Researchers in the UK are exploring how AI could lead to new treatments for children with brain tumours. With around 420 children diagnosed annually, the team at the Cancer Research UK Children’s Brain Tumour Centre of Excellence in Cambridge is focused on improving survival rates, especially for those with the most aggressive forms of the disease, who currently have a low likelihood of survival beyond a year.
Dr Elizabeth Cooper, one of the researchers, noted that children’s brain tumours differ from adult tumours due to the ongoing development of the brain in children, which may explain why treatments like immunotherapy, effective in other cancers, have limited success with brain tumours. Dr Cooper highlighted that the brain has its own unique immune system, but scientists have yet to fully understand how to harness it for treatment.
Led by co-director Prof. Richard Gilbertson, the team is also working to develop new drugs that are less harmful to young patients. With a substantial grant, the centre plans to use AI to build digital models of complex brain tumours. These models will allow the team to conduct virtual trials, aiming to identify more effective and less toxic treatment options than traditional methods like radiotherapy, which can cause severe side effects in children.
South Korea’s Financial Services Commission has approved a pilot programme enabling seven major banks to trial a central bank digital currency (CBDC) system. The initiative, in collaboration with the Bank of Korea and the Ministry of Science and ICT, aims to replace traditional paper vouchers with mobile-friendly CBDC tokens, making it easier for citizens to access public benefits digitally.
The pilot programme includes banks such as Kookmin Bank, Shinhan Bank, and Woori Bank, which will implement a digital voucher management platform to assess the feasibility of using CBDC deposit tokens. The goal is to allow users to store vouchers on mobile devices, potentially eliminating the need for physical wallets and enabling seamless transactions through features like QR code payments.
South Korea’s forward-thinking approach positions it as a leader in digital finance. As other countries, including Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UK, explore similar CBDC developments, South Korea’s programme may offer insights that influence the global adoption of digital financial systems.
Amazon has resumed its drone delivery programme, bringing its Prime Air service to select customers in the Phoenix, Arizona area. After recently ending the service in California, Amazon is now offering drone deliveries for products weighing five pounds or less, covering around 50,000 items. Customers in the West Valley Phoenix Metro Area can choose their delivery spot at checkout, with most items arriving within an hour from a nearby take-off site.
Using the advanced MK30 drone, Amazon has ensured improved delivery capabilities, with the Federal Aviation Administration recently allowing it to fly beyond the operator’s visual line of sight. The MK30 is quieter, can fly further, and operates in light rain, although it is limited to daylight and favourable weather conditions. The MK30 is also being used in College Station, Texas, where Amazon has piloted prescription medicine deliveries since 2023.
Amazon, aiming for efficient and cost-effective operations, has integrated drone deliveries into its same-day delivery network. While the company previously announced plans to expand drone delivery to the UK and Italy by the end of the year, no new updates were provided on these international expansions.
The French Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) and WSC Sports have partnered to revolutionise the league’s digital content strategy through AI-powered automation. WSC Sports’ platform will enable LFP to rapidly create and distribute tailored, data-driven content across various formats and platforms, including websites, apps, social media, and global broadcasts.
That will enhance fan engagement by delivering personalised content while maximising LFP’s digital assets, improving international visibility, and opening new revenue streams. The partnership also involves digitising 20 years of archived footage from Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, transforming historic moments into formats suited for modern platforms like vertical video, which will engage younger fans.
By automating content creation and distribution, LFP can scale its production efforts, expand its fanbase, and unlock new monetisation opportunities, driving financial growth. The collaboration is a significant step in LFP’s broader strategic transformation, focusing on providing a more dynamic and engaging experience for its fans.
By embracing AI and automation, LFP aims to meet the increasing demand for digital content and stay culturally relevant in a rapidly evolving media landscape. The partnership aims to strengthen fan loyalty, deliver content that exceeds expectations, and ensure that LFP’s competitions remain prominent in the global sports ecosystem.
Australia has scrapped plans for a large defense satellite project, opting instead for a network of smaller micro-satellites due to emerging anti-satellite threats. Defense Minister Richard Marles explained that advancements in technology now enable adversaries to target and destroy satellites, making Australia’s initial plan for a few large satellites outdated. Originally developed in collaboration with Lockheed Martin, the high-cost Geostationary Earth Orbit system was designed to enhance communications over the Indo-Pacific region.
Marles pointed to distributed micro-satellite networks, like Starlink’s use in the Ukraine conflict, as a more resilient and cost-effective alternative. A “mesh-type” network of satellites could provide more reliable defense communications with increased survivability against attacks. This shift reflects a strategic pivot to distributed technology that reduces vulnerability while enhancing adaptability.
The shift underscores Australia’s commitment to bolstering defense communications against emerging threats. The government is exploring a system of micro-satellites that not only strengthens operational resilience but also demonstrates Australia’s alignment with global shifts toward decentralised space technology.
OpenAI, led by Sam Altman, is exploring a move to transition from a non-profit to a for-profit company, according to Bloomberg News. Early discussions with the California attorney general’s office aim to alter OpenAI’s corporate structure, signalling a significant shift in the governance of the AI research pioneer. Originally founded in 2015 as a non-profit, OpenAI’s new direction could open the door to increased investment opportunities.
The potential change in status would mark a strategic shift for the company, which developed the popular AI tool ChatGPT. OpenAI’s connection with Microsoft, which invested heavily in the company, has been a key factor in its growth. In September, reports emerged that OpenAI was already contemplating restructuring as a for-profit benefit corporation, with a new structure aimed at enhancing business opportunities while keeping its non-profit arm involved.
The non-profit branch of OpenAI would continue to exist and hold a minority stake, allowing the organisation to maintain some of its founding mission. This balance could appeal to investors while retaining a foothold in its original purpose of ethical AI development. OpenAI’s funding has also surged recently, including a $6.6 billion funding round, potentially valuing the firm at $157 billion.
With substantial backing and increased investor interest, OpenAI’s shift could cement its position as one of the world’s most valuable private companies. The move reflects broader trends in AI, where companies are aligning profit goals with technological innovation to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving market.
Abu Dhabi firms Realize and Neovision Wealth Management have announced the launch of the Realize T-BILLS Fund, a new investment vehicle focused on U.S. Treasury ETFs. The fund will purchase units from popular ETFs, such as BlackRock’s iShares and State Street’s SPDR, and tokenise them, converting them into blockchain-based digital tokens that can be traded and transferred. Dominik Schiener, co-founder of Realize, noted that the fund aims to grow to $200 million in assets.
The T-BILLS Fund will issue a digital token, $RBILL, representing fund units, and operate on both the IOTA and Ethereum blockchain networks. Realize will handle the tokenisation process, while Neovision Wealth Management will oversee fund operations. This fund is also the first of its kind to be based out of the Abu Dhabi Global Market, a move that highlights the growing trend of combining traditional assets with blockchain technology.
Tokenised US Treasuries have become a growing niche in the digital asset market, valued at $2.4B, and attracting both blockchain-native firms and established finance giants. With US Treasury bills seen as a secure and liquid asset class, these new tokens offer investors an easier way to trade and hold government-backed securities in a blockchain format, making them accessible to a wider audience in the digital economy.
Election officials across the US are intensifying efforts to counter deepfake robocalls as the 2024 election nears, worried about AI-driven disinformation campaigns. Unlike visible manipulated images or videos, fake audio calls targeting voters are harder to detect, leaving officials bracing for the impact on public trust. A recent incident in New Hampshire, where a robocall falsely claimed to be from President Biden urging people to skip voting, highlighted how disruptive these AI-generated calls can be.
Election leaders have developed low-tech methods to counter this high-tech threat, such as unique code words to verify identities in sensitive phone interactions. In states like Colorado, officials have been trained to respond quickly to suspicious calls, including hanging up and verifying information directly with their offices. Colorado’s Secretary of State Jena Griswold and other leaders are urging election directors to rely on trusted contacts to avoid being misled by convincing deepfake messages.
To counter misinformation, some states are also enlisting local leaders and community figures to help debunk false claims. Officials in states like Minnesota and Illinois have collaborated with media outlets and launched public awareness campaigns, warning voters about potential disinformation in the lead-up to the election. These campaigns, broadcasted widely on television and radio, aim to preempt misinformation by providing accurate, timely information.
While no confirmed cases show that robocalls have swayed voters, election officials regard the potential impact as severe. Local efforts to counteract these messages, such as public statements and community outreach, serve as a reminder of the new and evolving risks AI technology brings to election security.
China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has adapted Meta’s open-source AI model, Llama, to create a military-focused tool named ChatBIT. Developed by researchers from PLA-linked institutions, including the Academy of Military Science, ChatBIT leverages an earlier version of Llama, fine-tuned for military decision-making and intelligence processing tasks. The tool reportedly performs better than some alternative AI models, though it falls short of OpenAI’s ChatGPT-4.
Meta, which supports open innovation, has restrictions against military uses of its models. However, the open-source nature of Llama limits Meta’s ability to prevent unauthorised adaptations, such as ChatBIT. In response, Meta affirmed its commitment to ethical AI use and noted the need for US innovation to stay competitive as China intensifies its AI research investments.
China’s approach reflects a broader trend, as its institutions reportedly employ Western AI technologies for areas like airborne warfare and domestic security. With increasing US scrutiny over the national security implications of open-source AI, the Biden administration has moved to regulate AI’s development, balancing its potential benefits with growing risks of misuse.
Toyota and Nippon Telegraph and Telephone (NTT) plan to invest 500 billion yen ($3.27 billion) by 2030 to create an AI-driven platform to reduce traffic accidents. Announced in a joint statement, the Japanese automaker and telecom giant aims to launch the platform by 2028, using extensive data to support driver-assistance technology. This project, initiated amid rising pressure on Japanese automakers to compete in the autonomous driving space, is expected to enhance safety features such as improved visibility in urban areas and smoother expressway merging.
The companies intend the platform to benefit not only their own operations but also government and industry partners, setting a long-term goal to minimise traffic accidents. Toyota and NTT, who first collaborated on 5G-connected car technology in 2017, see this project as part of a broader vision for zero-accident mobility, aiming for widespread adoption by 2030.
Toyota’s existing investments in autonomous technology include Woven by Toyota, a unit established in 2021 focused on AI mobility. Woven by Toyota is also developing the Arene automotive software platform and Woven City, a testing hub in Shizuoka. As part of these advancements, NTT and Toyota also plan to test self-driving technology as early as 2025.
