NASA and Google are collaborating on an AI-powered medical assistant designed for long-distance space travel, particularly missions to Mars.
The Crew Medical Officer Digital Assistant (CMO-DA) tool uses Google Cloud’s Vertex AI platform and a mix of open-source large language models to provide autonomous medical advice and diagnostics.
The capability is crucial due to the significant communication delays between Mars and Earth, which can reach up to 223 minutes one way, making real-time medical consultation impossible.
The CMO-DA aims to support astronauts by diagnosing conditions and offering treatment recommendations independently, without Earth-based input. Future versions will incorporate ultrasound imaging and biometric data to enhance diagnostic accuracy.
Tested against common medical issues by a panel that included a doctor-astronaut, the AI demonstrated accuracy rates ranging from 74% to 88% for various ailments.
However, NASA acknowledges challenges such as building trust in AI decisions and limited data on health effects from spaceflight and partial gravity environments.
The project forms part of NASA’s Artemis programme, focusing on Moon exploration and preparing for human missions to Mars, emphasising the importance of autonomous healthcare tools for deep space missions.
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Google is testing a new AI-powered version of its Finance page, offering users advanced tools to explore stock market, financial, and cryptocurrency information.
The platform enables users to ask natural language questions about finance and receive detailed answers, accompanied by source links.
The new page features three main components: research, charting tools, and real-time data and news. Users can visualise financial data using technical charts such as moving averages and candlestick charts, and access live updates and news feeds related to financial markets and cryptocurrencies.
Google plans to roll out the AI-powered Finance page over the coming weeks via Google.com/finance, aiming to provide a more interactive and insightful experience for users interested in financial data and market trends.
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Nvidia and Advanced Micro Devices have agreed to hand 15% of their Chinese AI chip sales revenue to the US government in return for export licences.
The arrangement, covering Nvidia’s H20 accelerator and AMD’s MI308 model, is considered unusual and could prove contentious for both companies and Beijing.
The deal reflects Washington’s willingness to link trade concessions to financial payments, but analysts note there is little precedent for such a targeted export levy.
Critics warn the move could undermine the national security rationale for export controls, making it harder to convince allies to adopt similar measures. Beijing, meanwhile, has voiced security concerns over the H20 chip’s performance and alleged vulnerabilities.
Industry observers suggest the payment requirement could discourage further expansion by US chipmakers in China, the world’s largest semiconductor importer, and give local producers an advantage in building domestic capacity.
Chinese firms such as Huawei are already increasing market share amid tighter restrictions on US technology.
The potential sums involved are significant. Before restrictions were imposed, Nvidia had generated over $7 billion in H20 sales to China in a single quarter. In comparison, AMD could earn up to $5 billion annually if full access to the market resumed.
However, uncertainties over demand and regulatory conditions remain.
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Tesla has disbanded its Dojo supercomputer team, with team leader Peter Bannon departing amid a shift in AI strategy. Resources are being reallocated to other company data centres and computing projects.
The supercomputer was initially intended to process large volumes of vehicle data and video to train its autonomous‑driving systems. The team had recently lost around 20 members to the start‑up DensityAI.
Tesla plans to rely more on external partners for compute and chip supply. Strategic collaborations with Nvidia, AMD and Samsung Electronics are being pursued to bolster capacity.
The company focuses on integrating AI, including robotics and self‑driving technologies, across its business. A recent $16.5 billion agreement with Samsung aims to support services like robotaxi, humanoid robots and data‑centre operations.
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Kiwi.com has unveiled an AI-powered system that enables direct airline bookings, partnering with AIpic to launch the industry’s first Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. However, this technology links flight inventory directly with major AI platforms.
MCP is an open standard likened to a ‘USB-C for AI’. It lets large language models access real-time services beyond their pre-trained data. The access enables AI agents to search and book flights on a user’s behalf.
Kiwi.com says the technology positions it to capture growing demand, as consumers increasingly use AI platforms like ChatGPT, Claude, and Microsoft Copilot to plan travel. Experts anticipate that agentic AI systems will become the dominant interface for online services.
With MCP, users can request flights in natural language, specifying dates, destinations, passenger numbers, and cabin preferences. The AI agent accesses Kiwi.com’s inventory, returning curated results in the user’s preferred currency and time zone and an instant booking link.
The company considers the integration a new distribution channel and a potential model for other online travel agencies. It adapts to changing search and booking behaviours driven by AI.
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Tesla has reportedly shut down its Dojo supercomputer project following multiple high-profile departures, including that of project head Peter Bannon. CEO Elon Musk ended the AI chip programme, reassigning the remaining staff to other data centre projects.
Dojo aimed to process vehicle data for autonomous driving and reduce Tesla’s reliance on Nvidia and AMD. The project faced delays, with leaders such as Jim Keller, Ganesh Venkataramanan, and Bannon departing before its closure.
About 20 former Dojo employees have joined DensityAI, a stealth startup founded by ex-Tesla staff, which is expected to work on AI chips for robots and data centres. Tesla will now rely more on Nvidia, AMD, and Samsung.
Samsung recently secured a $16.5 billion deal to supply AI chips for Tesla’s self-driving cars, robots, and data centres. Musk said Samsung’s Texas factory will produce Tesla’s AI6 chips, with AI5 chips to be made in 2026.
Musk suggested that combining AI5 and AI6 chips could form a ‘Dojo 3’ system, while Dojo 2 would not launch. The shutdown comes as Tesla restructures, with executive exits, job cuts, and renewed focus on AI integration across Musk’s companies.
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GitHub’s CEO, Thomas Dohmke, envisions a future where developers no longer write code by hand but oversee AI agents that generate it. He highlights that many developers already use AI tools to assist with coding tasks.
Early adoption began with debugging, boilerplate and code snippets, and evolved into collaborative brainstorming and iterative prompting with AI. Developers are now learning to treat AI tools like partners and guide their ‘thought processes’.
According to interviews with 22 developers, half expect AI to write around 90 percent of their code within two years, while the rest foresee that happening within five. The shift is seen as a change from writing to verifying and refining AI-generated work.
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OpenAI’s new GPT‑5 model has been unveiled, and the company offers it free to all users. Three model versions, gpt‑5, gpt‑5‑mini and gpt‑5‑nano, offer developers a balance of performance, cost and latency.
CEO Sam Altman applauded India’s rapid AI adoption and hinted that India, currently OpenAI’s second‑largest market, may soon become the largest. A visit to India is planned for September.
The new GPT‑5 achieves a level of expertise akin to a PhD‑level professional and is described as a meaningful step towards AGI. OpenAI intends to make the model notably accessible through its free tier.
Head of ChatGPT Nick Turley noted that GPT‑5 significantly enhances understanding across more than twelve Indian languages, reinforcing India as a key market for localisation.
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James Cameron, the director behind the iconic Terminator franchise, has warned that the real-world use of AI could lead to a catastrophic scenario similar to the series’ apocalyptic Judgement Day.
While Cameron is writing the script for Terminator 7, he has expressed concern that mixing AI with weapons systems, including nuclear defence, poses grave risks.
He explained that the rapid pace of decision-making in such systems might require superintelligent AI to respond quickly. Yet, human error has already brought the world close to disaster in the past.
Cameron also highlighted three major existential threats humanity faces: climate change, nuclear weapons, and superintelligence. He suggested that AI might ultimately offer a solution rather than just a danger, reflecting a nuanced view beyond simple dystopian fears.
His evolving perspective mirrors the Terminator franchise itself, which has long balanced the destructive potential of AI with more hopeful portrayals of technology as a possible saviour.
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An 8.8-magnitude earthquake off Russia’s Kamchatka peninsula at the end of July triggered tsunami warnings across the Pacific, including Japan. Despite widespread alerts and precautionary evacuations, the most significant wave recorded in Japan was only 1.3 metres high.
A video showing large waves approaching a Japanese coastline, which went viral with over 39 million views on platforms like Facebook and TikTok, was found to be AI-generated and not genuine footage.
The clip, appearing as if filmed from a plane, was initially posted online months earlier by a YouTube channel specialising in synthetic visuals.
Analysis of the video revealed inconsistencies, including unnatural water movements and a stationary plane, confirming it was fabricated. Additionally, numerous Facebook pages shared the video and linked it to commercial sites, spreading misinformation.
Official reports from Japanese broadcasters confirmed that the actual tsunami waves were much smaller, and no catastrophic damage occurred.
The incident highlights ongoing challenges in combating AI-generated disinformation related to natural disasters, as similar misleading content continues to circulate online during crisis events.
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