The Download: the future of human evolution, and touch sensing for robots

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.

Beyond gene-edited babies: the possible paths for tinkering with human evolution

Editing human embryos is restricted in much of the world—and making an edited baby is fully illegal in most countries surveyed by legal scholars. But advancing technology could render the embryo issue moot.

New ways of adding CRISPR, the revolutionary gene editing tool, to the bodies of people already born could let them easily receive changes as well. It’s possible that in 125 years, many people will be the beneficiaries of multiple rare, but useful, gene mutations currently found in only small segments of the population. These could protect us against common diseases and infections, but eventually they could also yield improvements in other traits, such as height, metabolism, or even cognition. 

But humanity won’t necessarily do things the right way. Some groups will probably obtain the health benefits before others, and commercial interests could eventually take the trend in unhelpful directions.Read the full story.

—Antonio Regalado

This piece is from the forthcoming print issue of MIT Technology Review, which is celebrating 125 years of the magazine! It’s set to go live on Wednesday August 28, so if you don’t already, subscribe now to get a copy when it lands.

A new system lets robots sense human touch without artificial skin

The news: Even the most capable robots aren’t great at sensing human touch. But that may change, thanks to robots that can now sense and interpret touch without being covered in high-tech artificial skin. It’s a significant step toward robots that can interact more intuitively with humans. 

Why it matters: A system like this could provide a cheaper and simpler way of providing not only a sense of touch, but also a new way to communicate with robots. That could be particularly significant for giving larger robots, like humanoids, a more comprehensive sense of touch. Read the full story.

—James O'Donnell

We finally have a definition for open-source AI

Open-source AI is everywhere right now. The problem is, no one agrees on what open-source AI actually is. Now, we may finally have an answer.

The Open Source Initiative (OSI), the self-appointed arbiters of what it means to be open source, has released a new definition for the term open-source AI, which it hopes will help lawmakers to develop regulations to protect consumers from AI risks. Read what the group has decided what constitutes open-source AI.

—Rhiannon Williams & James O'Donnell

Want to understand the future of technology? Take a look at this one obscure metal.

You may have never heard of it before. But neodymium is a rare earth metal that’s used today in all sorts of devices, from speakers to wind turbines. And it’s likely to become even more crucial in the future.

The world is well on its way to adapting to conditions that are a lot more neodymium-centric. But at the same time, efforts are already underway to build technologies that wouldn’t need neodymium at all. If companies are able to work out an alternative, it could totally flip all our problems, as well as efforts to solve them, upside down. Read the full story.

—Casey Crownhart

This story is from The Spark, our weekly newsletter giving you the inside track on all the last climate technologies. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday.

How we could turn plastic waste into food

The problems with plastic production and disposal are well known, and many governments and experts agree that solving them will require reducing production. Some countries and US states have introduced policies to encourage recycling too.

But there’s a new idea to deal with plastic that’s being studied by US government agency DARPA: turning it into food for humans. Read the full story.

—Sara Talpos

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 The second Neuralink implant in a human seems to be a success  
The recipient is using the device to play video games and design software. (WSJ $)
+ The first person to receive one had experienced issues with the implant’s wires. (Reuters)
+ Several more people could receive the implants by the end of the year. (Bloomberg $)
+ Meet the other companies developing brain-computer interfaces. (MIT Technology Review)

2 US voters aren’t fans of AI campaigning tools
Robocalls and synthetic videos are being rejected as creepy. (NYT $)
+ Donald Trump is a real fan of flattering AI images of himself. (The Atlantic $)
+ Three technology trends shaping 2024’s elections. (MIT Technology Review)

3 The UK has approved the first drug to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s
But Lecanemab won’t be made available for free on its national health service. (BBC)

4 A judge ordered X to reveal its shareholders
A Saudi Prince, former CEO Jack Dorsey, and a fund linked to Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs are among the named investors. (WP $)
+ The court filing is part of a lawsuit filed by former Twitter workers. (Bloomberg $)

5 China’s chip imports have hit record levels
Despite the US and its allies’ attempts to limit the country’s access to its tech. (Bloomberg $)
+ What’s next in chips. (MIT Technology Review)

6 AI is coming up with new ideas to improve AI
Its ideas aren’t wildly creative, but they are impressive nonetheless. (Wired $)

7 Thousands of pancreases are missing in the US
The donor organs were never implanted into anyone. (Vox)
+ A new AI-based risk prediction system could help catch deadly pancreatic cancer cases earlier. (MIT Technology Review)

8 Would you eat butter made out of CO2?
Startup Savor claims its approach is much more climate-friendly than traditional methods. (Fast Company $)

9 YouTube has a new solution for dealing with hacked accounts
But an AI bot is hardly a replacement for actual human assistance. (The Verge)

10 Hustle bros are making vast sums from their Gen Z fans
The financial advice they offer is ethically and legally dubious, though. (FT $)
+ Teens are pitting Kamala Harris and Donald Trump against each other in TikTok battles. (Rest of World)

Quote of the day

 “The seeds of a revolution in governance have been planted, and they’re already beginning to sprout.”

—Victor Miller, a mayoral candidate in Wyoming who proposed letting an AI bot run the local government, remains optimistic despite decisively losing his race, the Guardian reports.

The big story

How AI is helping historians better understand our past

April 2023

Historians have started using machine learning to examine historical documents, including astronomical tables like those produced in Venice and other early modern cities.

Proponents claim that the application of modern computer science to the past helps draw connections across a broader swath of the historical record than would otherwise be possible, correcting distortions that come from analyzing history one document at a time.

But it introduces distortions of its own, including the risk that machine learning will slip bias or outright falsifications into the historical record. Read the full story.

—Moira Donovan

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 or tweet 'em at me.)

+ These extreme close-up pictures of nature are really quite something.
+ Naughty naughty—it turns out the trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s self-funded epic Megalopolis featured false disparaging quotes about the director’s previous work.
+ Are you a Gen Z artist?
+ There’s more Star Wars spin offs than you can shake a stick at these days. So what’s next?