August 12, 2026
(Rest of World) – Beijing is pioneering regulations that could shape how governments around the world govern emotionally intelligent chatbots. On July 15, the artificial intelligence companion Su had spent more than a year prompting and talking to was forced … Read More
August 7, 2026
(The Atlantic) – Curbing the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo will require stepping up testing. This outbreak is spreading more quickly than any other in history partly because one of the basic tools needed to control infectious … Read More
August 7, 2026
(Science) – Trial failed of supposedly potent antibodies that the leading vaccine candidates aim to trigger Rio de Janeiro—Powerful anti-HIV drugs took another step forward at the 26th International AIDS Conference, held here last week. Among the most exciting findings … Read More
August 7, 2026
(Aeon) – Western-developed AI rides roughshod over Ubuntu values of connection and community that animate African ethical life Imagine someone in Harare, Zimbabwe, turning to a large language model (LLM) for life advice, as many increasingly do: ‘I’ve been offered … Read More
August 7, 2026
(NYT) – Scientists trained artificial intelligence on libraries of DNA and then asked the model to create recipes for viral genomes. Sixteen of them were viable, yielding new viruses. Synthesizing viruses from scratch is hardly new. Researchers long ago learned … Read More
August 6, 2026
(Rest of World) – Local tech groups in Kenya, India, and the U.S. are building communities and conversations around AI, but also face questions about privilege and reach. On a recent weekend afternoon in San Francisco, about 20 people sat … Read More
August 5, 2026
(The Guardian) – Campaigners say people who have had cancer face discrimination in areas including bank loans, adoption of children and insurance German politicians who have survived cancer have spearheaded proposals to protect people long in remission from what they … Read More
August 5, 2026
(NYT) – The malaria-carrying mosquito is resistant to all insecticides. Scientists are scrambling to find ways to blunt the risk. An invasive, malaria-carrying, insecticide-resistant mosquito that thrives in cities, where malaria has not been a major threat, has moved farther … Read More
August 5, 2026
(NYT) – South Korea, which has one of the world’s lowest fertility rates, is in the throes of a breakdown in emergency care. It is particularly acute for at-risk newborns. Neonatal doctors say that government measures to reverse the birthrate … Read More
July 30, 2026
(IEEE Spectrum) – The next AI divide is about who gets to build, govern, and benefit Artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming part of everyday infrastructure–in some places. It helps write emails and software code, filters job applications, powers recommendation systems, … Read More
July 27, 2026
(Rukhshana Media) – Every morning at first light, Manizha* picks up her medicine bag and heads out to villages in rural Afghanistan where, if it weren’t for her and her team, most women would not see a doctor from one … Read More
July 24, 2026
(Science) – Pioneering studies are underway to address massive outbreak of rare Bundibugyo virus in the Congo Those grim statistics also mean the outbreak is a chance for scientists to learn more about Bundibugyo, the rare Ebola species responsible, and … Read More
July 20, 2026
(NYT) – Jens Spahn, a top leader of Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s party, resigned his post after announcing that he had a baby by surrogate, which is illegal in Germany. It was a dizzying end to an overnight scandal that had … Read More
July 17, 2026
(The Economist) – They are having too much impact on young people’s lives Chinese tech firms are stripping human-like personas from their chatbots in order to comply with new government rules aimed at reducing “emotional dependence” on AI. The regulations, … Read More
July 16, 2026
(Nature) – Digital people are fulfilling roles from running hospitals to giving lectures to offering companionship. At the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology in Guangzhou, students can listen to lectures given by AI avatars that look and speak … Read More
July 15, 2026
(Gizmodo) – Anthropic researchers say they “aren’t yet sure how much of this variation is desirable.” If you’ve ever tried chatbots in multiple languages, you already know the languages have slightly different personalities. As part of a new report on … Read More
July 14, 2026
(NYT) – A.I. chatbots are not just a propaganda tool for violent extremists but are aiding in bomb construction and attack planning, new research finds. Until recently, the Islamic State, Al Qaeda and other extremists primarily used A.I. in the … Read More
July 13, 2026
(NPR) – New suspected cases of Ebola have been reported in parts of Congo that were previously unaffected, the government said Thursday, as the death toll in the country’s latest Ebola outbreak reached 600. According to the Congolese health ministry, … Read More
July 13, 2026
(WSJ) – Western biotechs get new playbook with tighter controls to stay ahead of ultraefficient pharmaceutical pipeline overseas For decades, young biotechs broadcast their science publicly to attract investment. Today, more are going dark to keep rivals, many of which … Read More
July 10, 2026
(WSJ) – Some Latin American and Caribbean countries are cutting ties to Havana’s medical program under pressure from Washington The Trump administration’s pressure campaign against Cuba’s Communist government is zeroing in on the island’s most valuable export and one of … Read More
July 10, 2026
(The Guardian) – Remarkable scientific progress against cancer has changed very little for millions of patients globally, who face devastating physical, emotional and financial consequences after diagnosis, a new World Health Organization report has warned. One person in five will … Read More
July 9, 2026
(The Guardian) – Couple ‘devastated’ after DNA tests for children’s British citizenship showed no biological connection to them The Sri Lankan surrogacy agency used by the couple initially confirmed the embryos had been created using the intended father’s sperm, but … Read More
July 6, 2026
(AP) – At least 500 people have died out of over 1,500 confirmed cases in Congo’s Ebola outbreak, authorities said, as frontline workers threatened to go on strike on Monday over unpaid benefits and poor working conditions. The outbreak has … Read More
July 3, 2026
(Axios) – A new UN-backed commission will bring top tech executives and heads of state to the same table to forge global solutions for AI, per an announcement shared exclusively with Axios. Why it matters: As global AI regulation grows … Read More
July 3, 2026
(STAT News) – Uganda formally reported to the World Health Organization on Tuesday that it had detected a Marburg disease outbreak in the western part of the country, a spokesperson for the Geneva-based global health agency told STAT. The development … Read More
