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What's up in emerging technology

May 2, 2019

MIT Media Lab

10 years in: What's next for blockchain?

You've seen how powerful blockchain technology can be, but fundamental challenges still stand in the way of world-changing applications. Join us at Business of Blockchain to learn which projects and ideas have staying power.

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From Our Current Issue

MIT Technology Review: March/April 2019

Special guest curator Bill Gates picks this year’s list

Editor’s Letter: How Bill Gates thinks about the future

Our first guest curator in 18 years has a singular view on where technology is heading.

The race to make a lab-grown steak

Meat production spews tons of greenhouse gas and uses up too much land and water. Is there an alternative that won’t make us do without?

10 Breakthrough Technologies 2019

Robot dexterity, New-wave nuclear power, Custom cancer vaccines. Welcome to our annual list of the 10 technology advances we think will shape the way we work and live now and for years to come.

See the Collection
Intelligent Machines

AI’s white guy problem isn’t going away

A new report says current initiatives to fix the field’s diversity crisis are too narrow and shallow to be effective.
Business Impact

How the hell are cryptocurrency holders supposed to file their taxes?

Though it wasn’t in time for tax day, US lawmakers are pressuring the IRS to clarify its policies for digital currencies.
Intelligent Machines

Congress wants to protect you from biased algorithms, deepfakes, and other bad AI

Only a few legislators really know what they’re talking about, but it’s a start.
Connectivity

The first study of a twin in space looks like good news for a trip to Mars

Thanks to twin astronauts, we now have our first solid evidence of how the human body responds to long-term spaceflight—and it’s thrown up some mysteries.
Intelligent Machines

A robot has figured out how to use tools

In a startling demonstration, the machine drew on experimentation, data, and observation of humans to learn how simple implements could help it achieve a task.
Intelligent Machines

This robot can sort recycling by giving it a squeeze

The robot, called RoCycle, uses pincers to pick through garbage and identify what materials each bit contains. It could help reduce how much waste gets sent to landfill.
Connectivity

This is the first ever photo of a black hole

The scientists behind it spent a decade using a virtual telescope the size of Earth to create this historic image.
Rewriting Life

Chinese scientists have put human brain genes in monkeys—and yes, they may be smarter

A quest to understand how human intelligence evolved raises some ethical questions.
Intelligent Machines

This may be the Apple II of AI-driven robot arms

A new low-cost robot arm that can be controlled using a virtual-reality headset will make it easier to experiment with AI and robotics.

Features

Connectivity

Ready for 6G? How AI will shape the network of the future

With 5G networks rolling out around the world, engineers are turning their attention to the next incarnation.

by Emerging Technology from the arXiv

Sustainable Energy

Landowners are earning millions for carbon cuts that may not occur

A new analysis finds California’s cap-and-trade program may vastly overestimate emissions reductions.
Intelligent Machines

Facebook’s ad-serving algorithm discriminates by gender and race

Even if an advertiser is well-intentioned, the algorithm still prefers certain groups of people over others.

Our new podcast

Helping business leaders make sense of new technologies coming out of the lab and into the marketplace.

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35 Innovators Under 35

Better gene editing. Smarter AI. Cheaper solar cells. Stretchable electronics. This year’s list of 35 Innovators Under 35 will give you a sense of what’s coming next—and what kinds of people are making it happen.

See the Collection
View from the Marketplace

For data-savvy marketers, there’s a new keyword: Intent

As more companies look to machine learning for insights, marketers need to use new tools and technology to engage potential customers at the right time and place.

In association with Google

View from the Marketplace

Self-driving cars take the wheel

In partnership with Intel

View from the Marketplace

From innovation to monetization: The economics of data-driven transformation

Used strategically, an organization’s data gains value over time. But to unlock its potential requires first establishing the right technical and cultural foundations.

In association with Hitachi Vantara

Executive Briefing

Getting smart about the future of AI

In partnership with Intel

Watch Video

More videos

10 Breakthrough Technologies of 2019, curated by Bill Gates 17:18

Bill Gates on making AI smarter 01:38

Bill Gates on tackling climate change 01:31

Bill Gates on reinventing the toilet 01:32

Bill Gates on the case for nuclear power 01:10

China’s Clean Energy Transition 13:33

Next-Generation Robots Need Your Help 27:36

Access to broadband is as important as access to water and electricity 01:15

We shouldn't preserve "willy nilly" the cost of production 01:00

Coffee-fetching robots 02:08

Connectivity

10 Breakthrough Technologies of 2019, curated by Bill Gates 17:18

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Innovations, Ideas, and Insights

Provided by BBVA

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    The new media’s role in politics

    Forms of new media have introduced an unprecedented level of instability and distortion into the political communications system.
    by Diana Owen, Professor of Political Science at Georgetown University

  2. SPONSORED

    Reality regained: An inquiry into the data age

    The explosion of data and advances in computing power are radically transforming daily life.
    by Jannis Kallinikos

  3. SPONSORED

    The crisis of social reproduction and the end of work

    High-income societies are facing the rise of precarious employment.
    by Helen Hester and Nick Snircek
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