Timber Plus: Israel has created an AI model trained on intercepted Palestinian data
This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.
The short, strange history of gene de-extinction
This week saw the release of some fascinating news about some very furry rodents—so-called “woolly mice”—created as part of an experiment to explore how we might one day resurrect the woolly mammoth.
The idea of bringing back extinct species has gained traction thanks to advances in sequencing of ancient DNA. This ancient genetic data is deepening our understanding of the past—for instance, by shedding light on interactions among prehistoric humans. But researchers are becoming more ambitious. Rather than just reading ancient DNA, they want to use it—by inserting it into living organisms.
Because this idea is so new and attracting so much attention, I decided it would be useful to create a record of previous attempts to add extinct DNA to living organisms. And since the technology doesn’t have a name, let’s give it one: “chronogenics.” Read the full story.
—Antonio Regalado
This article first appeared in The Checkup, MIT Technology Review’s weekly biotech newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday, and read articles like this first, sign up here.
If you’re interested in de-extinction, why not check out:
+ How much would you pay to see a woolly mammoth? We spoke to Sara Ord, director of species restoration at Colossal, the world’s first “de-extinction” company, about its big ambitions.
+ Colossal is also a de-extinction company, which is trying to resurrect the dodo. Read the full story.
+ DNA that was frozen for 2 million years has been sequenced. The ancient DNA fragments come from a Greenland ecosystem where mastodons roamed among flowering plants. It may hold clues to how to survive a warming climate.
The must-reads
I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.
1 Ukraine is worried the US could sever its vital Starlink connection
Its satellite internet is vital to Ukraine’s drone operations. (WP $)
+ Thankfully, there are alternative providers. (Wired $)
+ Ukraine is due to start a fresh round of war-ending negotiations next week. (FT $)
+ Meet the radio-obsessed civilian shaping Ukraine’s drone defense. (MIT Technology Review)
2 Israel’s military has trained a powerful AI model on intercepted Palestinian data
The ChatGPT-like tool can answer queries about the people it’s monitoring. (The Guardian)
3 Donald Trump has suspended tariffs on Canada and Mexico
Until April 2, at least. (Reuters)
+ It’s the second time Trump has rolled back import taxes in as many days. (BBC)
+ How Trump’s tariffs could drive up the cost of batteries, EVs, and more. (MIT Technology Review)
4 Can someone check on NASA’s Athena lunar lander?
While we know it reached the moon, it appears to have toppled over. (NYT $)
+ If it remains in an incorrect position, it may be unable to complete its mission. (CNN)
+ Its engineers aren’t sure exactly where it is on the moon, either. (NBC News)
5 Shutting down 2G is easier said than done
Millions of vulnerable people around the world still rely on it to communicate. (Rest of World)
6 The hunt for the world’s oldest functional computer code
Spoiler: it may no longer be on Earth. (New Scientist $)
7 Robots are set to compete with humans in a Beijing half marathon🦿
My money’s on the flesh and blood competitors. (Insider $)
+ Researchers taught robots to run. Now they’re teaching them to walk. (MIT Technology Review)
8 Where did it all go wrong for Skype?
It was the world leading video-calling app—until it wasn’t. (The Verge)
9 Dating is out, matchmaking is in
Why swipe when a platform can do the hard work for you? (Wired $)
+ Forget dating apps: Here’s how the net’s newest matchmakers help you find love. (MIT Technology Review)
10 Apps are back, baby! 📱
It’s like the original smartphone app boom all over again. (Bloomberg $)
Quote of the day
“You can only get so much juice out of every lemon.”
—Carl-Benedikt Frey, a professor of AI and work at Oxford University’s Internet Institute, explains why pushing AI as a means of merely increasing productivity won’t always work, the Financial Times reports.
The big story
The cost of building the perfect wave
June 2024
For nearly as long as surfing has existed, surfers have been obsessed with the search for the perfect wave.
While this hunt has taken surfers from tropical coastlines to icebergs, these days that search may take place closer to home. That is, at least, the vision presented by developers and boosters in the growing industry of surf pools, spurred by advances in wave-generating technology that have finally created artificial waves surfers actually want to ride.
But there’s a problem: some of these pools are in drought-ridden areas, and face fierce local opposition. At the core of these fights is a question that’s also at the heart of the sport: What is the cost of finding, or now creating, the perfect wave—and who will have to bear it? Read the full story.
—Eileen Guo