Last October, Meta dipped its toe into the world of facial recognition an area where it has had a tricky track record with an international test of two new tools: one to stop scams based on likenesses of famous people, and a second facial recognition feature to help people get back into compromised Facebook or Instagram accounts. Now, that test is expanding to one more notable country.After initially keeping its facial recognition test off in the United Kingdom, Meta on Wednesday began to roll both of the tools there, too. And in other countries where the tools have already launched, the celeb bait protection is being extended to more people, the company said.Meta said it got the green light in the U.K. after after engaging with regulators in the country which itself has doubled down on embracing AI. No word yet on Europe, the other key region where Meta has yet to launch the facial recognition tool test.In the coming weeks, public figures in the U.K. will start seeing in-app notifications letting them know they can now opt-in to receive the celeb-bait protection with facial recognition technology, a statement from the company said. Both this and the new video selfie verification that all users will be able to use will be optional tools, Meta said.Meta has a long history of tapping user data to train its algorithms, but when it first rolled out the two new facial recognition tests in October 2024, the company said the features were not being used for anything other than the purposes described: fighting scam ads and user verification.We immediately delete any facial data generated from ads for this one-time comparison regardless of whether our system finds a match, and we dont use it for any other purpose, wrote Monika Bickert, Metas VP of content policy in a blog post (which is now updated with the detail about the U.K. expansion).The developments, however, come at a time when Meta is going all-in on AI in its business.In addition to building its own Large Language Models and using AI across its products, Meta is also reportedly working on a standalone AI app. It has also stepped up lobbying efforts around the technology, and given its two cents what it deems to be risky AI applications such as those that can be weaponized (the implication being that what Meta builds is not risky, never!).Given Metas track record, a move to build tools that fix immediate issues on its apps is probably the best approach to gaining acceptance of any new facial recognition features. And this test fit that bill: as weve said before, Meta has beenaccused for many yearsof failing to stopscammers misappropriating famous peoples facesin a bid to use its ad platform to spin up scams like dubious crypto investments to unsuspecting users.Facial recognition has been one of the thornier areas for Meta over the years that it has worked with AI technology. Most recently, the company in 2024 agreed to pay $1.4 billion to settle a long-running lawsuit in Texas, where it was being sued over inappropriate biometric data collection related to its facial recognition technology.Before that, Facebook in 2021 shut down its decade-old facial recognition tool for photos, a feature that had faced multiple of regulatory and legal problems across many jurisdictions. But interestingly, at the time it confirmed that it would retain one part of the technology: its DeepFace model, which the company said it would incorporate into future technology. That could well be part of what is being built on with todays products.

A newly released list of the topmost AI research areas is worthy of rapt attention.gettyIn todays column, I share and mindfully explore a newly released official listing of the topmost AI topics.This particular listing is important since it was produced by an esteemed AI academic and professional association and garners a lot of hefty weight in the AI community at large. The group that put this together is the non-profit Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI). They have published a carefully composed list that turns out to contain seventeen of what are considered the highest-priority research areas of our times.To bring you up to speed on this, I will briefly identify and explain each of the seventeen AI topics so that youll know what they are and why you should care about each of them.Lets talk about it.This analysis of innovative AI breakthroughs is part of my ongoing Forbes column coverage on the latest in AI, including identifying and explaining various impactful AI complexities (see the link here).Sidenote: In case you arent familiar with the AAAI, please know that it is well regarded in the AI community. Im honored to say that Ive been a speaker at AAAI conferences, served on the editorial board for their flagship publication, and participated in various workshops and other activities. It is a great organization and one that anyone keenly interested in the especially technological and computational depths of AI ought to consider looking into.Why AI Research Is ImportantI suppose that I dont have to expend much energy here telling you that AI research is crucial to the future of AI.This seems axiomatic.You see, many if not most of the major AI breakthroughs have arisen from AI research. It typically goes like this. An AI lab opts to toy with this or that new fangled idea or theory, and voila, something of grand interest occurs. Some of the lab members form a startup and turn the AI prototype into a workable and useable AI system. Or a big company comes along and licenses the AI from the lab. Etc.All manners of AI hot products began as fledgling AI research projects.Nowadays, the AI labs of universities and colleges are often eclipsed by the professional AI labs at high-tech firms. Tech firms put big bucks into their AI labs. There is usually intense pressure to produce something that will warrant those investments. Some assert that this limits what those bang-for-the-buck labs are willing to play around with, whereas academic labs are presumably freer to make wilder speculative efforts.See my recent coverage on the ongoing ins and outs of academic AI foundational research versus industry-based AI research at the link here.What AI Research Is WorthySuppose that you are someone trying to figure out what area of AI research is worth pursuing.For example, graduate students majoring in AI have a mighty stake in which topics are hot and which are not. They indubitably want to pick a topic that has legs and will put them at the forefront of AI. If they choose an AI topic that seems to be a dead-end or on the backburner, they might accidentally waste their time and attention during the throes of producing their thesis or dissertation. They could graduate with expertise in something few want or care about. Sad face.Professors are pretty much in a somewhat similar boat. A faculty member that aligns with a considered out-of-date AI research area is bound to have a rough time of things. Few graduate students will gravitate to them. Writing journal articles will be tough since the topic theyve chosen is no longer in favor. And on it goes.Practitioners also have a vested interest in hot AI research topics. Imagine you are working for a company as an AI developer, and they put you onto a dogeared AI project. The AI in this instance is past its prime. Your value in the marketplace is going to decline with each passing day. Not good.Venture capital firms and investors in AI are supremely interested in the hotness of AI research areas.Why?They want to get in on the ground floor of burgeoning AI, finding the next big thing that will strike oil, as it were. You see, you can put pennies into such AI, and when it later takes the world by storm, wham, your small investment blossoms into a heralded fortune. Plus, you look as smart as a whip for having the vision and fortitude to find the gem that no one else saw.Plenty of other stakeholders care about AI research topics.Just to give you another final example for now, think about lawmakers, policymakers, regulators, politicians, and the like. Some want to curtail AI before it gets out of hand; ergo, they want to know early on what is coming out of the AI research labs. Others hope that AI research is going to provide tremendous benefits, and they want to grease the skids to ensure that the AI becomes real-world-ready as soon as possible. For my coverage on the legal and ethical aspects of the latest in AI, see the link here, and for the contrast between AI doomers and AI accelerationists, see the link here.A List Of Prime Purpose And ValueI trust that you can plainly see that a list of topmost AI research topics is potentially worth its weight in gold.Be aware that there are plenty of such lists floating around. You can find them via the simplest of Internet searches. The thing is, not all lists are of equal value. Some lists are more worthy than others. Watch out for out-of-date lists. Remain vigilant to discern if a given list is unduly tilted by advertising or via the use of sponsors.Important questions to ask include but are not limited to:Who made the list?Why did they do so?When did they do so?What does the listing contain?How did they put together the list?Does the list hold up under close scrutiny?Put a mindful grilling to any of the many such lists before opting to run with the contents of the list.That being said, lets look at a bona fide list that the AAAI recently released in March 2025. Id like to do some unpacking for you about the list. The listing is encompassed in a report entitled AAAI 2025 Presidential Panel On The Future Of AI Research by the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI), published March 2025, and makes these salient overall remarks (excerpts):As AI capabilities evolve rapidly, AI research is also undergoing a fast and significant transformation along many dimensions, including its topics, its methods, the research community, and the working environment.Topics such as AI reasoning and agentic AI have been studied for decades but now have an expanded scope in light of current AI capabilities and limitations.In this overwhelming multi-dimensional and very dynamic scenario, it is important to be able to clearly identify the trajectory of AI research in a structured way.This study aims to do this by including 17 topics related to AI research, covering most of the transformations mentioned above.Notably, they ended up with 17 mainstay AI research topics.You might be wondering why the number isnt a rounded count, such as 15 or 20. Well, you could combine some of the ones theyve listed and bring the count to 15, or you could divide up some of them and stretch the listing to 20.Lets not quibble about it.The Magical Sweet Seventeen Im sure you are busting at the seams and exceedingly eager to see the list. I will list the seventeen and then, after doing so, will walk through each one of them briefly.Also, please know that the AAAI report depicts each topical area, providing a narrative on each key theme, the main takeaways for that topic, the context and history, the current state and trends, the research challenges associated with the topic, the AI communitys opinion about the topic, and cited references. To arrive at the list, the researchers consulted with over two dozen AI experts, surveyed the AAAI community, and held various workshops.Without further ado, heres the list of the topmost AI research topics:(1) AI Reasoning(2) AI Factuality & Trustworthiness(3) AI Agents(4) AI Evaluation(5) AI Ethics & Safety(6) Embodied AI(7) AI & Cognitive Science(8) Hardware & AI(9) AI for Social Good(10) AI & Sustainability(11) AI for Scientific Discovery(12) Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)(13) AI Perception vs. Reality(14) Diversity of AI Research Approaches(15) Research Beyond the AI Research Community(16) Role of Academia(17) Geopolitical Aspects & Implications of AIIf you dont know about some or many of those topics, no worries.You are in the same boat as most people. Few pay attention to more than one or two of those AI topics. Even steeped AI specialists are often focused on just a handful of those topics. They vaguely know of the other subfields. They tend to be narrowly concentrating on a topic that is near and dear to their interests.I would urge anyone seriously considering themselves to be well-versed in AI to at least bone up on all the stated topics.Doing so is a valuable use of your time. The reason that this is the case is that all those AI research topics invariably intermix with the others. It is like a giant puzzle. You ought to know what all the pieces are. You dont have to be an expert in each piece, but you should be familiar with all the pieces and thus be able to grasp the big picture in a cognizant way.For the remainder of this discussion, I will list each topic, provide a short quote from the report that summarizes the topic, and then offer my own thoughts on the topic. Turns out that my column has covered all these topics since I aim to provide both breadth and depth in my analyses -- I will provide a link for each topic in case youd like to learn more about my in-depth commentary on that given topic.Explaining The SeventeenYou can jump to any of the topics that especially interest you or read the entire list. If you think you are already versed in all the topics, skip to the concluding remarks. Its up to you, and I hope youll find my explanations insightful.Lets get underway.(1) AI Reasoning: The ability to reason has been a salient characteristic of human intelligence, and there is a critical need for verifiable reasoning in AI systems.When generative AI first became a public showcase, the way it worked was principally by predicting the next word in a sequence, akin to the autocomplete function in word processing. If you stretch that approach, you could think of responding to a question as a form of autocomplete, whereby the answer or response is about predicting what words come next.Currently, the leading edge of such AI incorporates some form of logic-based reasoning. It isnt solely about word prediction per se. You might make use of steps of logic. Intriguingly, this is reminiscent of the days of expert systems and knowledge-based systems, which are now often considered passe. But the resurgence of symbolic AI, combined with sub-symbolic AI, appears to be at the forefront and leading us to neuro-symbolic or hybrid AI.Exciting times are ahead.For my detailed coverage on AI reasoning, see the link here.(2) AI Factuality & Trustworthiness: Improving factuality and trustworthiness of AI systems is the single largest topic of AI research today, and while significant progress has been made, most scientists are pessimistic that the problems will be solved in the near future.Youve probably heard about AI hallucinations. Though I disfavor the catchphrase because it tends to anthropomorphize AI, nonetheless, it is indeed catchy and we are stuck with the moniker. The issue is that generative AI is working based on probabilities and statistics, said to be non-deterministic, and sometimes will produce a generated response that is a falsehood and not based on grounded facts. This is worrisome, especially if the AI is being used for serious purposes. Trying to resolve the factuality of generative AI is a huge problem, and some believe it is essentially unresolvable, while others disagree.The topic of AI trustworthiness is another blockbuster issue. We are gradually embedding AI into all types of systems, such as AI that runs factories, AI that drives cars, and the like. How can you be sure that the AI will perform correctly? Should you trust AI? What can be done to enhance trustworthiness?For my detailed coverage on AI hallucinations, see the link here, and for AI trustworthiness, see the link here.(3) AI Agents: Agents and multi-agent systems (MAS) have evolved from autonomous problem-solving entities to integrating generative AI and LLMs, ultimately leading to cooperative AI frameworks that enhance adaptability, scalability, and collaboration.You would almost need to be living in a cave that has no Internet connection to not have heard about the latest hot trend involving agentic AI. It goes like this. Conventional generative AI tends to leave you in a lurch by not doing follow-ups. For example, you are planning a vacation, and the AI tells you which flights might be good for you and which hotels to stay at. Unfortunately, the AI stops at that juncture. You must proceed to book the flights and the hotel stays.Instead, the latest approach consists of agentic AI. These AI agents are typically composed of one or more generative AIs that work in concert to accomplish a task from end to end. An agentic AI might help plan your trip and proceed to make all your bookings for you. Nice. Of course, this also increases various concerns, such as what if the agentic AI goes wild and commits you to flights you didnt want and books you into hotels you would never want to set foot in.For my detailed coverage on the latest in agentic AI, see the link here.(4) AI Evaluation: AI evaluation is the process of assessing the performance, reliability, and safety of AI systems.Somebody tells you they have the greatest new AI. It shines and dines. Whatever you want to have done, by gosh, the AI can do it for you. How can you assess or evaluate the AI to see if those brash claims are valid?Thats the importance of AI evaluation as a topic area.We need to keep AI makers and others honest about their outstretched claims. It is easy to make boastful assertions. Partly, they get away with it because the techniques and approaches to AI evaluation are still being figured out for modern-era AI. This is one of those topics that regrettably doesnt get as much attention as it deserves, not being seen as whizbang by some, but AI evaluation is going to rein in the insidious tomfoolery that can mislead and confound society about what AI is and isnt able to accomplish.For my detailed coverage on the latest in AI evaluation, see the link here.(5) AI Ethics & Safety: The ethical and safety challenges of AI demand a unified approach, as both near-term and long-term risks are becoming increasingly interconnected.Would you use a toaster that wasnt cleared as safe? Probably not. You rely upon various standards and testing to inform you whether a given toaster is going to work suitably. The same ought to be the case for AI. AI safety researchers are bent on identifying smart ways to gauge the safety of AI.This takes us into the AI ethics realm, too, and the legal side of AI as well. If an AI maker produces AI that is unsafe, should the AI maker be held responsible? You might say, yes, of course. Suppose, though, that the AI maker handed the AI to someone else who fielded the AI. Who has responsibility now? They might finger-point at each other, trying to shift blame. Ethical and legal dynamics can be complex.For my detailed coverage of AI safety, see the link here, and for my latest on AI ethics, see the link here.(6) Embodied AI: Embodied AI creates intelligent agents that perceive, understand, and interact with the physical world.Embodied AI consists of AI that connects with and can, to some degree, impact the real world via physical actions. Allow me to explain. When you use conventional generative AI, it spits out words. The AI doesnt take any overt actions. It just gives you words. You then potentially act upon seeing those words.The realm of what some refer to as Physical AI is heating up because more and more AI, such as generative AI is being linked with robots and other devices that operate in the physical world. That means that if the generative AI tells a robotic arm to swing this way or that way, someone could potentially get hit. Words are turning into actions.For my detailed coverage about embodied AI, see the link here.(7) AI & Cognitive Science: AI has much to learn from other areas in cognitive science and can in turn contribute much to them.The field of AI and the field of cognitive science are close partners.First, contemplate the realm of cognitive science. How do humans think? Can we learn from the thinking processes of humans to make better AI? Likewise, maybe we can devise AI that gives us insights into how humans think. Perhaps we can simulate human thinking, which in turn will provide new insights into human cognition. They are two peas in a pod.For my detailed coverage on the intertwining role of AI and cognitive science, see the link here.(8) Hardware & AI: Hardware/software architecture co-design for artificial intelligence involves creating hardware and software components that are specifically designed to work together efficiently, maximizing the performance and energy efficiency of AI systems.Billions upon billions of dollars are being spent on building massive data centers that house zillions of high-speed computer servers. So far, it seems like we need the speed of large-scale computing to make further advances in AI. The processing also aids the increasing appetite of hundreds of millions of users who are tapping into generative AI.Aha, what if we could redesign the hardware so that it runs more efficiently and sustainably? That would be good. What if we could redesign AI such that it can run on lesser hardware, such as the advent of small language models (SLMs)? Hardware and software must be devised and utilized in harmony to get where we need to go.For my detailed coverage on AI and advances in hardware, see the link here.(9) AI for Social Good: AI for social good is a subdiscipline of AI research where measurable societal impact, particularly for vulnerable and under-resourced groups, is a primary objective, focusing on areas that have historically lacked sufficient AI research and development.Not everyone is necessarily benefiting from the rapid advances in AI. Bringing together AI ethics and AI law, the realm of AI for social good seeks to bring everyone under the AI umbrella. This is often seen as less vital by those on the AI techie side of things. Thats disconcerting. It takes a village to properly advance AI.For my detailed coverage on AI for social good, see the link here.(10) AI & Sustainability: AI is rapidly transforming industries and holds immense potential to drive sustainability progress, ranging from accelerating the net-zero energy transition to enhancing climate resilience. However, its deployment also raises challenges, such as increasing energy and water demands. Ensuring AI advances sustainability rather than exacerbating environmental risks will require proactive efforts to shape its development, operations, and applications.People dont often think about how much energy it takes to run their queries in generative AI.Those massive data centers are chewing up tons of electricity. The data centers that are water-cooled consume an incredible amount of water. What can be done to ensure that AI is a sustainable resource? Can those devising AI do so in a means that will reduce the footprint of the AI? The same goes for those who field AI and those who use AI.For my detailed coverage on AI and sustainability, see the link here.(11) AI for Scientific Discovery: Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing scientific discovery by accelerating the entire research cycle from knowledge extraction and hypothesis generation to automation of experimentation and verification at an unprecedented speed.AI is usually intended to be a purposeful tool. You use AI to achieve some other aim. One of the most exciting and already producing results is the application of AI to the field of science in general. The hope is that via AI, we can discover cures for cancer and unlock all kinds of secrets that heretofore were cloaked in mysteries. AI for scientific discovery is expanding rapidly.I dont want to be a gloomy Gus, but there is a downside to this. AI is construed as a dual-edged sword. AI can be used for good. AI can be used for bad. A famous example of AI dual-use involves researchers who were using AI to detect dangerous chemicals but then realized that evildoers could readily distort that AI to show them new chemicals that could be used to harm people.For my detailed coverage on the use of AI for scientific discovery, see the link here.(12) Artificial General Intelligence (AGI): Although the field of AI has long pursued the kinds of general purpose, human-level abilities captured by the term AGI, the rise of more general capabilities of neural net models has stimulated discussions about directions forward, implications around success, and doubts about pursuing the goalwhich now appears to some observers to be within reach.The news is replete these days with tall tales about artificial general intelligence (AGI). AI makers are stridently claiming they are on the verge of AGI. This is the type of AI that presumably would be fully on par with human intelligence. Not everyone agrees that we are on the cusp of AGI.In addition to AGI, there is artificial superintelligence (ASI) that some believe is on the horizon. ASI consists of AI that would be superior to human intelligence. It could run circles around us humans. Are we ready for AGI? Can we handle ASI? Is existential risk facing us straight head-on?For my detailed coverage on the latest status of AGI and ASI, see the link here.(13) AI Perception vs. Reality: How should we challenge exaggerated claims about AIs capabilities and set realistic expectations?The amount of blarney about AI is astounding. It is everywhere. The public often has no idea of what AI can really do or not do. You can hardly blame them. AI experts, or so-called AI experts, are often making unsupported claims.There is tremendous one-upmanship going on. If one alleged expert says we will have AGI by 2040, another one feels compelled to up the ante by claiming it will be 2035. Nowadays, they have found themselves upping the stakes by claiming that AGI is going to happen this year, namely in 2025. The thing is, they are usually cheating the definition of AGI and moving the goalposts to suit their fancy.For my detailed coverage on the reality versus perception of AI, see the link here.(14) Diversity of AI Research Approaches: It is important to encourage and support research on a variety of AI paradigms, old and new. This includes diverse methodologies (beyond just neural networks) both new and old, interdisciplinary collaboration, and consideration of societal implications.One concern about advancing AI is that there tends to be a groupthink going on. It happens this way. Someone comes up with an AI advance that looks promising. Others jump on the bandwagon. Furthermore, anyone not on the bandwagon is chided as being out of touch.The next thing you know, AI is being moved ahead in just one direction. No one thinks outside the box. They move like a flock of birds. Efforts are underway to break that myopic pathway.For my detailed coverage on AI research approaches, see the link here.(15) Research Beyond the AI Research Community: Expanding AI research to include diverse perspectives and expertise from outside the core AI research.The good news about AI is that it tends to be an interdisciplinary domain.Sure, it is principally viewed as an offshoot of computer science, and it intermixes with areas such as cognitive science and neuroscience, but the likely best way to make progress is by seeding AI into other domains and other domains being seeded into AI. You name it, research in anthropology, art, chemistry, biology, business, history, and so on are all cross-mixes of grand potential.Fresh perspectives ensue. New ideas arise. Inertia tends to be overturned.For my detailed coverage on pertinent research outside of AI that pertains to AI, see the link here.(16) Role of Academia: State-of-the art AI is now largely driven by the private sector, and universities struggle to compete: they need to find a role in the new era of 'big AI.I mentioned earlier that there is a wave or shift toward private sector AI research that has unnerved those in the foundational research realm. The role of academia seeks renewed recognition, particularly if we are to take large swings at new AI theories. Those hitting it out of the ballpark might not be equally supported in private sector make-a-buck arenas.For my detailed coverage on the role of academia and the future of AI, see the link here.(17) Geopolitical Aspects & Implications of AI: The rise of AI is reshaping global power dynamics and the investment priorities of nations, influencing economic, security, and governance structures, while posing challenges to equity and control.AI is likely to be the maker and breaker of international geopolitical power. Imagine that a country invents AGI before any other country. They would be sitting on a gold mine. There is a chance they could aim to rule over other countries using their AGI.For my detailed coverage on the global geopolitical and national stakes in AI, see the link here.Your Next StepsCongrats, you now know about the topmost AI research topics.Ill conclude with a popular adage that Im sure youve heard or seen. They say that the future is what we make of it. For those AI techies that dont give the light of day to the so-called soft topics of AI, such as AI ethics, AI law, AI for good, and so on, I hope you open your eyes to what you are helping to create and bring upon the world.Albert Einstein said it aptly: I believe we are here to do good. It is the responsibility of every human being to aspire to do something worthwhile, to make the world a better place than the one we found.AI researchers should seek to live by those weighty words.

Looking for help with today's NYT Mini Crossword puzzle? Here are some hints and answers for the ... [+] puzzle.Credit: NYTIn case you missed Tuesdays NYT Mini Crossword puzzle, you can find the answers here:The week is already flying by. Were halfway into the work week. Its Odins Day, and that means a day for trickery and deceit. In other words, the best day for solving puzzles. Lets bang out this NYT Mini Crossword shall we?The NYT Mini is a smaller, quicker, more digestible, bite-sized version of the larger and more challenging NYT Crossword, and unlike its larger sibling, its free-to-play without a subscription to The New York Times. You can play it on the web or the app, though youll need the app to tackle the archive.Spoilers ahead!ACROSS1- Moon stage, like 8-Across or 2-Down PHASE6- Comedic actor ___ Baron Cohen SACHA7- Change ALTER8- See 1-Across FULL9- Paper towel layers PLYDOWN1- Educational TV spot, for short PSA2- See 1-Across HALF3- Misbehave ... or malfunction ACTUP4- Beachcombers keepsake SHELL5- How nervous travelers arrive at the airport EARLYToday's MiniScreenshot: Erik KainSometimes the clues and my brain just dont jibe. Moon stage made me think of the various phases of the moon, but not the word PHASE, for instance. I spelled SACHA incorrectly, which threw me for a loop. I didnt consider that nervous airline travelers would arrive EARLY. But eventually I pieced it all together and finished this one in 1:46.How did you do? Let me know on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook.If you also play Wordle, I write guides about that as well. You can find those and all my TV guides, reviews and much more here on my blog. Thanks for reading!

Folks often joke about the so-called robot uprising, but a new video of Unitrees advanced G1 robot pulling some kung fu moves could well wipe the smile off their faces.Shared on Tuesday, the 15-second clip shows a baton-wielding human retreating from a robot that then kicks the baton clean out of his hand. Lets just say that again: a baton-wielding human retreating from a robot.Kungfu BOT GAMEIf thats not enough to cause your face to start twitching, the footage is not sped up in any way, with the robot moving effortlessly along like a kind of plastic-covered Bruce Lee.Recommended VideosIt was only a week ago that Unitree Robotics posted a video of G1 performing an array of kung fu moves, but this latest clip shows it actually taking on a human. And winning.Kungfu BOT: Unitree G1?At the end of its videos, Unitree is even adding the message: We kindly request that all users refrain from making any dangerous modifications, or using the robot in a hazardous manner. A hazardous manner? What, like programming them to head for military installations and communication hubs? Well, fingers crossed, eh. The robots impressively nimble movement has been made possible by a new algorithm created by Unitree. It also comes with 3D LiDAR and depth cameras for environmental perception and navigation.The Chinese company showcased the latest version of its G1 humanoid robot at CES 2025 in January.The base model of the G1 is priced at $16,000, making it relatively affordable compared to other humanoid robots. The Figure 02 humanoid robot, for example, comes with a $59,000 price tag, while Teslas Optimus, also known as the Tesla Bot, could cost as much as $30,000.Unitree is forecasting a breakthrough in humanoid robotic capabilities some time next year, with more clear-cut commercial uses emerging in the next five years. While humanoid robots have come a long way in recent years, experts suggest that broad applications, which presumably include some form of robot takeover, are likely to be at least a few years away. Which is good to know.Editors RecommendationsFigures latest robot is already in testing at a BMW plant

Beijing Ramps Up Efforts For Tech IndependenceThe country aims to develop a system of open-source modelsChina vowed to boost support for applications of large-scale AI models and AI hardware, such as smartphones, robots, and smart cars. Photo: Agence France-Presse/Getty ImagesArtificial intelligence has become a buzzword in Chinas national development blueprint this year as Beijing intensifies efforts to achieve tech independence.In a speech on Wednesday to the countrys lawmakers, Chinese Premier Li Qiang said AI would be key to boosting Chinas digital economy. Copyright 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8VideosMost Popular NewsMost PopularOPINIONFurther ReadingAdvertisement

now you see me Do these dual images say anything about your personality? Personality quizzes based on ambiguous images are bunk, but we can still learn from such psychological myths. Jennifer Ouellette Mar 4, 2025 4:19 pm | 20 "Rabbit and Duck," the earliest known version of the duckrabbit illusion (1892) Credit: Public domain "Rabbit and Duck," the earliest known version of the duckrabbit illusion (1892) Credit: Public domain Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreThere's little that Internet denizens love more than a snazzy personality testcat videos, maybe, or perpetual outrage. One trend that has gained popularity over the last several years is personality quizzes based on so-called ambiguous imagesin which one sees either a young girl or an old man, for instance, or a skull or a little girl. It's possible to perceive both images by shifting one's perspective, but it's the image one sees first that is said to indicate specific personality traits. According to one such quiz, seeing the young girl first means you are optimistic and a bit impulsive, while seeing the old man first would mean one is honest, faithful, and goal-oriented.But is there any actual science to back up the current fad? There is not, according to a paper published in the journal PeerJ, whose authors declare these kinds of personality quizzes to be a new kind of psychological myth. That said, they did find a couple of intriguing, statistically significant correlations they believe warrant further research.In 1892, a German humor magazine published the earliest known version of the "rabbit-duck illusion," in which one can see either a rabbit or a duck, depending on one's perspectivei.e., multistable perception. There have been many more such images produced since then, all of which create ambiguity by exploiting certain peculiarities of the human visual system, such as playing with illusory contours and how we perceive edges.Such images have long fascinated scientists and philosophers because they seem to represent different ways of seeing. So naturally there is a substantial body of research drawing parallels between such images and various sociological, biological, or psychological characteristics.For instance, a 2010 study examined BBC archival data on the duck-rabbit illusion from the 1950s and found that men see the duck more often than women, while older people were more likely to see the rabbit. A 2018 study of the "younger-older woman" ambiguous image asked participants to estimate the age of the woman they saw in the image. Older participants over 30 gave higher estimates than younger ones. This was confirmed by a 2021 study, although that study also found no correlation between participants' age and whether they were more likely to see the older or younger woman in the image.A new psychological mythThis latest paper evaluates the veracity of claimed links between ambiguous images and personality traits. "I have always had a love of optical illusions because they are a vivid demonstration of how our perceptions can be led astray," co-author Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire told Ars. "The duck/rabbit is great because it is so simple, yet theres lots going on. When we look at it, our minds are constantly flipping between the two interpretations."Wiseman co-authored a 2011 study and a 2012 study, both examining a possible link between one's level of creativity and whether one sees a rabbit or duck in the duck-rabbit illusion. "We originally showed that there is a correlation between the degree of flipping and scores on creativity tests," he said. But both studies found no significant relationships between which animal subjects saw first and their level of creativity. So he was naturally skeptical of claims circulating about a correlation between one's preferences in ambiguous images and personality traits. Do you see a young woman facing away first, or an old woman with a hooked nose in profile? Public domain Do you see a young woman facing away first, or an old woman with a hooked nose in profile? Public domain The Rubin's Vase illusion. Do you see faces first, or a vase? Public domain The Rubin's Vase illusion. Do you see faces first, or a vase? Public domain Do you see a young woman facing away first, or an old woman with a hooked nose in profile? Public domain The Rubin's Vase illusion. Do you see faces first, or a vase? Public domain For this latest study, Wiseman partnered with Caroline Watt of the University of Edinburgh (who also co-authored the 2011/2012 papers) to put four specific claims to the test. For instance, if one sees the duck first in the duck-rabbit illusion, one is less emotionally stable and optimistic, whereas if one sees the rabbit first, one is inclined toward procrastination. Seeing the older woman first in the younger-older-woman image means one is more agreeable and uses logic to make decisions, whereas seeing the younger woman means one is a more independent decision-maker.Another claimed link is tied to the Rubin's Vase illusion. If one sees faces first, one is more detail-oriented, while if one sees the vase first, one is less detail-oriented and more spontaneous when making decisions. Finally, there is the Horse-Seal (or Donkey-Seal) image, specifically created in 1968 for research on ambiguous images. If one sees the seal first, one has higher detail-oriented holistic thinking and is more analytical when making decisions.The 300 study participants were recruited from a crowdsourcing platform and were shown the four ambiguous images and asked to identify which image they saw first. They then completed five psychological instruments: the Ten-Item Personality Inventory, the Holistic Cognition Scale, the Optimism-Pessimism Short Scale, the General Procrastination Scale, and the General Decision-Making Styles Scale. "We used scales that related to claims that were out there, and this included the big five personality traits, holistic vs atomistic thinking, optimism, decision-making, and procrastination," said Wiseman. "So I looked at what claims were being made and chose scales accordingly."The results disproved many of the claims. For instance, people who saw the rabbit first weren't more prone to procrastination than those who saw the duck first; those who saw the older woman first weren't more agreeable than those who saw the young woman first; those who saw the young woman first weren't more independent than those who saw the older woman first; those who saw the faces first weren't more detail-oriented than those who saw the vase first; and those who saw the seal first were not more detail-oriented and analytical in making decisions.But there were also some intriguing findings, although the effect sizes were quite small. There was a slight association between how participants perceived the duck versus rabbit and optimism and emotional stability, for example. Whether a participant first saw the older or the younger woman did seem to correlate with age. And subjects who saw the seal first scored higher on intuition and spontaneity measures.In short, "We didn't find very much support for the claims, but there were some correlations in our data," said Wiseman. "The values were small and could be spurious, but well worth following up. I find it plausible that these figures may be related to certain thinking styles, and it would be great to identify them using empirical approaches rather than just guessing."PeerJ, 2025. DOI: 10.7717/peerj.19022 (About DOIs).Jennifer OuelletteSenior WriterJennifer OuelletteSenior Writer Jennifer is a senior writer at Ars Technica with a particular focus on where science meets culture, covering everything from physics and related interdisciplinary topics to her favorite films and TV series. Jennifer lives in Baltimore with her spouse, physicist Sean M. Carroll, and their two cats, Ariel and Caliban. 20 Comments

No backdoor for UK Apple refuses to break encryption, seeks reversal of UK demand for backdoor Apple appeal to Investigatory Powers Tribunal may be the first case of its type. Jon Brodkin Mar 4, 2025 3:42 pm | 45 A message on an iPhone in London warning that Apple can no longer offer Advanced Data Protection (ADP) to its customers in the UK following a government demand for access to user data. Credit: Getty Images | Yui Mok - PA Images A message on an iPhone in London warning that Apple can no longer offer Advanced Data Protection (ADP) to its customers in the UK following a government demand for access to user data. Credit: Getty Images | Yui Mok - PA Images Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn moreApple reportedly filed an appeal in hopes of overturning a secret UK order requiring it to create a backdoor for government security officials to access encrypted data."The iPhone maker has made its appeal to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, an independent judicial body that examines complaints against the UK security services, according to people familiar with the matter," the Financial Times reported today. The case "is believed to be the first time that provisions in the 2016 Investigatory Powers Act allowing UK authorities to break encryption have been tested before the court," the article said.A Washington Post report last month said UK security officials "demanded that Apple create a backdoor allowing them to retrieve all the content any Apple user worldwide has uploaded to the cloud," including "blanket capability to view fully encrypted material."Apple has publicly criticized the law, warning last year that the UK government is claiming power to demand access to the data of users in any country, not just the UK.Apple responded to the recent order by pulling its Advanced Data Protection (ADP) service from the UK. The optional level of encryption for iCloud prevents even Apple from seeing user data. "Apple can no longer offer Advanced Data Protection (ADP) in the United Kingdom to new users and current UK users will eventually need to disable this security feature," Apple said last month."As we have said many times before, we have never built a backdoor or master key to any of our products or services and we never will," Apple also said.Although it wasn't previously reported, Apple's appeal was filed last month at about the time it withdrew ADP from the UK, the Financial Times wrote today.Snoopers CharterBackdoors demanded by governments have alarmed security and privacy advocates, who say the special access would be exploited by criminal hackers and other governments. Bad actors typically need to rely on vulnerabilities that aren't intentionally introduced and are patched when discovered. Creating backdoors for government access would necessarily involve tech firms making their products and services less secure.The order being appealed by Apple is a Technical Capability Notice issued by the UK Home Office under the 2016 law, which is nicknamed the Snoopers' Charter and forbids unauthorized disclosure of the existence or contents of a warrant issued under the act."The Home Office refused to confirm or deny that the notice issued in January exists," the BBC wrote today. "Legally, this order cannot be made public."Apple formally opposed the UK government's power to issue Technical Capability Notices in testimony submitted in March 2024. The Investigatory Powers Act "purports to apply extraterritorially, permitting the UKG [UK government] to assert that it may impose secret requirements on providers located in other countries and that apply to their users globally," Apple's testimony said.We contacted Apple about its appeal today and will update this article if we get a response. The appeal process may be a secretive one, the FT article said."The case could be heard as soon as this month, although it is unclear whether there will be any public disclosure of the hearing," the FT wrote. "The government is likely to argue the case should be restricted on national security grounds."Under the law, Investigatory Powers Tribunal decisions can be challenged in an appellate court.Jon BrodkinSenior IT ReporterJon BrodkinSenior IT Reporter Jon is a Senior IT Reporter for Ars Technica. He covers the telecom industry, Federal Communications Commission rulemakings, broadband consumer affairs, court cases, and government regulation of the tech industry. 45 Comments

Donald Trump Jr. attended the address with his girlfriend, Bettina Anderson.Bettina Anderson and Donald Trump Jr. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images Trump Jr. and Anderson, a Palm Beach socialite, model, and the founder of the wildlife conservation nonprofit Project Paradise, were first linked in September. Trump Jr. was previously engaged to Kimberly Guilfoyle.Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump were also in attendance.Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump at Donald Trump's address to Congress. SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images Kushner and Ivanka Trump are not reprising their roles as White House advisors in the second Trump administration.Eric Trump, Lara Trump, Tiffany Trump, and Michael Boulos sat with the other Trump family members.Eric Trump, Tiffany Trump, and Michael Boulos at Donald Trump's address. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images Tiffany Trump is expecting her first child with husband Michael Boulos. Eric Trump's wife, Lara Trump, has a new show on Fox News.Some members of the Democratic Women's Caucus dressed in pink.Female Democratic members of Congress wore pink to protest the Trump administration's policies. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images "Pink is a color of protest & power. We're sending a message: Trump's policies are devastating women," California Rep. Judy Chu wrote on X.First lady Melania Trump entered the House chamber wearing a gray skirt suit by Dior.Melania Trump. SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images The first lady received a standing ovation as she entered the US Capitol. The blazer she wore, which features a removable scarf, retails for $5,500 on Dior's website.President Donald Trump entered the House chamber with his fist in the air.Donald Trump entered the House chamber for his address. Win McNamee/AFP/Getty Images The raised fist has become the president's signature pose following the assassination attempt he faced in July at a rally in Butler, Pennsylvania.Early on in Trump's address, Rep. Al Green of Texas was escorted out of the House chamber when he disrupted the speech.Rep. Al Green shouted at Donald Trump during his address. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Green, a Texas Democrat, yelled, "You have no mandate to cut Medicaid!" and was escorted out by the Sergeant at Arms.Some Democratic lawmakers held up signs in a silent protest during the address.Democratic lawmakers held up signs during Donald Trump's speech. Win McNamee/POOL/AFP via Getty Images. The signs read "False," "Musk steals," "Protect veterans," and "Save Medicaid."Trump thanked Elon Musk at several points during the speech for his work with the Department of Government Efficiency.Elon Musk at Donald Trump's address. SAUL LOEB/AFP/Getty Images Musk received a standing ovation from many of the Republicans in the room."Thank you, Elon. You're working very hard," Trump said.Trump spoke about imposing tariffs, buying Greenland, and ending the war in Ukraine.Donald Trump addressed a joint session of Congress. Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images "We need Greenland for national security and even international security, and we're working with everybody involved to try and get it," Trump said. "But we need it really for international world security. And I think we're going to get it one way or the other."Trump also used his speech to acknowledge several guests in the crowd, including the widow and daughters of Corey Comperatore, a firefighter who was fatally shot while shielding his family from gunfire during the assassination attempt against Trump in Pennsylvania.At many points during the speech, the Republican side of the House chamber stood while the Democratic side remained seated.Donald Trump addressed a joint session of Congress. SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images Support or opposition to the president's statements was demonstrated by standing or sitting during the speech.Trump's speech lasted 1 hour and 40 minutes, making it the longest-ever joint address to Congress.Donald Trump raised his fist at his address to a joint session of Congress. Win McNamee/Getty Images Former President Bill Clinton previously held the record, speaking for one hour and 29 minutes in 2000.Some Democratic lawmakers walked out of the House chamber before Trump concluded speaking.

2025-03-05T06:17:05Z Read in app This photo shows a Eutelsat satellite being launched in 2022. The company saw its share price triple this week amid investor speculation that it could help replace Starlink access in Ukraine. JODY AMIET/AFP via Getty Images This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Become an Insider and start reading now.Have an account? The US' fraying relationship with Ukraine is boosting European satellite firm Eutelsat.Its share price tripled amid fears that Ukraine could face disruptions to its Starlink access.There's no clear sign of that happening yet, but Eutelsat said it's in talks with the EU.French satellite provider Eutelsat's shares tripled over the last two days amid concerns that Ukraine's access to Starlink may be under threat.Eutelsat shares on the Paris exchange surged 68% on Monday before jumping another 123% the next morning to $4.77. Prices tapered off at $3.79 at market close on Tuesday.The leap comes as the US suspended aid to Ukraine on Monday, prompting fears of disruptions to capabilities like advanced American air defenses and internet access on the battlefield.Starlink, owned by Elon Musk's SpaceX, has been a vital internet provider for Ukraine's military, and the loss of its services would be a severe blow to Kyiv's communications and drone operations.That's key for Eutelsat, which merged with a UK-based Starlink competitor, OneWeb, in 2023.The satellite firm has come to the fore as European leaders say they're bolstering defense spending while raising the possibility that they could seek to fill any gaps in Ukraine's internet access.As its share price rose, a spokesperson for the company told Reuters it was discussing with the European Union how it might contribute to Ukraine's internet access.The company also told The Financial Times it had equipment ready to be "deployed swiftly in Ukraine to connect the most critical missions and infrastructures."Despite the jump this week, Eutelstat's shares are still far below its past highs. Its stock reached about $33 in mid-2015 and has steadily declined in the last decade.Eutelsat did not respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours by Business Insider.No official sign yet that Starlink will disappearStill, it's unclear whether Ukraine's Starlink access is at risk.Musk, a close ally of President Donald Trump, denied a Reuters report from late February that said US officials discussed cutting off Starlink from Kyiv if it rejected a minerals deal with Washington.And while the US partially pays for Ukraine's Starlink subscription, European countries also fund many terminals. Poland, which pays for about half of Ukraine's Starlink terminals, said it would continue to fund them.Through OneWeb, Eutelsat is also already providing some satellite services to Ukraine's governments and institutions, but it only has about one-tenth of Starlink's satellites. Its constellation has fewer than 700 satellites, while Starlink runs over 7,000.The European company operates 35 Geo satellites, which orbit at 21,000 miles above Earth, and about 630 low-earth orbit satellites, which orbit at about 750 miles above Earth.On Sunday, European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier told reporters regional leaders were considering giving Ukraine access to GovSatCom as an alternative.The system is a shared network of satellites already owned by European member states.Eutelsat's momentary stock boost also comes as European defense manufacturing shares surged due to the recent strain on US relations with its traditional allies and Ukraine.Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, announced on Tuesday that European leaders would push to allocate 800 billion euros, or about $840 billion, to their defense spending collectively.

In the first major speech to Congress of his second term, President Donald Trump made clear that he intends to barrel ahead with the MAGA agenda.Unsurprisingly, he cast the past 43 days of disruption and controversy as filled with historic wins, the greatest of any president in history (George Washington was number two, he said). And while he offered few new details on what he planned going forward, its obvious we should expect more of the same.For instance, Trump sounded enthusiastic about expanding his trade war, hyping a new round of reciprocal tariffs he says will go into effect April 2. These tariffs, he claims, are on countries that have their own tariffs on US goods or that have value-added taxes. He mentioned the European Union, India, Brazil, and South Korea as tariff targets, in addition to China, Canada, and Mexico, which hes already imposed tariffs on. There may be a little bit of an adjustment period for American agricultural exporters, Trump said.Meanwhile, Trump claimed he was going to balance the federal budget, but also championed his plan for big new income and business tax cuts, including reiterating his campaign promises to make tips, overtime payments, and Social Security income tax-exempt. Its hard to see how that math could add up. Trump also praised Elon Musk and rattled off more than a dozen absurd-sounding contracts that he claimed Musks team had canceled. On the topic of rising egg prices, Trump blamed Joe Biden and said his team was working hard to lower them but did not offer any specifics. One big question mark for the speech was how Trump would handle Ukraine after Fridays Oval Office blow-up and the administrations subsequent pause on aid to the country. On Tuesday morning, Ukraines president Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a social media post that seemed to give in to several of Trumps demands while calling Fridays disastrous meeting regrettable.In his speech, Trump said, I appreciate that he sent that letter, and added that Russia had sent strong signals that they are ready for peace. Wouldnt that be beautiful? he added. However, he did not give any further details on what he hoped a peace arrangement would look like.Trump bragged that his administration had ended wokeness and diversity, equity, and inclusion not only in the federal government but also in the private sector. In addition to his typical denunciation of unauthorized immigrants who committed crimes, Trump attacked trans athletes one of his invited guests had been injured when, in Trumps words, her girls volleyball match was invaded by a man.Wokeness is trouble, wokeness is bad, its gone, he said. And we feel so much better for it, dont we?During the speech, Democrats tried to show protest in various ways. Rep. Al Green (D-TX) disrupted the speech at the beginning and was escorted out of the chamber by the House sergeant at arms. Others held up small signs with phrases like Save Medicaid or Musk steals written on it, or chose to walk out themselves. But ultimately, Trumps speech wasnt meaningfully disrupted.See More: Politics