A Pew Research Center survey found that many Americans are comfortable with AI handling some healthcare administrative tasks and analyzing tests when professionals supervise it. But respondents were more wary of AI making diagnoses or insurance decisions, and many want providers to disclose when they use the technology.
Key Facts
Pew surveyed more than 3,400 U.S. adults in June.
A majority of respondents were comfortable with AI translating patient notes or scheduling appointments, with or without human oversight.
More than half were open to AI analyzing medical scans and lab results if a healthcare professional supervised it.
Almost half said they did not want AI deciding whether to approve or reject an insurance claim.
41% said they did not want AI making a diagnosis on its own.
60% were uncomfortable with doctors using AI for tasks such as diagnosis and treatment; 30% were comfortable, and 10% were unsure.
46% said they did not know whether AI had ever been used during their care.
37% said AI would improve health outcomes, while a nearly equal share thought it could reduce care quality.
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Surgeons at Rush University Medical Center performed the third implantation of an experimental wireless brain device designed to provide limited artificial vision to people with total blindness. The device sends electrical signals directly to the brain’s visual cortex; researchers are testing whether it can help users complete visually guided tasks, but it does not restore natural sight or enable reading or face recognition.
Key Facts
The device, called the intracortical visual prosthesis (ICVP), was developed by a team led by the Illinois Institute of Technology.
The ICVP aims to bypass the eye’s retina and optic nerve and send information to the brain’s visual cortex.
The third implantation took place on October 29 during an FDA-approved preclinical phase of the trial.
Surgeons implanted 34 stimulators containing a total of 544 electrodes in one participant.
For the third surgery, surgeons targeted specific brain locations for the implants; placement in the first two surgeries was left to the surgeons’ discretion.
The first implantation took place in 2022 and the second in 2024; the project began in 2000.
The device is intended to produce crude artificial vision that may support visually guided tasks, not natural vision, reading, or watching television.
The article reports that the three participants had no residual medical side effects from surgery to date and were discharged the day after their operations.
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Voters considered 41 measures concerning data centers across the country on November 3, with Newsweek mapping results in 10 states. Most measures supported restrictions or bans, reflecting concerns about data centers’ demands for water and electricity, while supporters cite jobs, investment and tax revenue.
Key Facts
Ohio had 21 measures, the most of any state mentioned in the article.
Voters in Conneaut, Defiance, Oregon and Sunbury approved bans on data centers using more than 25 megawatts of power.
Voters in Granville, Hubbard, Urbana, Upper Sandusky and Piqua approved outright bans.
Illinois had seven measures, and all vote tallies went against data center development.
The article says Ohio has more than 200 operational data centers and ranks fifth among U.S. states in data center projects.
A Bowling Green State University poll found that 71 percent of Ohioans favored a temporary ban on new data center construction.
Voters in Harwood, North Dakota, rejected additional review requirements for industrial development, including data centers.
In Wisconsin, voters approved a measure requiring voter approval for developments costing more than $450 million.
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Motorola’s Signature 27 is a high-end, non-folding smartphone priced at $1,600, with sales expected to begin later this month. It features a large, bright OLED display, three rear cameras plus a motion-tracking sensor, and a large battery; the article notes that the phone has not yet been tested in person.
Key Facts
The Signature 27 is priced at $1,600.
It has a 6.8-inch OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate; Motorola claims peak brightness of 12,000 nits.
The phone has 12GB of memory and 512GB of storage, with no higher-memory option listed.
Its rear cameras include a 50-megapixel main camera, a 50-megapixel ultrawide camera, and a 200-megapixel telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom.
An event-based vision sensor detects changes in light at the pixel level and supports the Action Shot feature for moving subjects.
The phone has a 7,000mAh battery, and Motorola estimates it could last up to two days on a charge.
The listed processor is Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6, and the listed operating system is Android 17.
The article says the Signature 27 is expected to arrive later this month.
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Brazilian hospital executive Sidney Klajner said AI and wearable devices can support health care, but they will not improve outcomes without stronger prevention, patient engagement and access to care. He described an AI tool that helps primary care doctors assess pregnant patients in areas with few specialists, while stressing that technology cannot replace stronger health services. New York City health commissioner Alister Martin said AI could also reduce administrative work and give doctors more time with patients.
Key Facts
Klajner leads the Sociedade Beneficente Israelita Brasileira Albert Einstein hospital in São Paulo.
He said wearable health data is useful only if people engage with it and act on it.
Klajner said healthier living depends partly on communities having safe places to walk and exercise.
He described an AI project supported by the Gates Foundation that draws on medical research and clinical guidelines to assist doctors treating pregnant patients.
The system listens to consultations and suggests questions, tests and possible next steps, according to Klajner.
Klajner said the AI tool does not replace specialist care or stronger health services.
Martin said AI could handle administrative tasks such as appointment scheduling, freeing doctors to spend more time with patients.
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A preprint study reports that NASA’s Artemis II launch and later engine burns in April 2026 caused three temporary disturbances in the ionosphere, a part of the upper atmosphere that GPS signals pass through. The researchers said the largest disturbance covered about 50 degrees of longitude over North America, but reported no widespread GPS outage or evidence that the mission disrupted cars or drones.
Key Facts
Artemis II launched from Florida on April 1, 2026, carrying four astronauts on a nine-day flight around the Moon.
Researchers identified three ionospheric disturbances: one at launch and two after later engine burns.
The largest disturbance followed an engine burn about two hours after launch and spanned roughly 50 degrees of longitude over North America.
The researchers described a temporary decline in charged particles as an ionosphere “hole”; the mission did not physically puncture the atmosphere.
Changes in the ionosphere can affect how quickly GPS signals travel and may influence positioning accuracy.
The study did not report a widespread GPS outage or evidence that Artemis II caused self-driving cars or drones to malfunction.
The findings appeared in a preprint study published in July in Geophysical Research Letters.
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Agility Robotics began trading on Nasdaq on November 5, becoming the first U.S. publicly traded company focused on humanoid robots. Its securities filing outlines rental and purchase prices for its robots while warning that humanoids remain unproven at scale and are not widely commercialized.
Key Facts
Agility is based in Salem, Oregon, and says it began full-time commercial deployment of humanoid robots at a customer warehouse in 2024.
The company has deployed its Digit robots with logistics company GXO, automotive supplier Schaeffler, and Toyota Motor Manufacturing Canada.
GXO plans to expand Digit deployments from a Georgia warehouse to facilities in North Carolina and Tennessee.
Agility’s proposed rental plan includes a one-time delivery and deployment cost of about $25,000 per robot and a monthly fee of $8,500 for software and maintenance.
Under the purchase model, customers would pay $200,000 for a robot and $20,000 for delivery and deployment, plus an annual $36,000 software and maintenance fee.
Agility says customers can access its Digit 5 robot starting in 2027; it can lift loads of up to 50 pounds and work for more than 20 hours in a 24-hour period with fast charging.
Agility filed an S-4 registration statement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on September 4, describing illustrative costs for its rental and purchase models.
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The 2026 iPad mini adds an 8.5-inch OLED display, a newer chip, and improved speakers, while becoming smaller and lighter than the 2024 model. The review says the display upgrades improve media viewing and multitasking, but the mini costs only $50 less than the larger 11-inch iPad Air.
Key Facts
The 2026 iPad mini replaces the previous model’s 8.3-inch IPS display with an 8.5-inch OLED screen.
The OLED display has a resolution of 2316 × 1512 and a pixel density of 326 pixels per inch.
Apple says the display reaches up to 600 nits of full-screen brightness and up to 1,200 nits for HDR highlights.
The screen’s bezels are 24 percent smaller than those on the 2024 model.
The 2026 model measures 7.69 × 5.22 × 0.21 inches and weighs 0.56 pounds; the 2024 model weighs 0.65 pounds.
The display refresh rate remains 60 Hz; the article says 120 Hz is limited to the iPad Pro.
The review notes that the iPad mini costs $50 less than the 11-inch iPad Air.
The article also reports a newer chip and better speakers, but the supplied text does not identify the chip or describe the speaker changes.
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Palantir has worked with Ukraine since Russia’s full-scale invasion, helping the country combine battlefield information to monitor and respond to attacks. The partnership includes the Brave1 Dataroom, a platform launched in January to use battlefield data to train military AI, but Ukrainian defence figures and other observers have raised concerns about sharing sensitive data with a private company under undisclosed terms.
Key Facts
Palantir CEO Alex Karp visited Kyiv in 2022, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy welcomed the company’s support.
Palantir software combines information from sources such as missiles, radar, tracking systems and open sources into a shared battlefield view.
Ukraine has systematically collected battlefield data from video and sensor feeds during the war.
The Brave1 Dataroom, launched in January by Palantir and Ukraine’s Ministry of Defence, uses battlefield data to train AI for military applications.
Experts say battlefield data is scarce and can give companies with access an advantage in developing military systems.
The article says Ukrainian defence figures have questioned the decision to share battlefield data with a private company under undisclosed terms.
Observers cited in the article warn that Palantir’s access to data raises concerns about the influence of private technology companies over governments.
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The center-left technology policy group Chamber of Progress circulated a memo outlining policy priorities for Democratic lawmakers. It urged them to focus on consumer protection and economic opportunity as the party prepares to seek control of the House and Senate next year.
Key Facts
Chamber of Progress describes itself as a center-left technology policy group.
The group sent its memo on Wednesday.
The memo sets out policy priorities for Democratic lawmakers.
The Hill first reported on the memo.
The memo urges Democrats to focus on consumer protection.
The memo also urges Democrats to focus on economic opportunity.
The article says Democrats are preparing to take back control of the House and Senate next year.
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Voters backed restrictions on data center construction in ballot measures across 10 states, prompting major technology companies to offer communities payments and commitments on power costs, infrastructure, schools, and environmental and labor protections. The article says the concessions could raise project costs, while political opposition may delay some planned U.S. data center capacity; it remains unclear whether proposed pledges will satisfy officials seeking binding agreements.
Key Facts
Restrictive data center measures across 10 states passed by a combined 43-1 margin, with an average of 75% support.
Analysts cited in the article estimate that about 60% of planned U.S. data center capacity for 2028 faces a risk of delay.
Some candidates who won in states planning data center growth have called for restrictions or reforms.
Proposals from major developers include covering infrastructure and power costs, rather than passing new grid costs to ratepayers.
Amazon allocated $1 billion over five years for investment in communities around its data centers.
OpenAI announced a Compute Campus Policy Blueprint with tens of millions of dollars in commitments for priorities including school lunches, parks, and first responders.
The article says some elected officials want binding agreements and oppose tax breaks and undisclosed deals.
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A cyberattack targeted several French blood banks and attempted to raise storage temperatures to extremely high levels. French authorities said they stopped the attack before it damaged any blood products or samples.
Key Facts
The attack targeted several blood banks in France.
The attackers tried to raise temperatures in storage equipment.
Authorities thwarted the attack before any blood products or samples were damaged.
The incident followed reports that remote takeovers warmed fridges and freezers at supermarkets in several European countries.
The supermarket incidents spoiled tons of food and caused losses worth millions of euros.
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The article describes films and television shows that influenced the Grand Theft Auto series’ stories, characters, settings and visual style. It highlights influences including Speed, The Warriors, Scarface, Miami Vice and Goodfellas, and notes that Rockstar made a game adaptation of The Warriors.
Key Facts
A designer who worked on the original Grand Theft Auto said Speed influenced its fast pace, dialogue and car destruction.
The article says Knight Rider and The A-Team also inspired the original game’s designers.
Sam Houser said The Warriors influenced the street gangs and run-down urban areas created for GTA 2.
Rockstar later made a game adaptation of The Warriors.
The article identifies Scarface as an influence on GTA’s style, criminal rise-to-power stories and music; five songs from the film appeared in GTA 3.
Miami Vice served as a major tonal reference for GTA: Vice City, according to the article.
Sam Houser praised Miami Vice producer Michael Mann’s use of color and night lighting, and said the game’s creators consulted weapons experts who worked on the show.
The article says Goodfellas influenced GTA’s violence, themes of brotherhood and betrayal, and portrayal of immigrant life in America; Ray Liotta voiced Tommy Vercetti in GTA: Vice City.
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Mercedes-AMG’s first battery-only AMG, the GT 4-Door Coupe, uses three compact motors and the company’s AMG.EA platform to combine high power with systems for handling, braking and ride control. The article reports that the car reached 60 mph in about 2.3 seconds and describes its performance during road and track driving in Spain.
Key Facts
The AMG GT 4-Door Coupe is Mercedes-AMG’s first vehicle powered exclusively by batteries.
The car has three axial-flux motors: two at the rear and one at the front.
Mercedes lists the AMG GT 63 at up to 1,153 horsepower in Boost mode, available for 63 seconds; its nominal output is 711 horsepower.
The AMG GT 55 has a peak Boost output of 805 horsepower for 55 seconds and a nominal output of 557 horsepower.
The article reports acceleration from zero to 60 mph in about 2.3 seconds and to 124 mph in about 6.8 seconds.
The car uses adjustable suspension, rear-wheel steering of up to six degrees, and active aerodynamics.
Its braking system combines regenerative braking with brake-by-wire friction brakes, carbon-ceramic discs at the front and steel discs at the rear.
The AMG race engineer control system has three adjustable dials: Response, Agility and Traction; it is standard on the 63 and optional on the 55.
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More than 100 groups plan protests against datacentre projects in 15 European countries on Friday and Saturday. Organisers want a pause on large developments, citing environmental and social concerns; technology companies say datacentres create jobs and support AI development.
Key Facts
The campaign, called “Stop Dirty Data Centres,” includes demonstrations in 15 countries.
Planned actions include protests in Warsaw and Dublin, a demonstration outside a Microsoft datacentre in Denmark, and events near planned or opposed projects in Amsterdam and east London.
Organisers expect attendance to range from a handful of people to several hundred at larger events.
Groups backing the protests include Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace and the London-based campaign group Foxglove.
Research by Germany’s Öko-Institut projects that carbon dioxide emissions from AI datacentres will reach six times their 2023 level by 2030.
The article says AI datacentres in the UK could produce up to 123 million tonnes of carbon dioxide over the next 10 years.
The article reports that 315 datacentres in the UK are waiting to connect to the power grid, with a combined demand of 73 gigawatts, compared with a national peak demand of 45 gigawatts.
The article says about 250 global datacentre projects requiring more than 100 megawatts each were announced from 2021 to 2024, with North American projects dominating the queue.
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Apple’s eighth-generation iPad mini adds an 8.5-inch OLED display, a faster A20 Pro chip, improved speakers and IP67 water resistance. It starts at £699, making it substantially more expensive than its predecessor, while its screen still refreshes at 60Hz and it lacks Face ID.
Key Facts
The iPad mini starts at £699 in the UK, €749 in Europe, $699 in the U.S. and A$1,099 in Australia.
Its 8.5-inch OLED screen has a 60Hz refresh rate and does not include Apple’s ProMotion technology.
The tablet uses Apple’s A20 Pro chip and comes with 12GB of RAM and 128GB, 256GB or 512GB of storage.
It is the first iPad with an IP67 water-resistance rating, for up to 30 minutes at a depth of one metre.
The tablet weighs 255g, or 263g for the 5G version, and is about 1mm thinner and 38g lighter than its predecessor.
Apple estimates nine to 10 hours of battery life for light tasks and six to eight hours for gaming.
A replacement battery costs £115; other out-of-warranty damage, including screen repairs, costs £519.
The iPad mini contains 35% recycled material, according to the article.
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Voters in several U.S. states approved measures to restrict or pause datacenter construction in elections held Tuesday, with Ohio and Maine seeing multiple local measures pass. Several newly elected governors have also backed limits, while analysts said the results could slow datacenter growth and create hurdles for technology policy.
Key Facts
Datacenter measures appeared on ballots in at least 40 jurisdictions across 10 states.
At least 14 Ohio municipalities approved datacenter bans or restrictions.
Eight municipalities in Maine approved temporary datacenter moratoriums.
Voters in Emporia, Kansas, approved a ban on high-impact datacenters.
Hardwood, North Dakota, rejected a proposed restriction on datacenter development.
Texas governor-elect Gina Hinojosa has pledged a construction moratorium and greater community input on datacenter projects.
Georgia governor-elect Keisha Lance Bottoms and Ohio governor-elect Amy Acton have also pledged moratoriums on large datacenters.
Analyst Dan Ives said the election results could slow datacenter construction and complicate technology legislation.
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A NASA space telescope returned to Earth on Wednesday, ending a 22-year mission to study the universe’s biggest explosions. The mission lasted 11 times longer than planned.
Key Facts
The telescope was one of NASA’s premier space telescopes.
It returned to Earth on Wednesday.
Its mission lasted 22 years.
The mission investigated the universe’s biggest explosions.
The mission lasted 11 times longer than planned.
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Macronix, Nintendo’s main ROM chip supplier for physical game cartridges, says its ROM production has reached its end and it will gradually leave the game industry. Nintendo says it does not plan to stop making cartridges, but relying on other suppliers could raise production costs and affect physical game prices.
Key Facts
Macronix said in its third-quarter earnings report that it would end ROM production and gradually decouple from the game industry.
Analyst David Gibson identifies Macronix as Nintendo’s main memory chip maker for physical cartridges.
Macronix’s ROM production fell 39 percent in the past year and accounts for 5 percent of its business.
Macronix is shifting capacity toward more profitable NOR- and NAND-based memory and eMMC chips.
Macronix produces 25,000 12-inch wafers per month, and planned capacity expansion could take a year or more to start.
Nintendo said last month that it has no near-term plans to stop making game cartridges.
Nintendo may turn to suppliers including Rohm and Lapis Semiconductor for remaining ROM chips, potentially increasing cartridge costs.
Digital software made up 61.5 percent of Nintendo’s business in the second calendar quarter of 2026, slightly more than a year earlier.
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