Interdisciplinary approaches

Scientists achieve breakthrough in quantum computing stability

A new study by researchers from the University of Oxford, Delft University of Technology, Eindhoven University of Technology, and Quantum Machines has made a major step forward in quantum computing.

The team has found a way to make Majorana zero modes (MZMs)—special particles crucial for quantum computers—far more stable, bringing us closer to building error-free, scalable machines.

Quantum computers are incredibly powerful but face a key challenge: their basic units, qubits, are highly fragile and easily disrupted by environmental noise.

MZMs have long been seen as a potential solution because they are predicted to resist such disturbances, but stabilising them for practical use has been difficult until now.

The researchers created a structure called a three-site Kitaev chain, which is a simplified version of a topological superconductor.

By using quantum dots to trap electrons and connecting them with superconducting wires, they created a stable ‘sweet spot’ where MZMs could be farther apart, reducing interference and enhancing their stability.

Lead author Dr. Greg Mazur believes this breakthrough shows that it is possible to keep MZMs stable as quantum systems grow. With further research, the team aims to build longer chains to improve stability even more, potentially opening the door to reliable, next-generation quantum materials and devices.

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Senator Warner warns TikTok deal deadline extension breaks the law

Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, has criticised President Donald Trump’s recent move to extend the deadline for ByteDance to divest TikTok’s US operations. 

Warner argued that the 75-day extension violates the law passed in 2024, which mandates a complete separation between TikTok’s American entity and its Chinese parent company due to national security concerns.

The deal currently under consideration would allow ByteDance to retain a significant equity stake and maintain an operational role in the new US-based company. 

According to Warner, this arrangement fails to satisfy the legal requirement of eliminating Chinese influence over TikTok’s US operations. 

He emphasised that any legitimate divestiture must include a complete technological and organisational break, preventing ByteDance from accessing user data or source code.

The White House and TikTok have not issued statements in response to Warner’s criticism. In its second term, Trump’s administration has stated it is in contact with four groups regarding a potential TikTok acquisition. 

However, no agreement has been finalised, and China has yet to publicly support a sale of TikTok’s US assets, one of the primary obstacles to completing the deal.

Under the 2024 law, ByteDance was required to divest TikTok’s US business by 19 January or face a ban. 

Trump, who retook office on 20 January, chose not to enforce the ban immediately and instead signed an executive order extending the deadline. 

The Justice Department further complicated the issue when it told Apple and Google that the law would not be enforced, allowing the app to remain available for download.

As the deadline extension continues to stir controversy, lawmakers like Warner insist that national security and legislative integrity are at stake.

For more information on these topics, visit diplomacy.edu.

TikTok deal stalled amid US-China trade tensions

Negotiations to divest TikTok’s US operations have been halted following China’s indication that it would not approve the deal. The development came after President Donald Trump announced increased tariffs on Chinese imports.

The proposed arrangement involved creating a new US-based company to manage TikTok’s American operations, with US investors holding a majority stake and ByteDance retaining less than 20%. This plan had received approvals from existing and new investors, ByteDance, and the US government.

In response to the stalled negotiations, President Trump extended the deadline for ByteDance to sell TikTok’s US assets by 75 days, aiming to allow more time for securing necessary approvals.

He emphasised the desire to continue collaborating with TikTok and China to finalise the deal, expressing a preference to avoid shutting the app in the US.

The future of TikTok in the US remains unpredictable as geopolitical tensions and trade disputes continue to influence the negotiations.

On one side, such a reaction from the Chinese government could have been expected in exchange for the increase of US tariffs on Chinese products; on the other side, by extending the deadline, Trump would be able to maintain his protectionist policy while collecting sympathies from 170 million US citizens using the app, which now is a victim in their eyes as it faces potential banning if the US-China trade war doesn’t calm down and a resolution is not reached within the extended timeframe.

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Meta and UFC to transform fight experience

UFC President Dana White has announced a groundbreaking partnership with Meta, following his recent appointment to the tech giant’s board.

The collaboration marks a significant moment for both organisations, with Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, a well-known MMA enthusiast and practitioner, praising White’s ability to elevate global sports brands.

The deal aims to revolutionise fan engagement through cutting-edge technologies. According to White, plans are already underway to redesign the UFC’s ranking system, with hopes of delivering more compelling matchups.

While details remain under wraps, he hinted that AI could be central to the project, potentially transforming how fights are scored and analysed in real time.

Zuckerberg expressed excitement about the future of UFC fan experiences, suggesting Meta’s tech resources could introduce innovative ways for audiences to connect with the sport.

Enhanced data analysis may also support fighters in training and strategy, leading to higher-quality contests and fewer controversial decisions.

The full impact of the partnership will unfold in the coming years, with fans and athletes alike anticipating significant change.

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OpenAI CEO says India leads in AI creativity

Sam Altman sparked interest among Indian users on X after praising the country’s rapid AI adoption and sharing an AI-generated image of himself playing cricket. In his 2 April post, the OpenAI CEO called India’s AI creativity an ‘explosion,’ claiming the country was outpacing the world in adoption rates.

Users questioned why Altman singled out India, with some turning to AI chatbots like Perplexity and Grok for verification. His comments followed a February visit to India, where he met IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and highlighted India as OpenAI’s second-largest market.

Altman’s remarks also came shortly after OpenAI’s GPT-4o update, which enhanced AI-generated images and illustrations. To showcase this, he shared an anime-style image of himself as a cricket player, sporting a Team India jersey.

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The overlooked legacy of the Lwów–Warsaw school in shaping modern AI

AI may seem like a modern marvel, but its foundations stretch back to early 20th-century philosophical thought—particularly to the Lwów–Warsaw School of Philosophy. In a recent blog by Jovan Kurbalija, Executive Director of Diplo, he highlights how this influential movement, established by Kazimierz Twardowski and active between the world wars, made groundbreaking contributions to logic, semantics, and analytical philosophy—fields that underpin today’s AI systems.

Despite being overshadowed by more famous contemporaries like the Vienna Circle, the Lwów–Warsaw School cultivated thinkers whose work continues to shape how machines process language and make decisions. Among the most influential figures was Alfred Tarski, whose formal definition of truth laid the groundwork for natural language processing (NLP), enabling AI to understand and generate human language.

Another key contributor, Jan Łukasiewicz, developed many-valued logic—a system that goes beyond simple true/false decisions and allows machines to reason through uncertainty, essential in complex tasks like autonomous driving or medical diagnostics. The school’s importance isn’t just technical.

Its strong emphasis on analytical rigour also offers tools for navigating AI’s growing ethical concerns—ranging from fairness in algorithmic decisions to broader questions about consciousness and societal impact. Though these philosophical aspects are less often discussed, they’re crucial for ensuring AI development remains responsible and aligned with human values.

The intellectual legacy is rarely acknowledged in mainstream AI history. Yet, as Kurbalija emphasises, AI’s roots are deeper and more diverse than we often realise. Revisiting the Lwów–Warsaw School highlights how past ideas can still guide us in shaping the technologies of tomorrow.

For more information on these topics, visit diplomacy.edu.

CERN physicists explore quantum link in sheep

Physicists at CERN believe they’ve found evidence of quantum entanglement in sheep, potentially explaining the near-instantaneous coordination seen in flocks.

The study, by HERD collaboration, used tracking devices and quantum modelling to suggest that sheep may be mentally linked across distances.

Researchers discovered what they call ‘moutons’, fluffy leptons in the brain that may be behind this bizarre quantum connection.

Though the statistical result reached 4 sigma, it falls short of full scientific confirmation and further testing is required.

The team stresses the findings are serious science, despite the sheep-related puns. If verified, the results could open an entirely new frontier at the intersection of quantum physics and biology and perhaps even explain why some researchers feel inexplicably sleepy near the flock.

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Scientists make progress in bridging quantum computers with optical networks

Researchers at Caltech have developed a groundbreaking silicon device that could help quantum computers communicate over long distances.

The innovation, created by a team led by Professor Mohammad Mirhosseini, successfully converts microwave photons into optical photons, overcoming a major challenge in quantum networking. Their findings were recently published in Nature Nanotechnology.

Quantum computers rely on microwave photons to store and process information, but these particles require near-zero temperatures and lose data when travelling through standard internet cables.

Optical photons, however, can move efficiently over long distances at room temperature. The new device acts as a bridge between the two, using a vibrating silicon beam to convert microwave signals into optical ones with remarkable efficiency.

Built from silicon to minimise noise, the transducer outperforms older systems by 100 times while maintaining the same level of signal clarity.

The breakthrough brings the concept of a quantum internet closer to reality, offering a scalable way to link quantum computers across vast networks in the future.

For more information on these topics, visit diplomacy.edu.

Japan builds battery that reuses uranium waste

Japan’s national nuclear research agency has unveiled what it claims is the world’s first uranium-based rechargeable battery — a breakthrough that could open up new uses for vast stockpiles of depleted uranium. The battery, developed by the Japan Atomic Energy Agency, successfully demonstrated charging and discharging capabilities using uranium as the core material to generate electricity.

The prototype, about the size of a small cup, uses a uranium-based electrolyte on the negative side and iron on the positive. With a 1.3V voltage comparable to that of a standard alkaline battery, the device maintained its performance over ten charge cycles, suggesting it is relatively stable in its current form.

That innovation could give a new purpose to the approximately 16,000 tons of depleted uranium stored in Japan and the estimated 1.6 million tons worldwide, which are currently unusable in regular nuclear reactors. Researchers also believe the battery could help store surplus electricity from renewable energy sources.

While promising, the uranium battery’s practical use will likely remain restricted to radiation-controlled zones like nuclear facility sites. The agency plans to work on scaling up the technology by developing a redox flow version starting in fiscal 2025.

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PsiQuantum targets functional quantum machine by 2029

Quantum computing firm PsiQuantum is reportedly raising at least $750 million in a new funding round led by BlackRock, pushing the startup’s pre-money valuation to $6 billion.

The round remains ongoing, but it signals strong investor confidence in PsiQuantum’s ambitious timeline to deliver a fully functional quantum computer by 2029, or sooner.

The US, California-based company uses photonics and semiconductor techniques to produce quantum chips in partnership with GlobalFoundries at a facility in New York.

It has also secured collaborations with the governments of Australia and the US to build quantum computers in Brisbane and Chicago.

The Chicago project will anchor the new Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park, marking a major milestone in the commercialisation of quantum technologies.

PsiQuantum faces stiff competition from tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Nvidia, all of whom are making significant strides in quantum research.

For more information on these topics, visit diplomacy.edu.