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Category: robotics/AI – Page 8

Programmable proteins use logic to improve targeted drug delivery

Targeted drug delivery is a powerful and promising area of medicine. Therapies that pinpoint the exact areas of the body where they’re needed—and nowhere they’re not—can reduce the medicine dosage and avoid potentially harmful off-target effects elsewhere in the body. A targeted immunotherapy, for example, might seek out cancerous tissues and activate immune cells to fight the disease only in those tissues.

The tricky part is making a therapy truly “smart,” where the medicine can move freely through the body and decide which areas to target.

Researchers at the University of Washington have taken a significant step toward that goal by designing proteins with autonomous decision-making capabilities. In a proof-of-principles study published in Nature Chemical Biology, researchers demonstrated that by adding smart tail structures to , they could control the proteins’ localization based on the presence of specific environmental cues.

Data-driven fine-grained region discovery in the mouse brain with transformers

Defining the spatial organization of tissues and organs like the brain from large datasets is a major challenge. Here, authors introduce CellTransformer, an AI tool that defines spatial domains in the mouse brain based on spatial transcriptomics, a technology that measures which genes are active in different parts of tissue.

What Leaders Get Wrong About Automation And AI

But the key is to see AI as fundamental, not a feature add. AI moves us from rule-based tasks to intelligent decision-making. When leaders rush to automate without analyzing and redesigning processes first, they implement smart tools on top of outdated workflows, expecting immediate gains.

I’ve seen it happen: When you apply AI to a flawed process, the consequences scale quickly. Instead, redesign workflows with AI at the core. Make sure the process makes sense before applying the technology.

Critically, when redesigning processes, understand that implementation is about leadership, not tools. IT teams often focus too much on tools and infrastructure without aligning automation efforts to clear business outcomes. Without engaging leadership and your workforce early and addressing cultural resistance, adoption stalls—even if the technology works perfectly.

Sam Altman on Zero-Person AI Companies, Sora, AGI Breakthroughs, and more

OpenAI just unveiled HUGE developer updates at DevDay 2025 — Apps in ChatGPT, Agent Builder, Sora API, and Codex updates that can handle day-long tasks.

I sat down with Sam Altman for an exclusive interview about going viral on Sora, zero-person companies, and why he believes early AGI-like breakthroughs are starting to happen NOW.

In this conversation, we unpack:

Sam’s Sora AI deepfakes going viral.
Zero-person billion dollar companies run by agents.
AI starting to make scientific discoveries on Twitter.
ChatGPT’s 800M users and the new distribution platform.

Get 5-minute daily updates on the latest AI news: https://www.therundown.ai/subscribe.

Chapters:

Continue reading “Sam Altman on Zero-Person AI Companies, Sora, AGI Breakthroughs, and more” | >

Novel AI tool opens 3D modeling to blind and low-vision programmers

Blind and low-vision programmers have long been locked out of three-dimensional modeling software, which depends on sighted users dragging, rotating and inspecting shapes on screen.

Now, a multiuniversity research team has developed A11yShape, a new tool designed to help blind and low-vision programmers independently create, inspect and refine three-dimensional models. The study is published on the arXiv preprint server.

The team consists of Anhong Guo, assistant professor of electrical engineering and computer science at the University of Michigan, and researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas, University of Washington, Purdue University and several partner institutions—including Gene S-H Kim of Stanford University, a member of the blind and low-vision community.

“The Embodied Mind of a New Robot Scientist” by Michael Levin

This is a ~58 minute talk titled “The Embodied Mind of a New Robot Scientist: symmetries between AI and bioengineering the agential material of life and their impact on technology and on our future” which I gave as a closing Keynote to the ALIFE conference in Japan (https://2025.alife.org/). This is a different talk than any I’ve done before, in that besides going over the remarkable capacities of living material, I discuss 1) the symmetries between how all agents navigate their world and how science discoveries are made, and 2) a new robot scientist platform that we have created. With respect to the latter, I discuss how the body and mind of this new embodied AI can serve as a translation and integration layer between human scientists and living matter such as the cells which make up Xenobots.

Google is powering Belgium’s digital future with a two-year €5 billion investment in AI infrastructure

Google is investing an additional €5 billion in Belgium over the next two years to expand its cloud and AI infrastructure. This includes expansions of our data center campuses in Saint-Ghislain and will add another 300 full time jobs. We’ve also announced new agreements with Eneco, Luminus and Renner which will support the development of new onshore wind farms and support the grid with clean energy.

Our commitment goes beyond infrastructure. We’re also equipping Belgians with the skills needed to thrive in an AI-driven economy, at no cost and will fund non-profits to provide free, practical AI training for low-skilled workers.

This is an extraordinary time for European innovation and its digital and economic future. Google is deepening its roots in Belgium and investing in its residents to unlock significant economic opportunities for the country, helping to ensure it remains a leader in technology and AI.

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