Are we in the middle of an extinction panic?
A Canada goose stands on the snow-covered figure of a Tyrannosaurus Rex at Cologne Zoo in Cologne, Germany in January 2024. | Federico Gambarini/Picture Alliance via Getty Images How doomsday proclamations about AI echo existential anxieties of the past. If…
The less-than-magical Willy Wonka event, briefly explained
Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka in the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. | Silver Screen Collection/Getty Images The viral fiasco in Scotland that made kids cry — and prompted calls to police. Willy Wonka, a storybook character…
America’s first moon landing in 50 years, explained
Intuitive Machines employees cheer during a watch party moments after they became the first commercial company to softly land on the moon on February 22, 2024, in Houston. | Raquel Natalicchio/Houston Chronicle/Getty Images The groundbreaking development speaks to the growing…
What two years of AI development can tell us about Sora
A screenshot of a video generated by Sora, OpenAI’s generative video model. | Sora/OpenAI CEO Sam Altman If you want to know the future of OpenAI’s latest tool, take a look at Midjourney and DALL-E 2. Remember when AI art…
AI-generated video is here to awe and mislead
CFOTO/Future Publishing via Getty Images OpenAI’s Sora is designed to be a “world simulator.” Right now it’s having trouble breaking a glass. A tiny fluffy monster kneels in wonder beside a lit candle. Two small pirate ships battle inside a…
Can California show the way forward on AI safety?
Moor Studio/Getty Images A new state bill aims to protect us from the most powerful and dangerous AI models. Last week, California state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) introduced a landmark new piece of AI legislation aimed at “establishing clear,…
Carmakers pumped the brakes on hybrid cars too soon
The Ford’s Maverick Hybrid pickup truck saw a huge jump in sales last year. | Umair Irfan/Vox In the age of electric vehicles, the hybrid is still a contender. Are electric vehicles hitting a pothole? Ford announced last month that…
Can effective altruism stay effective?
Christina Animashaun/Vox The flow of new money and interest into core EA fields like AI safety poses a challenge to a movement that was used to being small. This past weekend I attended the latest Effective Altruism Global conference, which…
Can the courts save us from dangerous AI?
Need protection against AI risks? Better call Saul. | AMC Networks A law professor proposes an old-fashioned remedy for very new problems: legal liability. One quote about AI I think about a lot is something that Jack Clark, a co-founder…