Machine Learning

EU Investigates Meta’s WhatsApp AI for Antitrust Violations The European Commission has launched an antitrust investigation into Meta, focusing on concerns that its policies for WhatsApp could unfairly promote its own AI assistant. The probe follows complaints from smaller companies alleging that upcoming changes to WhatsApp’s access rules might hinder competing AI chatbots from reaching users. EU officials are considering interim measures to address these concerns while the investigation proceeds. This action is separate from, but complementary to, existing regulations under the Digital Markets Act. Italy’s antitrust authority is also conducting a parallel investigation. ...

MIT Unveils Dynamic Reasoning Method to Boost LLM Efficiency Researchers at MIT have engineered a more intelligent method for large language models (LLMs) to allocate computational resources during reasoning, significantly increasing their efficiency. This new technique enables LLMs to dynamically adjust the amount of computation used based on the complexity of a given question. This approach marks a departure from common methods that assign a fixed computational budget to every problem, which often wastes resources on simple queries and fails to solve more complex ones. By enhancing the reliability and efficiency of LLMs for complex reasoning, this development could lower the energy consumption of generative AI systems and enable their use in more critical, time-sensitive applications. The research is being presented at the Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems. ...

China’s AgiBot A2 Humanoid Robot Completes Record-Breaking 106-Kilometer Walk Setting a new world record for humanoid robotics, the AgiBot A2 has successfully walked 106 kilometers (66 miles) from Suzhou to Shanghai. Developed by Suzhou-based Zhiyuan Robotics, the robot completed the three-day journey as a test of its endurance and engineering. The AgiBot A2 showcased its advanced capabilities by navigating real-world environments and autonomously swapping its own batteries during the trek. While the company has not specified the frequency of battery swaps or the degree of human oversight, it confirmed the robot navigated using its onboard sensors and algorithms. This long-distance achievement marks a significant milestone in humanoid technology and environmental adaptability. ...

MIT Unveils BoltzGen: A Generative AI for Designing Therapeutic Molecules In a major leap for drug discovery, scientists at MIT have introduced BoltzGen, a generative AI model capable of creating novel protein binders from scratch. This innovative tool is designed to address diseases that have long been considered difficult or impossible to treat, marking a significant shift from predictive biology to generative engineering in medicine. How BoltzGen Unifies Design and Prediction BoltzGen stands out by unifying protein design and structure prediction into a single, powerful process. The model incorporates specific constraints to ensure that the molecules it generates are not only novel but also functional and stable, adhering to the fundamental laws of physics and chemistry. Unlike previous models that were often limited to specific protein types, BoltzGen is engineered as a more general-purpose tool, capable of creating a much wider range of therapeutic molecules. ...

Anthropic Unveils Claude Opus 4.5, Setting New AI Benchmarks Anthropic has launched Claude Opus 4.5, its most advanced and powerful AI model to date. Now accessible via the Anthropic API and major cloud platforms, Opus 4.5 reportedly establishes a new industry standard for complex tasks, including coding, AI agent development, and multi-step computer operations. The model also demonstrates significantly improved performance in everyday business functions like in-depth research and processing documents such as spreadsheets and presentations. Anthropic is positioning this release for enterprise and engineering teams managing sophisticated projects. Claude Opus 4.5 is available on AWS Bedrock, Google Cloud’s Vertex AI, and Microsoft’s Foundry. ...

Leaked Trump Administration Draft Order Aims to Block State AI Laws A leaked draft executive order from a potential Trump administration reveals a plan to preempt states from enacting their own artificial intelligence laws. The proposed order suggests using the withholding of federal funds, including from the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) program, as leverage against states that implement “onerous” AI regulations. The document also outlines the creation of a Department of Justice task force to legally challenge state-level AI legislation. This move is widely seen as an attempt to establish a single federal standard for AI, a position President Trump has previously supported on social media. The proposal has drawn sharp criticism from civil society groups, who argue it represents federal overreach and undermines state-level consumer protection efforts. ...

AI Digital Twin Breakthrough: DT-GPT Predicts Patient Health Futures Researchers at the University of Melbourne have developed a groundbreaking AI tool, DT-GPT, that creates virtual digital twins of patients to forecast their individual health paths. The model was trained on three datasets comprising thousands of electronic patient health records for conditions like Alzheimer’s disease and non-small cell lung cancer. In testing, DT-GPT outperformed 14 other leading machine learning models in predictive accuracy. This technology could potentially simulate clinical trial outcomes, accelerating drug development and reducing costs. It may also enable medical professionals to anticipate patient health deterioration for earlier intervention and predict adverse medication side effects for more personalized treatment plans. The research has been published in NPJ Digital Medicine. ...

Galbot Unveils DexNDM & NavFoM: Major Breakthroughs in Embodied AI for Robotics Robotics firm Galbot has announced two significant technological advancements in embodied intelligence: DexNDM and NavFoM. DexNDM is a neural dynamics model designed to enhance robotic dexterous manipulation, enabling robots to perform high-precision, in-hand rotations of various objects. NavFoM is presented as the world’s first cross-embodiment, cross-task navigation foundation model, allowing robots to autonomously perform complex tasks in diverse environments. These innovations, developed with Tsinghua and Peking University, integrate DexNDM into a teleoperation system for intricate tasks like tightening screws with high-level human commands. These advancements are poised to revolutionize industries like manufacturing, logistics, and healthcare by improving the adaptability and efficiency of robots in real-world settings. ...

Bipartisan AI Task Force Formed to Address AI Risks and Innovation A bipartisan group of state attorneys general has established a new Artificial Intelligence Task Force to navigate the complexities of AI development. Chaired by North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson and Utah Attorney General Derek Brown, the initiative includes key partnerships with OpenAI and Microsoft. The task force’s core mission is to stay informed on AI advancements, protect the public—especially children—from potential AI-related harms, and develop foundational industry safeguards. This initiative aims to provide crucial consumer protection and a forum for coordination in the absence of comprehensive federal AI legislation. ...

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman Pushes for Government-Owned AI Infrastructure OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has called for governments to invest in and own their artificial intelligence infrastructure. In a statement, Altman clarified that OpenAI is not seeking government loan guarantees for its data centers, emphasizing that companies should bear their own business risks. He suggested that a government-owned AI infrastructure, including a “strategic national reserve of computing power,” would serve the public interest. This comes as OpenAI faces scrutiny over its significant investment plans and the immense costs associated with advancing AI technology. Altman believes the risk of having insufficient computing power is greater than the risk of overbuilding. ...