New developments in artificial intelligence, energy, materials and space technology are highlighting both the opportunities and the costs of rapid technological change. Anthropic has filed to go public in a test for the AI investment boom, while Microsoft is offering buyouts as its AI spending rises. Elsewhere, reports examine solar power’s growth, newly disclosed AI research, longstanding industry concerns about microplastics, a space-based lighting experiment, helium’s importance to semiconductor manufacturing and employee opposition to a Boston Dynamics contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Artificial intelligence and the technology industry
Anthropic files for an IPO
Anthropic has filed for an initial public offering of its blockbuster AI business. The listing could help determine the future of the current AI investment boom, according to CNBC.
The filing also warns about the potentially devastating risks of AI and its enormous computational costs, the BBC reports. Reuters says it revealed safety deficiencies and a month-long pause in training. Although the prospectus shows sharply rising revenue, it also reports substantial losses, according to the New York Times. Anthropic’s founders will retain voting rights after the IPO, The Verge reports.
OpenAI announces three scientific discoveries
OpenAI has announced three new scientific discoveries spanning mathematics, computer science and physics, according to The Verge. The company also says it is enlisting expert “shepherds” to help publish its breakthrough results, Gizmodo reports.
Microsoft offers buyouts as AI costs rise
Microsoft is offering a buyout program to approximately 60,000 employees, according to Bloomberg. The company plans to spend $190 billion on AI this year, the New York Times reports.
Energy and the environment
Solar power gains ground on nuclear energy
Cheap solar panels and batteries are accelerating a shift in which solar power is quietly overtaking nuclear power as a global power source, according to the BBC. A boom in balcony solar power is also approaching the United States, according to MIT Technology Review.
Plastics companies knew about microplastic risks decades ago
Company documents indicate that the plastics industry had concerns about microplastics entering the human body as early as 1974, the Los Angeles Times reports. MIT Technology Review notes that no place on Earth is completely free of human influence.
Space-based lighting test raises concerns
Startup Reflect Orbital used a space mirror in a test in California to reflect sunlight toward Earth, according to The Guardian. MIT Technology Review reports that the technology could endanger the night sky.
Helium designated as a critical substance
The United States has designated helium as a critical substance. The decision is significant for semiconductor production, according to the Associated Press.
Robotics and labor
Boston Dynamics employees protest ICE contract
About 800 Boston Dynamics employees are protesting the company’s contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They are calling for an end to the sale of robot dogs to the agency, according to Ars Technica.
Source: www.technologyreview.com
