The $100bn bet that a U.S. city can become a high-tech hub

Syracuse, New York, is about to become an economic test of whether government policy and massive corporate investment can boost the nation's industrial base and revitalise post-industrial regions. And it all begins with an astonishingly expensive chip fab— David Rotman reports.

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MIT Technology Review

The $100 billion bet that a postindustrial U.S. city can reinvent itself as a high-tech hub

The iPad was meant to transform accessibility. What happened?

We live in a speech-centric society, yet there's remarkably little technological innovation to help those struggling to communicate verbally. Julie Kim reflects on her own experiences trying to help her daughter to raise awareness of this oversight.

The iPad was meant to revolutionize accessibility. What happened?

Since January, Customs and Border Protection launched a new app (CBP One) to facilitate immigration at the United States' southern border. But reality has proven much more complicated than predicted. Lorena Rios reports on the difficulties experienced by the vulnerable people most in need of protection.

The new U.S. border wall is an app

Longevity enthusiasts want to create their own independent state.

Zuzalu, a pop-up city in Montenegro, has provided a temporary home for people encouraging biohacking to slow or reverse ageing. Jessica Hamzelou reports from inside a longevity enthusiast gathering on their plans to set up a similar state in the U.S.

Longevity enthusiasts want to create their own independent state. They’re eyeing Rhode Island.

A brain implant changed her life. Then it was removed

In 2010, Rita Leggett received an experimental brain implant to treat her epilepsy. A few years later, it was taken out with devastating consequences for her quality of life. Jessica Hamzelou discusses claims that removing implants like this could breach human rights and uses her case to highlight why we need to enshrine neurological rights in law.

A brain implant changed her life. Then it was removed against her will

Everything to know about the wild world of alternative jet fuels

The aviation industry must cut down on its climate impacts. But how? Casey Crownhart explains how landfills, cooking oil, and green electricity could power your future flights and reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Everything you need to know about the wild world of alternative jet fuels

Technology has become integral to daily life in China. So what happens when your social media accounts get deactivated? Zeyi Zhang reports on his experience visiting the Tencent office in Shenzhen to get his QQ account reinstated.

Inside Tencent’s weirdly secretive customer service center 

First babies conceived with sperm-injecting robot have been born

Could IVF become automated, cheaper and, therefore, more accessible? While an all-in-one fertility machine doesn't yet exist, Antonio Regalado discusses the startups trying to simplify conceiving a child.

The first babies conceived with a sperm-injecting robot have been born

Machines are set to play a more significant role in our futures, but what about our pasts? Moira Donovan explains how new technologies are helping historians analyse how people lived centuries ago.

How AI is helping historians better understand our past 

The inside story of NYC’s 34-year-old social network, ECHO

Founded in 1990, the East Coast Hang Out (known as ECHO) is one of the oldest social networks in the world. Nika Simovich Fisher discovers the behind-the-scenes story of the influential network which defined the New York web scene.

The inside story of New York City’s 34-year-old social network, ECHO

Popular workplace tool Notion's appeal extends far beyond the office. Rhiannon Williams meets with the ultra-productive users who use the organisation platform for every aspect of their life.

Meet the people who use Notion to plan their whole lives

There's no shortage of popular books and lectures on math - but they can only teach us so much. Pradeep Niroula demystifies math by going back to its foundations.

Bringing the lofty ideas of pure math down to earth

Technology is changing how children learn to read. With little consensus on balancing screens and paper books, Holly Korbey explains why we must rethink how we teach kids literacy.

How to teach kids who flip between book and screen

Will the rise of AI help or hinder students? Will Douglas Heaven meets with the teachers who think generative AI could actually make learning better.

ChatGPT is going to change education, not destroy it

Over a year since Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began, Masha Borak discusses the impact of the war on Russia's tech industry through the slow demise of Yandex, once its biggest success story.

How Russia killed its tech industry

The real-life implications of weight-loss injections

With "miracle" weight-loss content going viral on social media, Amelia Tait discovers the risks, the side effects and hidden societal impacts of the weight-loss injection boom.

Weight-loss injections have taken over the internet. But what does this mean for people IRL?

With the climate change spotlight placed firmly on unnecessary air travel, could electric aircraft solve our emissions problems? Casey Crownhart explains how EVTOLs could transform aviation once they get off the ground.

These aircraft could change how we fly

ChatGPT's highly anticipated upgrade, GPT-4, is bigger and better than its predecessor, but why? Will Douglas Heaven provides an exclusive first look at OpenAI's latest machine learning model.

GPT-4 is bigger and better than ChatGPT—but OpenAI won’t say why

Forget the arts; how will the AI wave impact the legal system? Nathan E. Sanders and Bruce Schneier discover how ChatGPT and other language learning models could influence micro-legislation.

How AI could write our laws

Sam Altman invested $180mn into a company trying to delay death

Could breakthroughs in anti-ageing research add decades to the human life span? Antonio Regalado examines the CEO of OpenAI's expensive quest for longevity.