At the Ricardo residence in the ’50s sitcom I Love Lucy, over-the-top housewife Lucy and Ricky, her excitable husband, were always getting into some sort of entertaining hijinks. But life at home for the married actors who portrayed them, Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz, was much different. “They were very busy,” the late stars’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, explained in a 2011 interview. “From probably the age of birth up through seven, they weren’t home a lot [aside from] very late at night and weekends.”When Ball wasn’t at work alongside her husband on the hit television comedy, “she was very businesslike about running her house,” their daughter said. The couple, who eloped in November 1940 after a whirlwind romance, bought an abode about 10 miles north of Hollywood in the San Fernando Valley, where they stayed for 15 years. Their domestic lives as Lucy and Ricky—broadcast into dwellings nationwide for six seasons—made them stars, but their actual home lives were still captured by the occasional photoshoot. Read on for a roundup of images of the TV-famous duo in their element as they raised a family in the 1950s.Photo: Bettmann/Getty Images1/21Desilu ranchShortly after Ball and Arnaz eloped, they purchased their beloved five-acre ranch in Chatsworth, California, a suburban neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley area. The couple paid around $16,000 in 1941 for the home, designed by architect Paul R. Williams, and named it Desilu, a portmanteau of their names and later the title of their production company. Ball and Arnaz made the property their own by adding a slew of amenities, including a swimming pool, which Arnaz filled with floating gardenias for a surprise party for Ball’s 30th birthday in 1941.Photo: George Rinhart/Corbis via Getty Images2/21Animal companionsBall and Arnaz weren’t the only two who lived at Desilu ranch. The Devonshire Street abode also hosted a bunch of the couple’s animal friends. The two adopted a handful of dogs, cats, chickens, and a cow known as the Duchess of Devonshire. According to Madelyn Pugh Davis, I Love Lucy writer and Ball’s personal friend, “[Ball would] fall in love with the chickens and wouldn’t kill them. She had the oldest chickens in the Valley.”Photo: FPG/Getty Image3/21Lucy’s design styleBall decorated Desilu in a style she once described as “early Victorian” meets “bastard American.” The single-story home featured whitewood siding and a long driveway that led to the main house, which was surrounded by eucalyptus and peppertrees. This 1945 photograph showcases Ball’s affinity for floral prints, which cover the walls.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images4/21Lucy and Desi’s growing familyBall and Arnaz’s two children grew up at the San Fernando Valley area property. Here, Ball and Arnaz celebrate the first birthday of their daughter, Lucie Arnaz, whom they welcomed on July 17, 1951. Ball was expecting—and showing—when she and Arnaz shot the pilot episode of I Love Lucy, but the show made no mention of the pregnancy.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images5/21Arts and craftsWhile Ball was known for putting in endless hours at work, she embraced the opportunity to savor her time off. A woman of many hobbies, the comedian loved painting in her spare time. She was no stranger to setting up an easel and canvas by the pool at home, where she could draw inspiration from the natural beauty of picturesque Southern California.Photo: Graphic House/Archive Photos/Getty Images6/21America’s sweetheartsAfter I Love Lucy premiered in October 1951, Ball and Arnaz soon became America’s favorite couple, both onscreen and off—and, according to Arnaz, it was all thanks to his wife. “There’s nobody else that can do what Lucy does with her face, with her walk,” he said, according to Warren G. Harris, author of the biography Lucy & Desi: The Legendary Love Story of Television’s Most Famous Couple. However, the two had their disagreements: Their estate had a small guesthouse that was said to have been used by Arnaz whenever they argued. In 1944, Ball filed for divorce. After it was granted, the two quickly reconciled, making the divorce null and void by California law.Photo: CBS via Getty Images7/21Working from homeGiven the San Fernando Valley ranch was not too far from Hollywood, it offered a prime location for I Love Lucy’s promotional photo needs, like this November 1951 shoot in the couple’s living room. Their mantel, beneath a collection of plates hanging on the wall, made a warm backdrop for a series of images ahead of the holidays; it was sparsely adorned for one shot, then set for a New Year’s–themed photo, and reset for some yuletide-themed press, festooned with various ornaments and matching stockings for Christmas.Photo: Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images8/21The heart of the homeBall loved to be in the kitchen, as seen in this 1952 photograph. “She fashioned herself as a homemaker of sorts [and] really enjoyed when she could get in the kitchen and make chicken and dumplings,” daughter Lucie said in 2011. “She worried a lot about her household and how the kids were being taken care of and whether the garage was being cleaned out and the homework was being done.”Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images9/21Hollywood famous hostessEntertaining celebrity friends at dinner parties was one of Ball’s favorite activities, according to Sarah Royal, author of A.K.A. Lucy: The Dynamic and Determined Life of Lucille Ball. Arnaz would cook for their guests, and after meals, friends would gather for coffee that was passed over through a serving hatch, a common midcentury feature between a kitchen and a dining room, through which dishes could seamlessly go in and out of the kitchen.Photo: Bettmann/Contributor/Getty Images10/21Kicking backThe couple sure made working from home look fun as they kicked back in their living room while checking scripts for a forthcoming TV shoot in this 1952 snapshot. From a set of rattan chairs clad in a floral print to the Asian-inspired silk seat in which Arnaz reclines here, the couple found a way to infuse their home with furniture that functioned for both work and play.Photo: CBS Photo Archive/Getty Images11/21Desi’s Cuban design influencesIn this 1953 photograph, Ball was expecting the couple’s second child. Arnaz, meanwhile, was always striving to make their family’s house feel like home. Inspired by his Cuban roots, he had a few small buildings erected on the property—including a game room, a poolhouse, and a barbecue pit—to mirror the sprawling ranch-style aesthetic he was familiar with growing up in Santiago de Cuba. Lemon and orange trees, which Arnaz planted, surrounded the home’s exterior.Photo: KM Archive/Getty Images12/21A new additionLucie’s younger brother, Desiderio Alberto “Desi Jr.” Arnaz IV, was born in 1953. The little one was ready for prime time before he could even walk. In fact, Desi Jr. appeared with his famous mother on the first national issue of TV Guide on April 3, 1953, under the headline “Lucy’s $50,000,000 baby.” In 2019, Lucie told Good Morning America that she and her younger brother savor the sweet memories of time at home with their mom. “Home and being together is a fond and favorite memory—if she made me a grilled cheese sandwich and we sat in the living room and we talked, that is a great moment in my memory,” Lucie said.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images13/21Star-studded pool partiesBall and Arnaz enjoyed hosting and were known for having their Hollywood pals over. The Los Angeles Times reports that they’d throw parties for famous friends such as Clark Gable and William Holden, and Arnaz would serve his signature spaghetti sauce.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images14/21Fun and gamesArnaz’s idea to have a game room constructed on their property meant nights often involved lively games of cards for the couple. The duo could frequently be found cutting a deck at home, whether in their game room or at their kitchen table. Here, the couple plays cards while seated on their rattan furniture. Art imitates life, or vice versa: One episode of I Love Lucy famously showed Lucy playing poker with Arnaz’s friends.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images15/21The Roxbury Drive home’s I Love Lucy cameoBall and Arnaz purchased a Beverly Hills home in 1955 for $85,000. The couple reportedly spent six months renovating the dwelling, located at 1000 North Roxbury Drive. The exterior was used in an episode of I Love Lucy when Lucy and Ethel get off a bus to see actor Richard Widmark’s house.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images16/21Leaving the Desilu ranchOne year after purchasing their Beverly Hills home (which offered the couple privacy, as its backyard was walled in), they sold the Desilu ranch to onetime child actress Jane Withers. Ball remained very fond of the ranch; according to the late actor’s publicist, the pair would sometimes drive by the property for a passing glimpse.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images17/21Dropping inIn fact, at least on one reported occasion after Withers purchased the property, Ball allegedly waltzed right in. One day, the sitcom actress happened to be in the area and decided to pop by for a visit—though it turned out Withers wasn’t home to host her. Realizing she still had the keys to her former abode, Ball unlocked the door, entered, and was eventually caught in the living room when Withers returned. It’s been said that Ball wasn’t a fan of the redecorating.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images18/21A musical homeMusic and dancing were a big part of Arnaz and Ball’s lives, both in their onscreen roles as entertainers as well as in their time relaxing at home, as seen in this 1955 photo. When they first met, Arnaz asked Ball if she knew how to rumba and, according to Harris’s Lucy & Desi biography, added: “I can teach you quickly, but only on condition that you go out with me tonight.”Photo: Gene Lester/Getty Images19/21Family timeIn this 1957 shot, Ball plays with her son in the backyard of their home. “Because she was a working mom in the ’50s, there probably was a lot of guilt involved in not being home with the kids because you’re supposed to be,” said daughter Lucie. “She played a very funny person in her show—very crazy, outrageous person—and all my friends used to think that my mother was really like that. But at home, of course, she wasn’t like that at all. She was very responsible.”Photo: Gene Lester/Getty Images20/21Lucy in the gardenIn her time at home in California, Ball fostered a lifelong love of gardening. Her Beverly Hills home, with its walled-in backyard, added an extra layer of privacy for her to dig into her hobby. The plot was lined with lush landscaping, potted plants, and mature trees. The pastime carried over to the small screen in one episode of I Love Lucy, which showed the sitcom star facing off against the other members of the local club to take home the honor of best garden. Ball later made an onscreen appearance in one of the country’s most famous gardens in the 1974 musical Mame, where she danced by the fountain at the botanical gardens at The Huntington in San Marino, California.Photo: Archive Photos/Getty Images21/21Lucy after DesiBall, pictured here in 1960—the same year she and Arnaz divorced—would have the Beverly Hills estate for the rest of her life. A year after the split, Ball married comedian Gary Morton. The two purchased a New York City apartment in the fall of 1983. It was the first place the two furnished together, Ball told AD in May 1984, adding she’s been so “comfortable” in her properties on the West Coast and wouldn’t allow Morton to “change anything about them.”

Macworld If you want to add some quick edits to a photo or video, Apple’s free Mac apps – Photos and Preview – can do a good job, but for anything more advanced you’ll need a dedicated image editing app like Adobe’s Photoshop. For years now it has been the industry standard, due to its wide range of features and capabilities, but it does come with a substantial subscription fee that might be a bit too much for the casual user. Here’s how to get a copy of Photoshop on your Mac, or, failing that, the next best thing. Plus, because you can’t beat free, we’ll also explain your options for getting Photoshop on Mac at no cost, as well as rounding up the Best Mac free image and photo editors. If you’d like to get the same software on your tablet, read How to get Photoshop on iPad. How to get Photoshop free on a Mac: Adobe Express As Photoshop is professional-grade software, you won’t be able to get the full version for free aside from the 7-day trial that we’ll cover below. However, Adobe does offer a stripped down version that covers a lot of the same ground if your demands aren’t too high. Adobe Express is a free, online web app that offers a range of editing tools, such as the ability to crop, reshape, flip, and recolor images. You can also add text (there are plenty of templates and fonts to choose from), make the background of an image transparent, quickly put together collages, and generally improve the style and form of your photos and videos. Adobe Express comes with access to 1 million+ royalty-free stock images you can use for posters or social media content, plus you get 5GB of storage. Adobe If you want more advanced features, including Generative AI for instantly creating images, removing backgrounds in video, one-click resizing, a much larger selection of stock images, not to mention 100GB of storage, then you can sign up to Adobe Express Premium for $9.99/£9.98 p/m, with the option to cancel at any time. There’s also a free 30-day trial so you can see if Premium gives you all the Photoshop capabilities you need, without spending any money. If you’re happy to work online rather than with a dedicated app, and you’re not after the high-end editing features, either Adobe Express or Adobe Express Premium are probably the ones to go for, plus you have those trials to ensure whether the tools you need for your particular workflows are included. How to get full Photoshop for free If you want to use the full version of Photoshop, then there is the aforementioned free trial, or you could sign up to a short-term subscription to at least keep the costs down. Trial: The first option is a Photoshop trial. There is a 7-day free trial that gives you access to the full program, with no restrictions. While Adobe advertises the free 7-day trial, you can actually get 14 days free, because you can cancel within 14 days of your initial order and get fully refunded. In fact, you could, theoretically, get 21 days free if you had the trial and then canceled your subscription after 13 days. Don’t forget though, as you’re then liable to pay 50% of the entire 1yr contract if you miss the deadline. Monthly subscription: The second option is signing up for a subscription on a monthly rather than an annual basis. This won’t give you Photoshop for free, but the option will allow you to access all the features of the software on a shorter-term basis, then cancel when you no longer need it. We’ll run through the various subscription options in the sections below. Adobe To explain how it works we need to explain the difference between Adobe’s two monthly subscription packages: one is cheaper ($22.99/£21.98 a month) because it is part of an annual plan; the other is a more expensive option ($34.49/£32.98 a month), but you can cancel without having to pay Adobe anything. Adobe doesn’t list these options on the site, instead you have to click the Buy Now button then you can select from the three options: Annual – Billed monthly, Monthly, and Annual – Billed upfront. Photoshop with 100GB of cloud storageU.S.U.K.Annual plan paid monthly$22.99£21.98Annual plan paid upfront$263.88£262.51Monthly plan (cancel at any time)$34.49£32.98Buy it hereBuy it here Adobe explains the legal terms of the various contracts here. Basically, if you sign up for the cheaper ‘annual contract, paid monthly’ and then choose to end your subscription you will be able to do so, but if you end the contract after the first 14 days “you’ll be charged a lump sum amount of 50% of your remaining contract obligation and your service will continue until the end of that month’s billing period.” This is a slightly better scenario than if you were paying annually – in that case, your contract will continue to the end of the term. You wouldn’t get any money back. This is why the best option, in this case, is to sign up for a month-to-month contract. In this case, the contract will automatically renew every month, but should you choose to cancel (we explain how to cancel below) you will be able to use Photoshop until the end of that month, at which point your contract will cease. If you need Photoshop, but you don’t want to tie yourself into a contract with Adobe, this could be the best option for you. However, you should note that you will lose access to anything you have saved in Adobe’s cloud after 90 days. If these options aren’t quite what you’re after, you can always look for alternatives to Photoshop, as there are some excellent apps currently available. We also have a round-up of the Best Mac free image and photo editors, which includes options such as Seashore and Gimp. How to get Photoshop on a Mac without an annual subscription If you were hoping to buy a copy of Photoshop to own, as in not paying on a subscription basis, we have some bad news for you: Adobe no longer sells what is known as a ‘perpetual license’ for Photoshop and its other apps. There is one option though: you can buy Photoshop Elements. Photoshop Elements is designed for amateur rather than pro photographers, but it does offer a number of photo editing features that might be sufficient for your needs. One very important thing to note though is that Adobe has changed how Elements works, so that when you make your purchase you’re only getting a 3-year licence. That means, once the three years are up, the app will stop working, although you’ll still be able to access all of the work you created. You can buy a copy of Photoshop Elements directly from Adobe’s website for $99.99/£86.99. (Buy Photoshop Elements from Adobe). See our review of Photoshop Elements for more information. You can also buy Photoshop Elements on the Mac App Store for $99.99/£99.99. The benefit of Photoshop Elements is that you can buy it outright and install it on your Mac. You will have access to features like masks, layers, colorisation, image manipulation and other useful, more consumer-level effects with Elements. If you’re a creative professional though, or are used to the full-blown version of Photoshop, then you may find too many tools missing from the box. If you want to take a look there’s also a 7-day free trial of Photoshop Elements so you can take the software for a test run. If you don’t care about how up-to-date your software is you might be interested in buying a secondhand copy of Photoshop, or an old Mac with Photoshop installed. Just be aware that Adobe doesn’t support all older versions in terms of updates, so the ones you find might not be compatible with later iterations of macOS, plus newer Macs won’t run old versions of Photoshop. You’ll also need to confirm that the software license hasn’t already been used, as usually these are non-transferable. And generally, we would advise against buying a used Mac (unless it’s certified refurbished). For more information read: What version of macOS can my Mac run? If a subscription to Photoshop isn’t for you, and Photoshop Elements isn’t enough, we recommend you look at alternatives to Photoshop, many of which have comparable features with the benefit of being available to buy outright. The best options include PixelMator Pro, Affinity Photo and others. See: Best Photoshop alternatives for Mac. Is there an education discount for Photoshop? There is one other way you can save money while getting a copy of Photoshop for your Mac. If you are in education then you may qualify for a discount. However, you can’t sign up for a reduced price on the Photoshop-only tier, you have to get the entire Creative Cloud collection, which includes Photoshop and a large collection of other Adobe apps. The student and teacher deal for Creative Cloud does represent quite a hefty reduction. At the time of writing, Students and Teachers pay $19.99/£16.24 a month, which is around 70% less than the normal subscription rate. Photoshop for Mac price If you have accepted that you need to pay for a subscription to Photoshop you will want to know how much it costs. There’s not actually a straightforward answer: it depends on how you want to buy it. Whether you love or hate the subscription model, there are a few options to choose from if you want to get a copy of Photoshop: Photoshop: If you just want the single Photoshop app you can have that for $20.99/£19.97 a month if you sign up for a year, or $31.49/£30.34 a month if you just pay on a monthly basis. Sign up on Adobe’s website. Photography Plan: However, the Photography Plan is actually the best deal. It includes Photoshop, Lightroom (for web and mobile), and Lightroom Classic (for desktop), plus 1TB of storage. The bundle costs $19.99/£19.98 a month, but you will be on a contract for a year as there’s no monthly option. Sign up on Adobe’s website. Plan: Photography Plan with 1TB cloudU.S.U.K.Annual plan paid monthly$19.99£19.97Annual plan paid upfront$239.88£238.42Monthly plan (cancel at any time)n/an/aBuy it hereBuy it here Business: If you are a business user you ought to sign up for the Business option where you can get a single Photoshop license for $37.99/£27.99 ex VAT a month per license. It’s worth noting that all the Adobe CC apps, including Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign, Premiere Pro, and Acrobat, cost $89.99/£65.49 (ex VAT) per license a month. Sign up on Adobe’s website.  How to cancel a Photoshop subscription The ease with which you can end your Photoshop contract is one of the benefits of Adobe’s decision to switch from selling copies of Photoshop outright to a subscription model. It also means that you only need to pay for Photoshop for as long as you need it. So if it’s just for a short-term project you can unsubscribe as soon as the work is done. Here’s how to cancel your subscription: Sign in to the Adobe web page where plans are managed. Sign in to your Adobe account. Under the My Plans tab find Manage Plan (or View plan) and click on that. Now click on Cancel plan. Give your reason for cancellation. Click on Continue. Best alternatives to Photoshop on Mac? There is plenty of great photo and image editing software available on macOS, many of which come with lower price tags than Adobe products. One of our favorites is Affinity Photo 2 from Serif, which boasts a wide range of powerful tools, a friendly interface and costs $69.99/£67.99 as a one-off payment, and also offers a 30-day free trial. Seriff Another popular choice is GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program), which is completely free and comes with an incredible range of tools and features. The interface can take a little getting used to, which is not uncommon with open-source software, but once you get to know your way around, you’ll be amazed at what you can achieve. There’s also a large collection of tutorials for the software on YouTube, so if you’re willing to put in the time then it’s a powerful suite that will cost you nothing at all. We also recommend you read Best Mac for photo editing. You may also be interested in: How to get Adobe Illustrator on a Mac and How to get InDesign on a Mac.

Soul Hackers 2 gives players total freedom with how they want to build each of the four party members. There are no limits or restrictions on what demon you choose to equip on whom, letting you completely change the playstyle of a character anytime.

Maelle is one of the strongest damage-dealers in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 — if you spec out her build properly, that is. With all of the weapons and pictos to choose from in Expedition 33, every playable character can be molded to fit whatever playstyle you need for the moment. You could turn Sciel into a tank, Lune into a glass cannon, or Monoco into….all sorts of things. While these options are viable, some are better than others. In this Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 guide, we’ll break down the best Maelle build, including details about what weapon to pick, what skills to choose, and what attributes to max out. Best Maelle build in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Maelle is a burst DPS character who synergizes well with critical hits and the Burning status ailment. To make the most of her toolset, you’ll want a build that allows you to get into Virtuoso Stance — which deals 200% increased damage — as soon as possible and deal massive damage to enemies before they can move. In the game’s opening act, she benefits from placing all points into the Luck stat with a few points in Might. As you gain better weapons and Pictos, her best attribute will change, though focusing on a high-damage playstyle remains. To that end, the best Maelle build is: Attributes: Agility and Defense Weapon: Medalum Skills: Stendhal and Last Chance Pictos: Immaculate, Glass Canon, and Inverted Affinity Agility and Defense are the best attributes for Maelle because they are the attributes that Maelle’s best weapon, the Medalum, scales alongside. Maelle is balanced around the firm Virtuoso Stance that grants +200% damage. The Medalum allows you to start an encounter already in Virtuoso Stance, putting you in a position to quickly end any battle. As for skills, even though Stendhal has been nerfed, it is still one of the best abilities in the game. With Virtuoso Stance, you are still in a good position to one-shot most enemies one Maelle’s first turn, but if you don’t, you can use the Last Chance skill to refresh Virtuoso Stance. However, with this setup, you won’t need Last Chance very often, especially with the Immaculate, Glass Cannon, and Inverted Affinity Pictos equipped. The aforementioned Pictos provide extra health, crit chance, and agility, but the damage boost offered by this Pictos setup requires comfort with Expedition 33’s defensive options. Below, we’ll explain in more detail why this is the best Maelle build in Clair Obscur: Expedition 33. Best attributes for Maelle You’ll want to prioritize different attributes for Maelle depending on how far you are in the game. And remember, you can use a Recoat to reassign attribute points. In Act 1, prioritize these attributes: Luck Might In the opening hours of Expedition 33, Luck and Might are the best attributes for Maelle as they work well with what Maelle wants to do in an encounter. Since you cannot get her best weapon, Medalum, until Act 2, prioritizing these stats will allow her to remain strong until you get your hands on it. After Act 1, prioritize these attributes: Agility Defense Once you have Medalum, you will want to begin pumping points into Agility and Defense at every opportunity. Increasing Maelle’s Defense also increases her crit rate, and with high Agility, she’ll play more frequently, allowing for more opportunities to dominate the enemies on the field. Best weapon for Maelle The best weapon for Maelle is, without a doubt, the Medalum. Getting your hands on this weapon, which is technically missable, is as simple as using Maelle during the fourth and final solo fight in the Gestral Arena near the end of Act 1. You can only challenge the arena once, so if you have missed this weapon, the only other way to get it is by beating Golgra, a much more brutal fight. This weapon is so good for Maelle because it instantly places her in Virtuoso Stance at the start of combat. Virtuoso and the skill Percee trivialize much of the early game by providing cheap access to a high-damaging ability at a point where the enemy health pool isn’t as inflated. Best Pictos and Luminas for Maelle The best Pictos and Luminas for Maelle depend on where you are in the game, just like the best skills and weapons. As for Pictos, the best three you can take on Maelle are Immaculate, Glass Cannon, and Inverted Affinity. Below, we’ve noted what perks these Pictos grant and what stats are effected by them, though note that the exact number might differ depending on what level your Pictos are: Immaculate — Speed and Crit Rate. 30% increased damage until a hit is received. Glass Cannon — Speed. Deal 25% more damage, but take 25% more damage. Inverted Affinity — Health and Crit Rate. Apply Inverted on self for three turns on battle start.50% increased damage while Inverted. This selection of Pictos provides Maelle with more scaling and damage at the cost of survivability. To use Maelle at her best, you must have mastered the dodging and parrying mechanics of Expedition 33. Luckily, Luminas can make defense easier as the best ones will synergize with your parries. Luminas such as Healing Counter and Energizing Parry are pivotal to the build. Outside of those two, you have a choice based on whether you want more damage or more AP points for skills and should pick your Luminas accordingly. We’d recommend using the following Pictos, depending on how many Lumina Points you have. Burning Shots Empowering Attack Energizing Start II Rewarding Mark Critical Burn Painted Power Weakness Gain Tainted Full Strength Greater Powerful Marking Shots Dodger Energising Start III Teamwork Healing Counter Energising Parry Roulette Warming Up Burn Affinity Energising Turn Best skills for Maelle The best skills for Maelle are the following: Last Chance: Change stance to Virtuose Stance. Reduces self-Health to 1 but refills all AP. Payback: Deals very high single target Physical damage. 1 hit. Reduced AP cost for each attack parried since last turn. Can Break. Momentum Strike: Deals high single target damage. 1 hit. Uses weapon’s element. Increased damage to Marked targets. Virtuose Stance: Costs 4 AP Stendhal: Deals extreme single target Void damage. 1 hit. Removes self-Shields and self applies Defenceless. Breaking Rules: Deals low single target Physical damage. 2 hits. Destroys all target’s Shields. Gain 1 AP per Shield destroyed. If target is Defenseless, play a second turn. Sword Ballet: Deal extreme single target damage. 5 hits. Uses weapon’s element. Critical hits deal double damage. Last Chance is your “get back into Virtuoso” move for the few times that your first turn Stendhal isn’t enough to one-shot your target. Payback is a skill that rewards good players by giving them access to a high-damaging move that can break targets at a skill cost that directly scales with parried attacks. Momentum Strike adds synergy with the rest of the party. Breaking Rules is a utility skill for enemies that stack shields, and Sword Ballet offers a crit-focused option. Stendhal is your nuke, and paired with Virtuoso stance, most enemies shouldn’t stand a chance. Yes, even after the nerf.

In 2025, no brand, regardless of its heritage or customer loyalty, is immune to cyber threats. This April, we saw a very public example of that when Marks & Spencer—one of Britain's most beloved high street retailers—fell victim to a series of cyberattacks. This wasn't just a shocking example of large-scale criminal activity. It was also a stark reminder of how quickly a brand's reputation can be placed in jeopardy. Three weeks after the attack, the retailer continues to grapple with its aftermath, with online orders still suspended and customer data compromised. So, what lessons does this offer to legacy brands navigating an increasingly treacherous digital landscape? We asked leaders from the creative industry for their thoughts. What happened? First, though, let's remind ourselves what actually happened. The trouble began over the Easter weekend when M&S experienced difficulties with contactless payments and click-and-collect orders. By 23 April, CEO Stuart Machin confirmed the company was dealing with a cyber incident, and two days later, M&S suspended all orders through its website. The attack has since been attributed to 'Scattered Spider', a splinter group of the hacking collective Lapsus$, which has previously targeted high-profile organisations, including Transport for London and MGM Resorts. The sophistication of the attack has left M&S struggling to restore normal operations even weeks later. Last Tuesday (13 May), the situation worsened when M&S revealed that personal customer data had been stolen in the breach. The compromised information could include telephone numbers, home addresses, dates of birth and online order histories. While the retailer emphasised that no usable payment details or account passwords were taken, the incident has raised serious concerns about identity fraud for its customers. The financial impact has also been substantial, with analysis from Bank of America Global Research estimating that the retailer is losing approximately £43 million per week in sales. Moreover, M&S is reportedly preparing to make a cyber insurance claim that could total as much as £100 million. How has it damaged the brand? For a legacy retailer like M&S, though, the impact extends far beyond immediate losses. The sustained disruption has placed significant strain on customer loyalty and trust, two cornerstones of its long-established brand identity. salarko - stock.adobe.com With an estimated 9.4 million active online customers affected, the scale of the reputational damage is immense. The company's inability to process online orders for weeks has not only frustrated customers but also raised questions about its digital preparedness. "This should act as a stark reminder for other brands of the importance of building brand resilience," says Dave Mayer, senior partner for marketing and customer strategy at Lippincott. "While hacks are more frequent than ever, this sustained attack and suspension of online ordering has placed a significant strain on customer loyalty for the brand." The importance of brand equity in a crisis At the same time, there is some good news for the retailer. "Our research tells us that M&S is a 'comfort' brand, a brand loved by its customers," Dave points out. "And comfort brands are usually forgiven when things go wrong." Here's where the importance of brand equity comes in. "For M&S, the ability to bounce back from crises like these hasn't been built overnight," Dave notes. "It comes from the consistent implementation of long-term brand-building techniques to boost affinity, trust and loyalty with their customers. Coupled with open and honest communication, M&S has chartered these turbulent waters with success thus far." Sue Benson, founder and CEO of The Behaviours Agency, agrees that M&S appears to be weathering the storm better than many would expect. "The attack has undoubtedly caused disruption and impacted sales, but brand trust has remained remarkably stable," she explains. "This resilience speaks to M&S's legacy and long-standing reputation, which appear to have shielded it from long-term damage. "From a behavioural science perspective, the principle of reciprocity is key: M&S's history of delivering customer satisfaction is now being repaid with trust and loyalty. Lesser-known brands may not have been shown the same grace." Crisis management: communication as a key tool That doesn't mean, of course, that things aren't extremely challenging for M&S right now. "In these moments, brand management must shift gears rapidly," says Lewis Jones, managing partner at Coley Porter Bell. "Transparency becomes a brand's most powerful tool. The design and delivery of information, rooted in the clear expression of a brand's values, is vital." He stresses that the message itself and the way information is delivered are critical. "If a crisis hub is hard to find, visually inconsistent, the tone of voice is unsympathetic and off-brand, or updates are buried in poorly structured pages, the brand's reliability erodes further. Strong brand design can bring order to chaos, signpost clarity, reinforce identity, offer reassurance in a moment of doubt, and maintain consumer confidence." chrisdorney - stock.adobe.com In short, this is no time to innovate or start changing the brand's story. As Charlotte Black, chief strategy officer at Saffron Brand Consultants, says: "What's critical is returning to the original commitments brands have made to customers and delivering communications in that same style. A crisis is no time to deviate." So far, it seems that M&S has been following such advice, with CEO Stuart Machin personally communicating with customers about the breach. In his statement, he acknowledged that "unfortunately, some personal customer information has been taken" while reassuring customers that there was "no evidence that the information has been shared". The company has also taken proactive steps by emailing all website users, prompting customers to reset account passwords "for extra peace of mind," and reporting the case to relevant authorities. This approach aligns with what Charlotte describes as "staying true to its distinctive brand voice, with a flexible tone that effectively matches the circumstance." Learning from past examples Of course, M&S isn't the first brand to fall victim to criminal actions, and there are valuable lessons to be drawn from previous incidents. Sue points, for example, to British Airways' response to its 2018 data breach as an example of how to do things right. "Full-page apologies leaned on transparency and the honesty bias, reducing uncertainty and reinforcing sincerity," she recalls. "BA also tackled loss aversion by reassuring customers and outlining preventive measures, something M&S would do well to follow." As M&S works to restore its systems and services, the focus will ultimately shift from crisis management to rebuilding customer confidence. Dave recommends that "beyond better cybersecurity, M&S will benefit from continuing its communication with its shoppers and working to rebuild the goodwill it's just drawn down, with a thank-you to current and recently lapsed shoppers." Five key lessons Here are five essential lessons for legacy brands facing similar crises. 1. Invest in brand resilience before crisis strikes: As Lewis puts it, "Trust isn't built in a single moment. It's the result of years of consistent investment in the brand and the development of well-managed brand systems across the entire business." 2. Maintain authentic communication: Charlotte emphasises that brands must communicate in line with their established values and voice. "Defining and living up to brand values and having a clear voice with an adaptable tone is how brands weather these sorts of storms," she reasons. 3. Deploy transparency as a strategic tool: Lewis highlights how the delivery of information in a crisis is critical: "This is where brand values, expression, and UX come into their own." So, clear, accessible, and empathetic communication about what happened, what the company is doing about it, and how customers might be affected is essential. 4. Acknowledge the impact on customers: It's crucial to recognise and address customer frustrations directly. Sue notes how "with online sales still paused after 17 days, customer frustration is rising. M&S must not rest on its laurels". 5. Use crisis as a catalyst for improvement: Dave suggests that recovery should include not just fixing the immediate problem but strengthening the brand's overall value proposition. For M&S, this means considering "new ways to not only be loved but also provide products and services that shoppers can't get anywhere else". Conclusion The M&S cyberattack serves as a powerful case study of how legacy brands can leverage their heritage and customer loyalty during times of crisis. While the incident has undoubtedly damaged the retailer financially and operationally, the brand's deep reserves of trust have provided a cushion that many newer companies would not enjoy. As Charlotte puts it: "This is when 'brand' becomes a real asset. If a business has the right foundational tools in place, it has the guidance it needs to navigate both good times and bad." The lesson is clear: brand building is not just about driving sales during good times; it's about creating resilience for the inevitable storms. The true test of a legacy brand is not whether it can avoid crises altogether but how effectively it can deploy its accumulated trust and goodwill when disaster strikes. In a world where cyber threats continue to evolve in sophistication, this resilience is not merely advantageous; it's essential. The M&S case demonstrates that while no brand is impervious to attack, those with strong foundations can emerge from even the most significant challenges with their core identity intact.

Erik BenjaminsThere is always a message in the medium. Designer Nifemi Marcus-Bello has attracted acclaim in the global design community over the last few years for a practice that relies as heavily on his expansive interior universe as it does on a sophisticated and ecologically conscious selection of materials. (Case in point: his bamboo pavilion for the 2023 Sharjah Architecture Triennial.)Jide AyeniThe "TM Moon" in cast aluminum from Marcus-Bello’s Oríkì series (Act II). The piece can function as a room divider.Jide AyeniMolten aluminum being poured into the mold for the "TM Moon" in Lagos, Nigeria.Born and bred in Lagos, Nigeria, Marcus-Bello drew on his country’s centuries-old legacy of artistic metal-smithing and cultural affinity for innovation to create his series Oríkì. In three acts, Marcus-Bello tackled bronze, aluminum, and copper, the last of which was shown at Marta Gallery in Los Angeles earlier this year. (He is pictured above sitting on a daybed from that exhibition.) “I was thinking of how Africa can play a role in the refinement of its own materials and the layers of conversations that can be had,” he says. “Not just from a material standpoint but from a -socioeconomical, cultural, and -identity-based standpoint as well.”Jide AyeniA copper headrest from the Oríkì series (Act III).The designer has been welding since he was 14. His Lagos studio looks to what surrounds it, using materials from the continent and collaborating with local artisans. “I don’t see craftspeople as outsiders,” Marcus-Bello says. “Many of the welders I work with have known me since I was a child. I approach them with an idea, and it ends up being a conversation.” It’s a conversation institutions, galleries, and collectors are only too eager to have, as a recent MoMA acquisition shows. “I am interested in the why of everything,” he says. “Things should not exist for the sake of existing.” ◾This story originally appeared in the May 2025 issue of Elle Decor. SUBSCRIBE

Elden Ring Nightreign may look familiar in many ways, but FromSoftware’s stand-alone multiplayer spinoff of Elden Ring will play differently thanks to its battle-royale-inspired map and a roster of playable characters. Unlike the blank-slate, highly customizable characters of the original Elden Ring, the playable heroes of Nightreign — known as Nightfarers — are predefined characters with class roles — think rogues, sorcerers, barbarians, archers, and mages. There will be eight confirmed Nightfarers in Elden Ring Nightreign. Here’s a guide to everything we know about all Nightreign’s character classes announced so far plus gameplay video of them in action. We’ll update this guide as more information becomes available. Duchess The Duchess is “a nimble fighter who specializes in stealth and prefers daggers,” according to her official description. She’s essentially the rogue of the group, a speedy glass cannon who fights with quick, up-close slashes, and can provide crucial combat support to her team. If you’re a dexterity-focused Elden Ring player, she’s your Nightfarer. Passive Ability Magnificent Poise: Dodge and attack swiftly with reduced stamina cost. Allows up to two consecutive evasive actions. Character Skill Restage: Reapply the last few seconds of team damage to enemies. Ultimate Art Finale: Obscure nearby allies to hide from foes. Enemies lose track of the caster (and her allies), wandering aimlessly or becoming prone to leaving themselves vulnerable. Basically, it’s an invisibility spell. Guardian The Guardian is a “pinionfolk captain” — a flying birdman, in other words — who is skilled in offense and defense, and who prefers halberds, poking enemies from behind the cover of a heavy shield. Passive Ability Steel Guard: Plants his feet and braces with his shield raised for a more powerful guard. Greatly improves guard boost, but prevents running while holding up shield. Character skill Whirlwind: Guardian beats his wings to summon a cyclone that draws in enemies, knocking them off their feet. Whirlwind can be charged to enlarge its range and can repel light projectiles Ultimate Art Wings of Salvation: Dive from above to attack a large area and protect allies from damage. While in the air, Guardian can move briefly. Ironeye Iron Eye is an archer class with “split-second judgment and pinpoint accuracy.” If you like bows (and giant bows), Iron Eye’s your guy. Passive Ability Eagle Eye: His keen observation increases drops from downed enemies — allies get the same boost. Character Skill Marking: Marks enemies to create a temporary weak point. Iron Eye cuts his foe with a dagger, creating a temporary weak point. Inflicting damage on that weak point to damage and stagger foes. Damaging the weak point extends its duration. Ultimate Art Single Shot: Shoots a supersonic arrow that pierces any defense. Single Shot pierces all types of enemies, terrain, and structures. Raider Raider is a “powerful sea-farer who favors enormous weapons.” If you like walking around with a giant sword, axe, or hammer, and playing offense, you’re a Raider. Passive Ability Fighter’s Resolve: Taking damage boosts the potency of Raider’s character skill, Retaliate. He cannot be knocked down while using it, and will stay in the fight with a sliver of HP even after taking heavy damage. Character Skill Retaliate: Assume a defensive posture that reduces incoming damage and unleash a vigorous punch that can stagger large enemies. Ultimate Art Totem Stela: Summons a giant tombstone that deals damage, boosts nearby allies, and can be climbed and used as a platform. The tombstone radiates a protective aura, boosting strength of nearby allies, and blocking arrows. Recluse Keep your distance as the Recluse, a witch of the deep forest who deftly wields ancient sorceries. Elden Ring players who focus on intelligence builds will gravitate toward the Recluse. Passive Ability Elemental Defense: Collect elemental residues to replenish FP, and grant allies residues of specific elemental affinities. Character Skill Magic Cocktail: Combine elemental resides into different powerful spells. Collect the affinity residues of targets to unleash an affinity-exploiting magic cocktail. Complex affinity combinations create more powerful spells. Ultimate Art Soulblood Song: Brand foes with temporary blood sigils that increase damage taken by enemies. Those sigils also restore the HP and FP of caster. Wylder The Wylder is your classic all-rounder, with well-balanced abilities and easy-to-handle skills. Probably a good starting point in Nightreign before specializing. Passive Ability Sixth Sense: Cheat death a single time. Can be restored by dying or passing through a Site of Grace. Character Skill Claw Shot: Launch a grappling claw to rope in foes or move swiftly. Only certain enemies can be pulled in with Claw Shot, but it’s effective at breaking guard. Ultimate Art Onslaught Stake: A powerful single attack that launches an iron stake with a great explosion. Executor Official details on the Executor Nightfarer are forthcoming, but the class appears to borrow from FromSoftware’s Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, with a focus on deflection and Faith-based skills. Revenant We also don’t know much about the Revenant, but it appears to fill the role of healer.

Get the Popular Science daily newsletter💡 Breakthroughs, discoveries, and DIY tips sent every weekday. Poison dart frogs are hard to miss. They’re bright, agile, and as their name suggests, toxic. But at least a few  of these showy amphibians have gone under the radar, until now. Scientists surveying a difficult to reach area of the Brazilian Amazon report two new species in a set of recent papers. The first, published in April in the journal ZooKeys, describes the teal and black Ranitomeya aquamarina. The second, released May 14 in the journal PLOS One, introduces the light blue striped Ranitomeya aetherea.Despite how frequently novel amphibian species are found elsewhere,  the frogs are the first newly described members of their genus in 13 years. Reaching their habitat requires flying on a small plane, followed by a 10-hour boat journey along the river, Esteban Diego Koch, a study co-author and PhD candidate in evolutionary biology at the National Institute of Amazonian Research, tells Popular Science.  That long trek for humans is a major part of why the species stayed formally undiscovered for so long, he says. It takes years to properly prepare to survey such a remote region and to build relationships with the local Indigenous community, who were instrumental in assisting and guiding the outside researchers.  The metallic poison frog (Ranitomeya aquamarina) is less than two centimeters long from snout to butt. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Both of the poison dart species were discovered in pockets of open forest about 30 miles apart, along the banks of the Juruá River in western Brazil, near the border of Peru, Each species has an affinity for the same palm-like plant, with tadpoles that grow up inside the small, ephemeral pools of water that collect at the base of the leaf stalks. They spend their days perched on these plants or foraging in the nearby leaf litter, likely eating the toxic insects that help them build up their own reserves of deadly chemicals.  The frogs are named in reference to the color of the striking stripes on their backs. R. aquamarina has an array of bright turquoise lines running against a jet black background, while R. aetherea (Latin for ‘heavenly’), displays angelic, sky blue stripes against brick red. The two species share copper-colored, spotted metallic legs that resemble safari-print pants and are both about 15-17 millimeters long, about the diameter of a dime.  A male Ranitomeya aetherea sitting on a leaf. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Despite all their similarities, the amphibians seem to lead divergent lives, especially when it comes to mating.R. aquamarina in pairs, suggesting the frogs couple-up to breed and stay together for an extended period of time. This type of monogamy is rare in amphibians and was only first discovered 15 years ago in another dart frog species. In contrast, R. aetherea appears to play the field. Males of the sky blue species were generally sighted solo, emitting frequent advertising calls, and switching to a courtship call when approached by females, who don’t stick around in one place for very long.  It’s a testament to how deceiving looks can be. Dart frogs have a complex evolutionary history of species emerging and subsequently re-hybridizing. In this genus of frogs, “very distinct species can have the same appearance: the same colors and the same pattern,” Koch says. Adding to the confusion, “sometimes a single species can have multiple patterns of color,” he notes.An R. aquamarina couple. The males in this species emit frequent advertising and courtship calls. CREDIT: Alexander Tamanini Mônico. Since going by appearance alone isn’t enough, the scientists conducted extensive analyses of both types of frogs to confirm that the striped and spotted dart frog specimens truly represented two new species. They used genetic sequencing, compared the sound waves of mating calls, and took exceptionally accurate measurements of dozens of frogs under a microscope. They found that the two species were quite distinct, and not as closely related as one might expect. The frogs are nested in different areas of the evolutionary tree, with separate sister species, according to the genetic analysis. However, Koch notes that more data is needed to confirm the exact relationships.  With more research, additional surprises are likely to emerge. At least one more possible new species was collected in the recent surveys, Koch says. He and his colleagues just have to finish their assessment to know for sure. Beyond what’s already been found, Koch  imagines that many more unidentified amphibians are lurking in similarly difficult to access corners of the Amazon.  The hard part is getting to them before they’re gone. Deforestation, climate change, increasingly frequent wildfires, and pet trade poaching all threaten poison dart frogs. The frogs of these two new studies were collected across two expeditions in 2023 and 2024. In just that one year gap, Koch says his colleagues noted a big change, with clear cuts and deforestation moving much closer to the amphibians’ habitat. The scientists currently don’t have enough information to know exactly how secure or at-risk either species is. Yet, given that they found each amphibian in a small range, spotted across just a couple of miles of forest, it seems likely that the toxic frogs themselves are in much more danger than their poison poses to their predators. Losing them would mean losing two especially beautiful branches on the tree of life. It would also stymie our ability to harness their potential power. Chemicals from the skin of specific dart frogs have shown promise as possible medicines. “It’s a long road,” from discovering a species to discovering its potential human applications, says Koch. “Someday, they might be useful,” he says. But, to get there, we have to let the frogs stick around. 

"We're excited to become a clinical-stage biotech company; it's exciting from an AI drug discovery standpoint," says Absci founder and CEO Sean McClain. AbsciArtificial intelligence has been working its way into the drug development process for years now, but with little to show so far in revamping the notoriously burdensome process. While drugs are being developed using AI in a variety of ways, no drugs developed completely by AI, from start to finish, have so far made it over the finish line of regulatory approval. For that reason, every attempt by an AI drug to get approval is a landmark of sorts. Tuesday, drug development startup Absci, based in Vancouver, Washington, announced such a landmark, the beginning of a Phase I clinical trial for a therapy it built from scratch using generative AI to treat irritable bowel disease. The company announced it has "dosed" the first patients in Phase I trials, meaning, administering doses of its drug, ABS-101, to healthy volunteers. "This is a very big milestone for the company," said Sean McClain, founder and CEO of Absci, in a conversation with me via Google Meet Tuesday afternoon."We're excited to become a clinical-stage biotech company; it's exciting from an AI drug discovery standpoint," he said.Phase I is the first of three phases in a proposed drug's clinical trial process that must be completed in order for the drug to be considered for approval by regulators (the Food & Drug Administration in the US). The purpose of Phase I is to prove that no adverse side effects result from the drug being put into humans for the first time.  Absci describes the process:The Phase 1 (ACTRN12625000212459p) randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, first-in-human study of single ascending doses of ABS-101 will evaluate safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics (PK), and pharmacodynamics (PD) in healthy volunteers. The study is expected to enroll approximately 40 healthy adult participants. The primary endpoint is safety and tolerability, with PK, PD, and immunogenicity serving as secondary endpoints. The Phase 1 interim data readout is expected in the second half of 2025. Absci has used AI to dramatically streamline the drug development and pre-clinical process, known as the "front end" of drug development, where the discovery of drugs happens, and the initial validation using in vitro and in vivo animal models, before being put into human subjects. ABS-101 was developed from scratch and brought to the clinic in just 24 months, and at a cost of $15 million."Because of AI, we got to the clinic in roughly half the time, from five years to just over 24 months," McClain told me, "and with an order-of-magnitude less cost, $15 million to get this asset into the clinic versus what typically costs $50 to $100 million.Absci's AI-driven software tools, combined with its own wet lab, are a virtual reinvention of laboratory procedures.The company uses generative AI "to predict antibodies from scratch that can bind to a target of interest," McClain said. Traditionally, scientists in a wet lab would use an animal's immune system to generate an antibody. With generative AI, the antibody can be created as a computer model.Absci's ABS-101 is the first drug the company has ever brought to the clinic after over a decade spent on fundamental computer work and wet lab work. It is the company's lead drug candidate in its pipeline of drugs. The novel ABS-101 antibody, developed using generative AI, binds to the TL1A protein in immune cells whose over-expression has been linked to a variety of inflammatory autoimmune diseases.  Absci AbsciNot only did AI cut time and costs, but it has brought other novel advantages, said Christian Stegmann, the company's head of drug development, on the same call."Others have brought antibodies to the clinic that have had shortcomings, which we've tried to address," he said. A big issue has been that prior therapies "lead the patient to develop anti-drug antibodies, which can lead the patients to needing to switch treatments." The ABS-101, he said, is intended to have "reduced immunogenicity risk" by design, which will hopefully mean less drug resistance.In addition, the AI techniques allowed the company to go immediately to a "subcutaneous" method of administering the dose, rather than via a drip into the vein, as is standard in Phase I trials. "That is unusual; it usually comes much later in clinical development settings," said Stegmann. Using a needle versus a drip is important because, ideally, the final drug will be self-administered by patients. If the drug is already being tried out via needle rather than drip, it brings the therapy that much closer to its final form. "That allows us to be quicker in the overall clinical development pipeline, and to gather data for the setting that is actually going to reach the market" in the drug's final form, assuming it is ultimately approved."This is an advantage of AI," McClain said, "this ability to model not just for affinity and potency, but also to optimize for the manufacturability and such -- to go to all the attributes you want in the first go-around; that really helps."The full Phase I clinical trial will extend well into next year, said McClain and Stegmann. Gathering results is somewhat longer than for other Phase I trials because ABS-101 was designed to extend the time between doses. That is a benefit for patients as it makes less frequent dosing (less frequent needle pricks) possible, but it means the trial takes longer to carry out those dosages. "We have a long half life we have to monitor for a while," explained Stegmann.Well before the completion of Phase I, later this year, McClain expects to have a meaningful "read-out" of initial data from the Phase I. "We are going to, in Phase I, understand important pieces [of the whole trial process], as well as confirming whether we see the extended half-life" of the dosage, said McClain. "We will also get a look at the immunogenicity profile; there will be a lot of good information, as far as being able to show the efficacy" of ABS-101.Because of the incremental data Absci will get later this year, they will know enough to seek approval for Phase II and begin recruiting subjects before the completion of Phase I. Phase II is where the intense work of measuring the drug's effectiveness takes place, said McClain. "It's fair to say we will be moving faster into Phase II" than might otherwise be the case, he said. After ABS-101, McClain's next candidate approaching clinical trials is ABS-201, which has two indications of note, one for treating hair loss in the form of alopecia, and another for endometriosis. ABS-201 is expected to enter a Phase I trial in the first half of next year, McClain said.By any measure, drug development needs an overhaul. Creating new drugs, or even repurposing old ones, comes with an enormous cost. A new drug takes, on average, 10 years to develop, from fundamental chemistry through clinical trials to regulatory approval. It can cost almost $3 billion, and the failure rate of most new drug candidates is 96%. There has been a lot of activity so far, without a breakthrough AI drug. The US Food & Drug Administration's Center for Drug Evaluation and Research received over 500 drug applications through 2023 that used some sort of "AI component," according to CDER's materials on AI in drug development. But, as Nature Magazine's Melanie Senior reported in December, "No AI-enabled drug candidate has yet made it past regulators, despite several being in clinical trials."Aside from Absci, a small cohort of startups have made progress getting into trials even if they don't yet have a clinical result. For example, BPGbio of Framingham, Mass., has a drug for pancreatic cancer, developed using AI approaches, that is working its way through Phase II clinical trials.  Beyond the results of ABS-101, and other trials, the goal of Absci is to ultimately "predict the biology." That means the company will seek to "actually start to predict where an antibody should bind to a target to give us the biological response that we want."Absci's stock is publicly traded on Nasdaq. The shares have defied a tough stock market this year, rising 12% versus a 2% decline for the Nasdaq Composite Index. After hours on Tuesday, as Absci issued its press release, the stock surged by as much as 25% in late trading. Featured