Volvo is introducing a new seatbelt that self-adjusts based on your body and driving conditions, particularly in the event of a collision.This "multi-adaptive safety belt" gathers real-time data from interior and exterior sensors, adapting the force it applies "based on the situation and individual’s profiles, such as their height, weight, body shape and seating position," Volvo says. Multi-adaptive safety belt(Credit: Volvo)It's a way of customizing protection for the rider, rather than a static setting for all passengers. Volvo gives the example of a larger occupant and a smaller occupant during a car crash. The smaller will need a "lower belt load" to reduce the risk of rib fractures, while the larger one will need a "higher belt load" to reduce the risk of head injury. Recommended by Our EditorsMost seatbelts have three settings, or "load-limiting profiles," but Volvo offers 11. The sensors analyze the unique characteristics of a crash "in less than a blink of the eye," such as direction, speed, and passenger posture, and shares that information with the seatbelt. It uses this data to select the appropriate setting.Multi-adaptive safety belt(Credit: Volvo)Volvo says it developed the tech with data from 80,000 riders and real accidents, and is approaching the seatbelt as a piece of living tech with the capability to receive over-the-air software updates and continuously improve based on data gathered from all Volvo cars. While it could significantly improve safety, more tech can also mean more room to malfunction. If the belt gets too tight, or too loose, it could be a headache for riders.The new belt debuts later this year in the all-electric 2026 Volvo EX60, a midsize SUV set to compete with the Tesla Model Y. Volvo hasn't revealed pricing or photos of the vehicle yet, but it's expected to be among the most popular in the brand's EV lineup. That includes the EX30, a smaller SUV, three-row EX90, and ES90 sedan.Volvo EX90 on the Las Vegas strip(Credit: Emily Forlini/PCMag)

Volvo is looking to boost its reputation for safety with the release of a new “multi-adaptive safety belt” that uses real-time data from the vehicle’s sensors to better protect the person wearing it.Seatbelt technology hasn’t changed much since Volvo patented one of the first modern three-point safety belts in the early 1960s. But cars have changed significantly, adding sensors, cameras, and high-powered computers to power advanced driver assist features and anti-crash technology.Now, Volvo wants to put those gadgets to work for seatbelts. Modern safety belts use load limiters to control how much force the safety belt applies on the human body during a crash. Volvo says its new safety belt expands the load-limiting profiles from three to 11 and increases the possible number of settings, enabling it to tailor its performance to specific situations and individuals.As such, Volvo can use sensor data to customize seatbelts based on a person’s height, weight, body shape, and seating position. A larger occupant, for example, would receive a higher belt load setting to help reduce the risk of a head injury in a crash, while a smaller person in a milder crash would receive a lower belt load setting to reduce the risk of rib fractures.During a crash, Volvo says its vehicles’ safety systems will share sensor data — such as direction, speed, and passenger posture — with multi-adaptive seatbelts to determine how much force to apply to the occupant’s body. And using over-the-air software updates, Volvo promises that the seatbelts can improve over time.Volvo says its new safety belt expands the load-limiting profiles and increases the possible number of settings. Image: VolvoVolvo has previously deviated from traditional practices to introduce new technologies meant to underscore its commitment to safety. The company limits the top speed on all of its vehicles to 112 mph — notably below the 155 mph established by a “gentleman’s agreement” between Mercedes-Benz, Audi, and BMW to reduce the number of fatalities on the Autobahn.The new seatbelts will debut in the Volvo EX60, the automaker’s mid-sized electric SUV which is scheduled to come out next year.See More:

Volvo has introduced a new seatbelt technology that can customize the protection it provides in real time. The "multi-adaptive safety belt" system, as the automaker is calling it, uses data input from both interior and exterior sensors to change protection settings based on various factors. It can take a person's height, weight, body shape and seating position into account, as well as the direction and speed of the vehicle. The system can communicate all those information to the seatbelt "in the blink of an eye" so that it can optimize protection for the passenger.  If the passenger is on the larger side, for instance, they will receive a higher belt load setting to reduce the risk of a head injury in the event of a serious crash. For milder crashes, someone with a smaller frame will receive a lower belt load setting to prevent rib injuries. Volvo didn't specifically say if the system also takes the position of a seatbelt on women into account, since it doesn't always fit right over a woman's chest. However, the automaker explained that the system expands the number of load-limiting profiles to 11. Load limiters control how much force a seatbelt applies on the body during a crash. Typically, seatbelts only have three load-limiting profiles, but Volvo expanding them to 11 means the system can better optimize the protection a passenger gets.  Volvo used information from five decades of safety research and from a database of over 80,000 people involved in real-life accidents to design the new safety belt. The system was also created to incorporate improvements rolled out via over the-air software updates, which the company expects to release as it gets more data and insights.  "The world first multi-adaptive safety belt is another milestone for automotive safety and a great example of how we leverage real-time data with the ambition to help save millions of more lives," said Åsa Haglund, head of Volvo Cars Safety Centre. "This marks a major upgrade to the modern three-point safety belt, a Volvo invention introduced in 1959, estimated to have saved over a million lives." Volvo engineer Nils Bohlin designed the modern three-point seatbelt and made its patent available for use by other automakers. The company didn't say whether it'll be as generous with the multi-adaptive safety belt, but the new system will debut in the all-electric Volvo EX60 midsize SUV sometime next year.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/volvo-is-introducing-the-first-multi-adaptive-seatbelt-technology-on-the-ex60-ev-070017403.html?src=rss

The U.S. government has not yet made its official recommendations for who should be able to get COVID booster shots this fall, but FDA officials published a policy position in the New England Journal of Medicine announcing that it intends to make some drastic policy changes. The changes could result in healthy people under age 65 losing access to COVID vaccines, according to vaccine experts who have spoken about the policies. Here’s what we know so far, and why the announced policy could be a problem. How COVID vaccines are currently approvedScientists have changed the formulation of COVID vaccines a few times over the years, because the COVID virus itself tends to mutate. Vaccines are updated to better match the strains that are circulating, and this has happened roughly once a year—similar to how flu shots are updated each year. Instead of designing new vaccine trials from scratch for each small change in the COVID vaccine, manufacturers conduct studies to show that the immunity people get from the new vaccine is equivalent to what people got from the old vaccine. After approval from the FDA, the CDC then issues a recommendation for who should get the vaccine. Currently, everyone aged 6 months and up is recommended to get a COVID vaccine. What might be changingThe new policy, according to the NEJM article, would be to accept those immunobridging studies only to approve vaccines for people aged 65 and up, and people above the age of 6 months who have one of the high-risk conditions on a list maintained by the CDC. For healthy people under 65, the FDA’s policy wouldn’t approve new COVID vaccines unless they were tested against a placebo. (The type of placebo is phrased vaguely: “The control group could receive a saline placebo,” the authors write.) The FDA doesn’t have the authority to change the recommendations on who should get vaccines that are already approved (that’s the CDC’s purview), but it is in charge of approving vaccines and can approve them only for specific populations. Why placebo-controlled trials are an absolutely wild idea for COVID vaccinesPublic health experts are, to put it mildly, not happy with this plan. That’s because we already have COVID vaccines that work. Doing a placebo-controlled trial would require withholding COVID vaccines from people in the control group; they would get saline instead of a functional vaccine. The normal way to do this type of trial (if you do one at all, rather than relying on immunobridging) is to compare the new vaccine or medication against one that is already considered effective. To use an extreme analogy, you wouldn’t test a new design of seatbelt by randomizing people to ride around without using any seatbelts at all. Vaccine scientist Peter Hotez told CNN that the FDA’s announced approach “essentially denies access to vaccines,” since such trials are not practical for companies to do. In a post on Bluesky, toxicologist Ryan Marino said that it amounts to “scientific misconduct.” Vaccine expert Paul Offit told NPR “I don't think it's ethical, given that we have a vaccine that works, given that we know that SARS-CoV2 [the COVID virus] continues to circulate and cause hospitalizations and death, and there's no group that has no risk.”More vaccine chaos may be comingThe new policy isn’t official yet, but it’s hard to imagine the FDA and CDC being allowed to approve and recommend vaccines the way it always has in the current political climate. Biologics director Vinay Prasad and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary, whose names appear on the FDA’s policy statement, have a history of arguing against COVID vaccine access for children. And both agencies are under the umbrella of HHS, the department of Health and Human Services, which is headed by Robert F. Kennedy, Jr—the same person whose anti-vaccine organization financed the movie Plandemic. If you don’t recall the details of that movie circulating in the early pandemic days, it implied both that COVID wasn’t real and that it was a bioweapon created by the government; the logic didn’t hold together but ultimately the point was that we should be suspicious of vaccines. (I have more on Plandemic here.) RFK, Jr has said a lot of bananas stuff about vaccines. He has compared childhood vaccines to the holocaust, claimed that Bill Gates put microchips in vaccines, and loudly questioned whether vaccines cause autism. How this man got put in charge of a health agency, I will never understand. Recent and future vaccine approvals may be at risk in this environment. Moderna had planned to submit a combined flu/COVID vaccine for approval; it has since withdrawn its application. (It’s not clear whether recent FDA policy announcements are directly related.) Novavax’s recent vaccine was approved recently, but only after a delay and only for older adults and for people with high-risk health conditions. Kennedy released a report today that questions the childhood vaccine schedule and implies that vaccines are part of the “stark reality of American children's declining health.” 

Five, six... nine? 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 9 first drive: Efficient, for a big one Hyundai's biggest EV is designed for American roads and built in Georgia. Jonathan M. Gitlin – May 20, 2025 9:00 am | 15 Spot the elliptical shapes on the new Hyundai Ioniq 9. Credit: Jonathan Gitlin Spot the elliptical shapes on the new Hyundai Ioniq 9. Credit: Jonathan Gitlin Story text Size Small Standard Large Width * Standard Wide Links Standard Orange * Subscribers only   Learn more Hyundai provided flights from Washington to Savannah and accommodation so Ars could drive the Ioniq 9. Ars does not accept paid editorial content. SAVANNAH, Georgia—Hyundai's massive new Metaplant factory in Georgia is actually painted a subtle shade of green, not white, but you'd need someone to point that out to you. It's a shining example of the latest in car manufacturing—bright lights and white walls inside, knee-saving wooden floors on the production line, recaptured waste energy and solar—you name it. Hyundai even uses dog-like robots to check some welds. The vast facility is responsible for North American production of the electric Ioniq 5 and, now, the all-new Ioniq 9 SUV as well. That Hyundai would make a three-row SUV with its class-leading electric powertrain was a no-brainer. The E-GMP platform, with its class-leading 800 V powertrain, was designed for medium to large EVs, after all. In 2021 it debuted the Seven concept, which explored the idea of a living room on wheels. I'm not sure why the nameplate skipped a couple of digits, but the production Ioniq 9 tries to keep as true to that theme as possible within the confines of real life. Although they look quite different from one another, a common design language called "parametric pixels" ties together the Ioniq 9 with its smaller siblings the Ioniq 5 SUV and Ioniq 6 sedan. Creases catch the light even with the matte-gold paint of our test car, like the line ahead of the rear wheels that calls back to the collar on a traditional Korean garment. As ever, there are some other wonderful names for the design language: my favorite is "aerosthetic lounge," but when you look at the images, also think of words like "teutonic," "boat tail," and "integrated." When you hear the shape was inspired by a pebble, it makes sense that the drag coefficient is a slippery 0.27. Inspired by a pebble, don't you know? Jonathan Gitlin Inspired by a pebble, don't you know? Jonathan Gitlin I think this is my favorite angle. Jonathan Gitlin I think this is my favorite angle. Jonathan Gitlin Inspired by a pebble, don't you know? Jonathan Gitlin I think this is my favorite angle. Jonathan Gitlin At 199.2 inches (5,060 mm) the Ioniq 9 is couple of inches longer than the gas-powered Hyundai Palisade, but the EV's more space-efficient powertrain means the Ioniq 9 offers 9 inches (230 mm) more wheelbase, which translates into more room on the inside. The primary beneficiaries of that are whoever sits in the middle row, especially if the Ioniq 9 is in the six-seat configuration, which swaps the middle bench for a pair of captains' chairs. These even get ventilation, like the front seats. Space all the way in the back is average for the breed. There's more headroom than a Rivian R1S, but less legroom, and like most three-row SUVs, that third row is really for small children or occasional use. There's no acoustic glass back there, so its a much noisier place to sit, and the space is better utilized as cargo volume. If you need to put two adults in a third row and it must be electric, the Volkswagen ID. Buzz is your best bet, or at least it was until someone noticed the rear bench was too wide for just two seatbelts, sparkling a recall. But I digress. Seven adults could get up to a lot of work in one of these things. That's how many 100 W USB-C ports Hyundai has included, three up front then two for each of the other rows, although by my maths it would be hard to sap more than a couple of miles of range by simultaneously recharging 16-inch MacBook Pros on a road trip. For gadgets needing alternating current, the Ioniq 9 can provide 120 V V2L and is also capable of powering a home (V2H) or even returning energy to the grid (V2G), although those two will require a Hyundai bidirectional charger. The Cylon/Knight Rider effect is mainly an artifact of the digital camera and the LED lights. Jonathan Gitlin The Cylon/Knight Rider effect is mainly an artifact of the digital camera and the LED lights. Jonathan Gitlin I wonder if Hyundai will make an Ioniq 9 N? Jonathan Gitlin I wonder if Hyundai will make an Ioniq 9 N? Jonathan Gitlin This is very Range Rover. Jonathan Gitlin This is very Range Rover. Jonathan Gitlin I wonder if Hyundai will make an Ioniq 9 N? Jonathan Gitlin This is very Range Rover. Jonathan Gitlin With the electrons flowing from grid to car via a level 2 AC charger, expect to take about 9 hours and 40 minutes to charge from 10–100 percent at 11 kW. For best results DC fast charging, seek out a 350 kW fast charger. You'll need the included CCS1 adapter, but you'll charge from 10–80 percent in 24 minutes. The adapter is required because the Ioniq 9 is one of the few non-Tesla EVs to leave the factory with the NACS charging port. Using a Tesla Supercharger to charge an Ioniq 9 doesn't just put more money in Elon Musk's coffers, though, it also takes a while—41 minutes in total. Only the $58,995 Ioniq 9 S is available with a rear-wheel drive powertrain. In this case, one with 215 hp (160 kW) and 258 lb-ft (350 Nm) and a range of 325 miles (539 km) from the 110.3 kWh (gross) battery pack. All other trims feature twin motor all-wheel drive, but you give up little in the way of range. The $62,765 SE and $68,320 SEL offer a combined 303 hp (226 kW) and 446 lb-ft (605 Nm) and 320 miles (515 km) of range, and the $71,250 Performance Limited, $74,990 Performance Calligraphy, and $76,490 Performance Calligraphy Design use a more powerful front motor to generate a total of 442 hp (315 kW) and 516 lb-ft (700 Nm), and a range of 311 miles (500 km). The Ioniq 9's interior loses some of the charm of the concept. Hyundai The Ioniq 9's interior loses some of the charm of the concept. Hyundai Yes, that is a NACS port. Jonathan Gitlin Yes, that is a NACS port. Jonathan Gitlin We were only able to test the Ioniq 9 in six-seat configuration. Hyundai We were only able to test the Ioniq 9 in six-seat configuration. Hyundai Yes, that is a NACS port. Jonathan Gitlin We were only able to test the Ioniq 9 in six-seat configuration. Hyundai This curved panel is common across a lot of Hyundai and Genesis cars now. Hyundai The center console has wireless charging, among other features. Hyundai Lots of storage, and the lid on top opens both ways. Hyundai Leg rests! Hyundai There's 21.9 cubic feet of cargo with the third row in use, or 46.7 cubic feet with it folded flat, and 86.9 cubic feet with both rows flat. Jonathan Gitlin While a short first drive is not the best place to evaluate an EV's range efficiency, driven day to day in Eco mode, I wouldn't be surprised if you were able to easily exceed 3 miles/kWh (20.7 kWh/100 km). Other drive modes include Normal, which uses the front motor much more often and therefore is markedly quicker than Eco; Sport, which has quite a lot of initial throttle tip-in and will head-toss your passengers if you have any; Terrain, first seen on the Ioniq 5 XRT; and Snow. The ride is quite firm on surface streets but less so at highway speeds over seams and expansion gaps. As you start to corner faster you can expect to encounter understeer, but since this is a three-row SUV weighing between 5,507-6,008 lbs (2,498-2,725 kg), one has to wonder what else was expected. At sensible speeds, it's easy to see out of and place it on the road, and if you're stuck in a tailback with a couple of grumpy children in the back, it's a calming enough environment to keep you from being over-stressed. Hyundai has wisely priced the Ioniq 9 between the related Kia EV9 (which also uses the E-GMP platform) and EVs from premium OEMs like the Volvo EX90, Mercedes EQS SUV, or the aforementioned Rivian. Jonathan M. Gitlin Automotive Editor Jonathan M. Gitlin Automotive Editor Jonathan is the Automotive Editor at Ars Technica. He has a BSc and PhD in Pharmacology. In 2014 he decided to indulge his lifelong passion for the car by leaving the National Human Genome Research Institute and launching Ars Technica's automotive coverage. He lives in Washington, DC. 15 Comments

Social media was mankind’s first run-in with AI, and we failed that test horribly, according to tech ethicist Tristan Harris, whom The Atlantic called “the closest thing Silicon Valley has to a conscience.” A recent survey found nearly half of Gen Z respondents wished social media had never been invented. Yet, 60% still spend at least four hours daily on these platforms.  Bullying, social anxiety, addiction, polarization, and misinformation—social media has become a cocktail of disturbing discourse. With GenAI, we have a second chance to ensure technology is used responsibly.  But this is proving difficult. Major AI companies are now adopting collaborative approaches to address governance challenges. Recently, OpenAI announced it would implement Anthropic’s Model Context Protocol, a standard for connecting AI models to data sources that’s rapidly becoming an industry norm with Google following suit.  With any new technology, there are unexpected benefits and consequences. As Harris put it, “whatever our power is as a species, AI amplifies it to an exponential degree.”  While GenAI helps us accomplish more than ever before, dangers exist. A seemingly safe large language model (LLM) can be manipulated by bad actors to create harmful content or be jailbroken to write malicious code. How do we avoid these harmful use cases while benefiting from this powerful technology? Three approaches are possible, each with its own merits and drawbacks.  3 ways to benefit from AI while avoiding harm  Option #1: Government regulation  The automobile brought both convenience and tragedy. We responded with speed limits, seatbelts, and regulations—a process spanning over a century.  Legislators worldwide are attempting similar safeguards with AI. The European Union leads with its AI Act, which entered into force in August 2024. Implementation is phased, with some provisions active since February 2025, banning systems posing “unacceptable risk” like social scoring and untargeted scraping of facial recognition data.  However, these regulations present challenges. European tech leaders worry that punitive EU measures could trigger backlash from the Trump administration. Meanwhile, U.S. regulation develops as a patchwork of state and federal initiatives, with states like Colorado enacting their own comprehensive AI laws.  The EU AI Act’s implementation timeline illustrates this complexity: Some bans started in February 2025, codes of practice follow nine months after entry into force, rules on general-purpose AI at the 12-month mark, while high-risk systems have 36 months to comply.  A real concern exists: Excessive regulation might simply shift development elsewhere. Building a functional LLM model costs only hundreds of millions of dollars—within reach for many countries.  While regulation has its place, the process is too flawed for developing good rules currently. AI evolves too quickly, and the industry attracts too much investment. Resulting regulations risk either stifling innovation or lacking meaningful impact.  So, if government regulation isn’t the panacea for AI’s dangers, what will help?  Option #2: Social discourse  Educators are struggling with GenAI and academic honesty. Some want to block AI entirely, while others see opportunities to empower students who struggle with traditional pedagogy.  Imagine having a perpetually available tutor answering any question—but one that can also complete your assignments. As Satya Nadella put it recently on the Dwarkesh Podcast, his new workflow is to “think with AI and work with my colleagues.” This collaborative approach to AI usage could be a model for educational settings, where AI serves as a thinking partner rather than a replacement for learning.  In homes, schools, online forums, and government, society must reckon with this technology and decide what’s acceptable. Everyone deserves a voice in these conversations. Unfortunately, internet discussions often devolve into trading sound bites without context or nuance.  For meaningful conversations, we must educate ourselves. We need effective channels for public input, perhaps through grassroots movements guiding people toward safe and effective AI usage.  Option #3: Third-party evaluators   Before the 2008 financial crisis, credit rating agencies assigned AAA ratings to subprime mortgages, contributing to economic disaster. The problem? Industry-wide self-interest.  When it comes to AI regulators, of course, we run the risk of an incestuous revolving door that does more harm than good. That doesn’t have to be the case.   Meaningful and thoughtful research is going into AI certifications and third-party evaluators. In the paper AI Certification: Advancing Ethical Practice by Reducing, Peter Cihon et al. propose several notions.   First, because AI technology is advancing so quickly, AI certification should emphasize evergreen principles, such as ethics for AI developers.   Second, AI certification today lacks nuance for particular circumstances, geographies, or industries. Not only is certification homogenous, but many programs treat AI as a “monolithic technology” rather than acknowledging the diverse types, such as facial recognition, LLMs, and anomaly detection.  Finally, to see good results, customers must demand high-quality certifications. They have to be educated about the technology and the associated ethics and safety concerns.  The path forward  The way forward requires multistakeholder, multifaceted conversations about societal goals and preventing AI dangers. If government becomes the default regulator, we risk an uninvestable marketplace or meaningless rubber-stamping.  Independent third-party evaluators combined with informed social discourse offers the best path forward. But we must educate ourselves about this powerful technology’s dangers and realities, or we’ll repeat social media’s errors on a grander scale.  Peter Wang is chief AI and innovation officer at Anaconda.