Imagine sitting down with an AI model for a spoken two-hour interview. A friendly voice guides you through a conversation that ranges from your childhood, your formative memories, and your career to your thoughts on immigration policy. Not long after, a virtual replica of you is able to embody your values and preferences with stunning…

20 November 2024

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. Inside Clear’s ambitions to manage your identity beyond the airport  Clear Secure is the most visible biometric identity company in the United States. Best known for its line-jumping service in airports, it’s also…

20 November 2024

Once again, global greenhouse-gas emissions are projected to hit a new high in 2024.  In this time of shifting political landscapes and ongoing international negotiations, many are quick to blame one country or another for an outsize role in causing climate change. But assigning responsibility is complicated. These three visualizations help explain why and provide…

20 November 2024

If you’ve ever been through a large US airport, you’re probably at least vaguely aware of Clear. Maybe your interest (or irritation) has been piqued by the pods before the security checkpoints, the attendants in navy blue vests who usher clients to the front of the security line (perhaps just ahead of you), and the…

20 November 2024

Recorded on November 19, 2024 What’s Next for Mixed Reality: Glasses, Goggles, and More. Speakers: Mat Honan, Editor in Chief, and James O’Donnell, AI hardware reporter. We are barreling toward the next big consumer device category: smart glasses. After years of trying, augmented-reality specs are at last a thing. Facebook recently showed off its Orion…

19 November 2024

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. How the largest gathering of US police chiefs is talking about AI —James O’Donnell The International Association of Chiefs of Police bills itself as the largest gathering of its type in the United…

19 November 2024

This story is from The Algorithm, our weekly newsletter on AI. To get it in your inbox first, sign up here. It can be tricky for reporters to get past certain doors, and the door to the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference is one that’s almost perpetually shut to the media. Thus, I was…

19 November 2024

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 rise of Bluesky, and the splintering of social You may have read that it was a big week for Bluesky. If you’re not familiar, Bluesky is, essentially, a Twitter clone that publishes…

18 November 2024

You may have read that it was a big week for Bluesky.  If you’re not familiar, Bluesky is, essentially, a Twitter clone that publishes short-form status updates. It gained more than 2 million users this week. On Wednesday, The Verge reported it had crossed 15 million users. By Thursday, it was at 16 million. By Friday? 17 million and counting.…

18 November 2024

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. Every journalist has favorite topics. Regular Checkup readers might already know some of mine, which include the quest to delay or reverse human aging, and new technologies for…

15 November 2024