Movies of War

You need to enable JavaScript to view this site. Skip to ContentPlus: Iran names US tech giants as potential targets. 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. Hustlers are cashing in on China’s OpenClaw AI craze In January, Beijing-based software engineer Feng Qingyang started tinkering with OpenClaw, a new AI tool that can take over a device and autonomously complete tasks. Within weeks, he was advertising “OpenClaw installation support” on a second-hand shopping site. Today, his side gig is a fully-fledged business with over 100 employees and 7,000 completed orders. Feng is among a small cohort of savvy early adopters making serious cash from China's OpenClaw craze. As users with little technical background want in, a cottage industry of installation services and preconfigured hardware has sprung up. The rise of these tinkerers shows just how eager the general public in China is to adopt cutting-edge AI—despite huge security risks. Read the full story. —Caiwei Chen Brutal times for the US battery industry Another battery business has fallen: 24M Technologies, once worth over $1 billion, is reportedly shutting down. Just a few years ago, the industry was hot, hot, hot. Countless companies were popping up, with shiny new chemistries and huge funding rounds. But now, the tide has turned. Businesses are failing, investors are pulling back, and batteries, especially for EVs, aren’t looking so hot anymore. There are bright spots. China’s battery industry is thriving, and US stationary storage remains resilient. But it feels as if everyone is short on money these days, and as purse strings tighten, there’s less interest in novel ideas. This story is from The Spark, our weekly climate newsletter. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday. —Casey Crownhart The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 Iran has put US tech giants on a list of potential targets The companies include Google, Microsoft, Palantir, IBM, Nvidia, and Oracle. (Al Jazeera) + Pro-Iran hackers have launched their first major strike on a US firm during the war. (CNN) + AI is warping perceptions of the conflict. (MIT Technology Review) 2 Grammarly is being sued for turning real people into AI-generated experts A journalist has filed a lawsuit over her inclusion as a writing analyst. (Wired $) + Grammarly has now disabled the ‘Expert Review’ feature. (Engadget) + Here’s what’s next for AI copyright lawsuits. (MIT Technology Review) 3 Professors are losing the fight to protect critical thinking from AI They describe the tech as an “existential threat.”(The Guardian) + Silicon Valley’s dream of an AI classroom faces a skeptical reality. (MIT Technology Review) 4 Big tech is backing Anthropic in its fight against the Trump administration Google, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft are publicly supporting its legal action. (BBC) + Is this an Oppenheimer moment for Anthropic? (The Atlantic $) 5 A Cybertruck owner has sued Tesla over a self-driving crash He called the company “negligent” for retaining Elon Musk as CEO. (Electrek) + Tech has sparked a new wave of theft in the luxury car industry. (MIT Technology Review) 6 Is "AI-washing" providing cover for massive corporate layoffs? The tech isn't ready to replace workers, but the layoffs are happening anyway. (The Atlantic) + Software giant Atlassian is slashing 10% of its workforce ahead of an AI push. (The Guardian) + At least lawyers’ jobs look safer than first feared. (MIT Technology Review) 7 Software giants claim they’re not worried that AI will destroy them Oracle and Salesforce CEOs have dismissed fears of an “SaaS-pocalypse.” (Reuters) 8 Lab-grown brains have started solving engineering problems Scientists trained the organoid to decode an engineering task. (Popular Mechanics) + Other organoids are being impregnated with human embryos. (MIT Technology Review) 9 English-language music is losing its grip on Spotify The variety of languages in its top 50 songs has doubled since 2020. (BBC) 10 AI is redrawing the boundaries of physics It’s blurring the boundaries between a machine and a researcher. (The Economist $) Quote of the day “Elon Musk is an aggressive and irresponsible salesman, who has a long history of making dangerous design choices and over-promising the features of his products.” —A lawsuit over Tesla’s Full Self-Driving mode takes aim at the company's CEO, Gizmodo reports. One More Thing This town’s mining battle reveals the contentious path to a cleaner future ACKERMAN + GRUBER In a tiny Minnesota town, an exploratory mining company called Talon plans to dig up as much as 725,000 metric tons of raw ore per year. It says the site will help power a greener future for the US by producing the nickel needed for EV batteries. But many local citizens aren’t eager for major mining operations near their towns. The tensions have created a test case for conflicts between local environmental concerns and global climate goals. Read the full story. —James Temple We can still have nice things A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.) + Mario is finally getting a LEGO minifigure. + This new social platform boldly aims to burst filter bubbles. + NASA is backing DSLR cameras by taking a trusty old Nikon D5 to the moon. + This nuclear escalation simulator helped me learn to stop worrying and love the bomb. PopularA “QuitGPT” campaign is urging people to cancel their ChatGPT subscriptionsMichelle KimMoltbook was peak AI theaterWill Douglas HeavenYann LeCun’s new venture is a contrarian bet against large language models Caiwei ChenMeet the Vitalists: the hardcore longevity enthusiasts who believe death is “wrong”Jessica HamzelouDeep DiveThe DownloadThe Download: AI-enhanced cybercrime, and secure AI assistantsPlus: Instagram's CEO Adam Mosseri has denied claims that social media is “clinically addictive” By Rhiannon Williamsarchive pageThe Download: sodium-ion batteries and China’s bright tech futurePlus: This company is developing gene therapies for muscle growth, erectile dysfunction, and “radical longevity” By Charlotte Jeearchive pageThe Download: 10 things that matter in AI, plus Anthropic’s plan to sue the PentagonPlus: The US DoD has been secretly testing OpenAI models for years By Thomas Macaulayarchive pageThe Download: the future of nuclear power plants, and social media-fueled AI hypePlus: more European countries are considering banning social media for under-16s By Rhiannon Williamsarchive pageStay connectedIllustration by Rose WongGet the latest updates fromMIT Technology ReviewDiscover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.Enter your emailPrivacy PolicyThank you for submitting your email!Explore more newslettersIt looks like something went wrong. 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