctive pavilion with a flowing, ribbon-like form, surrounded by lush green spaces and pedestrian-friendly pathways. These features are intended to create a more organic connection between the city and the riverfront, improving walkability and making the space more inviting for daily use, special events, and cultural activities. By combining architecture and nature, the design aims to establish a more dynamic and inclusive public space where people can relax, socialize, and experience the waterfront in a new way. Related Article On the New Life of Buildings: Concepts, Reflections, and Adaptive Reuse Projects of 2024 A crucial aspect of the redevelopment has been community involvement. Recognizing the importance of local input, city officials and project leaders have engaged with Louisville residents through a series of public meetings, gathering ideas and feedback to help shape the final design. This collaborative approach reflects a broader effort to ensure the new Belvedere meets the needs of the community while preserving its historical significance.Save this picture! Belvedere has an incredible potential to become a new green 'living room' for Louisville and its people. Our design will stitch together the Ohio riverfront and connect it to the expansive parks beyond. We've been listening to the community and hear a huge appetite for something powerful, exciting and new to happen. -- Stuart Wood, Executive Partner and Group Leader at Heatherwick Studio Save this picture!Once completed, the new Belvedere will mark Heatherwick Studio's first project in Kentucky, adding to its portfolio of high-profile developments across the United States. These include two Google campuses in California, Little Island Park and Lantern House in New York City, and the newly designed Davidson Park in Milwaukee.The initiative aligns with the studio's growing presence in urban regeneration efforts worldwide. In South Korea, Heatherwick Studio recently unveiled a reimagined design for Seoul's Hanwha Galleria shopping mall, introducing a nature-filled atrium and undulating faades to create a more immersive retail experience. Meanwhile, in London, the studio is developing an expansive glass canopy for the Olympia regeneration project, aiming to establish a world-class cultural hub. Additionally, Thomas Heatherwick has been selected as the curator for the 2025 Seoul Biennale of Architecture and Urbanism.Image gallerySee allShow lessAbout this authorNour FakharanyAuthorCite: Nour Fakharany. "Heatherwick Studio to Revitalize Louisvilles Belvedere in United States" 12 Feb 2025. ArchDaily. Accessed . <https://www.archdaily.com/1026846/heatherwick-studio-to-revitalize-louisvilles-belvedere-in-united-states&gt ISSN 0719-8884Save!ArchDaily?You've started following your first account!Did you know?You'll now receive updates based on what you follow! Personalize your stream and start following your favorite authors, offices and users.Go to my stream