State Legislatures Consider Oversight of Artificial Intelligence in Health Insurance Decisions
State lawmakers across six states are introducing bills that tighten oversight of artificial intelligence in health‑insurance decisions such as prior authorization and utilization review. The proposals generally allow AI as an assistive tool but require a qualified healthcare professional to make the final adverse determination, mandate documentation, and often demand disclosure to providers and members. Pennsylvania and Louisiana bills also impose annual compliance reporting and give regulators authority to suspend non‑compliant insurers. Indiana’s enacted law uniquely bans AI‑only downcoding and forces clear consumer notices.
The Shadowy SIM Farms Behind Those Incessant Scam Texts - and How to Stay Safe
SIM farms—large networks of rented SIM cards and modems—are being weaponized for automated scam texts, phishing calls, and product‑scalping worldwide. An Infrawatch probe uncovered 94 physical sites in 17 countries, many linked to Russian‑speaking operators and low‑KYC proxy services. Law‑enforcement...
Creating Baby Geniuses to Thwart the AI Threat? (Yes, Really.)
A cluster of Silicon Valley billionaires—including Peter Thiel, Sam Altman, Marc Andreessen and Vitalik Buterin—are financing embryo‑editing startups that aim to prevent disease and, for some, create children capable of outthinking advanced AI. The firms, such as Nucleus, are leveraging CRISPR...
Centuries-Old Love Letter Deciphered With Help From A.I.
MyHeritage’s new Scribe A.I. tool has automatically translated the earliest surviving English Valentine, a 1477 love note from Margery Brews to John Paston. The AI produced a full transcript in Middle English, historical context, key details and research suggestions, eliminating the need...
Switch 2 Is The Second-Fastest Selling Console In US History
Nintendo’s Switch 2 has become the second‑fastest selling console in U.S. history, moving an estimated 568,000 units in March 2026 alone. The surge pushes its U.S. lifetime sales to roughly 5.4 million, a 12 percent edge over the original Switch’s launch‑aligned performance. The breakout...
How To Evaluate Whether HCI Is Right for Your State or Local Government Organization
State and local government IT leaders are weighing hyper‑converged infrastructure (HCI) as a way to modernize data centers while meeting compliance, budget and sovereignty constraints. HCI bundles compute, storage and networking into a single, software‑defined platform that mimics cloud‑like elasticity...
Sitetracker Launches AI Platform Scout To Improve Infrastructure Management
Sitetracker, a New Jersey‑based software firm, launched Scout, an autonomous AI platform aimed at streamlining infrastructure delivery for utilities and contractors. Scout claims to turn internal system data into real‑time risk insights, automated work packages, and faster decision‑making across planning,...
Fresh‑Air Listening for Less: AeroFit 2 Open-Ear Headphones Drop to a Can’t‑Miss Price
Anker’s Soundcore AeroFit 2 open‑ear headphones have been reduced to $79.98, a 38% discount from the original $129.99. The earbuds combine a feather‑light, open‑ear design with up to 10 hours of playback and 42 hours total using the charging case, plus wireless charging....
Thailand Develops H-FAME Premium Biodiesel to Support Low-Carbon Transport Transition
Thailand’s National Energy Technology Centre (ENTEC) has created H‑FAME premium biodiesel, a drop‑in low‑carbon fuel that can cut CO₂ emissions by up to 50 % and particulate matter by up to 86 % without engine modifications. The fuel’s stability is boosted threefold...
Oncology Leaders Address Testing, Access, Equity, and Pharmacy in Cancer Care
On March 12, 2026, the American Journal of Managed Care convened Chicago oncology leaders to discuss precision testing, equity, and pharmacy integration in cancer care. Panels emphasized universal biomarker testing for lung cancer, highlighted gaps such as low EGFR testing...
RIAs Are in Cybercriminals’ Crosshairs – Prepare to Protect Your Data
Registered investment advisers (RIAs) are increasingly targeted by cybercriminals seeking client financial data, Social Security numbers, and direct asset access. The SEC has repeatedly highlighted cybersecurity as a top examination focus, and new Regulation S‑P rules require an Incident Response...
The Data Center Surge Is Here; So Is Wildfire Season
U.S. data centers are projected to consume up to 580 TWh of electricity by 2028, dramatically increasing load on an aging utility grid. Simultaneously, about 180 million wooden utility poles are vulnerable to failure and wildfire ignition as climate stressors intensify. Composite...
SpaceX Admits AI Data Centers in Space May Be a Really Terrible Idea
Elon Musk has championed orbital AI data centers as a low‑cost, solar‑powered solution, but SpaceX’s recent pre‑IPO filing admits the concept is still unproven and may never be commercially viable. The plan envisions up to one million satellite‑sized servers launched...
NFL Draft Will Be Three-Day Ad Inventory Festival With Shoulder Pads
The NFL Draft returns April 23‑25, 2026 as a three‑day live event that has morphed into a massive advertising festival. CivicScience data shows 39% of respondents plan to watch, indicating a sizable audience despite overall TV fragmentation. Brands will be able...
Don't Wait to Buy a MacBook Neo for School - Here's Why
Apple’s MacBook Neo, launched in March, is experiencing severe backorder delays, with shipments now pushed to mid‑May. The shortage stems from a limited supply of the A18 Pro chip, which Apple does not currently produce in volume. Demand is especially...
Leak Suggests Solid Pricing for Steam Machine, but Even that Might Be Too High to Save It
According to a recent leak, Valve’s upcoming Steam Machine is expected to launch in the $650‑$750 range, a reduction from earlier $800‑$900 estimates driven by a recent RAM shortage linked to AI demand. The price places the device on par...
The Role of Cloud-Native Infrastructure in Payments Modernization
Banks are racing to modernize payments, but legacy systems hinder real‑time processing, increase fraud exposure, and demand costly integrations. A webinar hosted by FIS and AWS highlighted the FIS Money Movement Hub, a cloud‑native solution built on AWS that promises...
The Best Earbuds of 2026: Expert Tested and Reviewed
The 2026 roundup crowns Apple AirPods Pro 3 as the best overall earbuds, highlighting new health sensors, stronger active‑noise cancellation and an IP57 rating without a price hike. Sony’s WF‑1000XM6 is positioned as the top Android choice, thanks to LDAC and...
Using AI To Personalize Healthcare–Without Losing Patient Trust
At the Adobe Summit, industry leaders highlighted AI’s role in personalizing healthcare while stressing the need for patient trust. Formation Bio, backed by Andreessen Horowitz and Sam Altman, raised $615 million at a $1.8 billion valuation to use AI for faster clinical‑trial...
5 AI Models Tried to Scam Me. Some of Them Were Scary Good
A Wired senior writer recounts five recent encounters with AI‑generated scams that were sophisticated enough to fool him at first glance. The models produced phishing emails, fake invoices, and social‑media impersonations that mimicked human tone and branding with uncanny accuracy....
Google Unveils Two New AI Chips For the 'Agentic Era'
Google unveiled two new Tensor Processing Units—one dedicated to training and another to inference—targeting what it calls the "agentic era" of AI. The training TPU promises 2.8 times the performance of the seventh‑generation Ironwood chip at the same price, while the...
Ember’s Self-Heating Smart Mug Is More than $50 Off Ahead of Mother’s Day
Ember is running a Mother’s Day promotion that cuts the price of its Ember Mug 2 smart mug by more than $50. The 14‑ounce version is now $97.49 (down from $149.95) and the 10‑ounce model is $84.47 (down from $129.95)....
Linux May Get a Hall Pass From One State Age-Check Bill, but Congress Plays Hall Monitor
System76 founder Carl Richell announced that Colorado's Age Attestation bill has been amended to explicitly exclude open‑source operating systems, applications, code repositories and container platforms. The change creates a template that Richell hopes to replicate in other states to protect...
NIST Researchers Develop Photonic Chip Packaging
Researchers at NIST have introduced a new packaging method for photonic integrated circuits that uses hydroxide catalysis bonding, an inorganic glass‑like technique originally developed by NASA. The HCB process creates a molecular‑level bond between optical fibers and chips, allowing the...
BioMérieux Unveils BIOFIRE SPOTFIRE Molecular Testing Solution for Biopharma
bioMérieux has launched BIOFIRE SPOTFIRE, a molecular testing system aimed at biopharma quality control. The instrument delivers mycoplasma results in less than an hour, leveraging automated workflows, touchscreen operation, and barcode scanning. Designed to be compact and stackable, it integrates with...
NRD Releases Solid-State Nuclear Battery Power Cell
NRD unveiled its NBV series, a solid‑state betavoltaic nuclear battery powered by nickel‑63. The cell delivers 5 nW to 500 nW of power, with voltages ranging from 1 V to 20 V, in a compact 20 mm × 20 mm × 12 mm package. Designed for ultra‑low‑power electronics, it promises maintenance‑free...
Neurotechnology Spinoff SkyBiometry Launches AI Infrastructure Suite
Lithuania‑based SkyBiometry, a Neurotechnology spinoff, unveiled an AI Factory and a full‑stack infrastructure suite that combines GPU‑rich hardware, private bare‑metal clouds, and managed Kubernetes orchestration. The offering is designed to accelerate large language model training, generative AI, and computer‑vision projects...
Base Power Partnership to Mitigate Price Spikes, Load Peaks for South Texas Co-Op, CEO Says
Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative (GVEC) is expanding its residential battery program with Base Power, adding 50 MW of distributed storage across its 3,500‑square‑mile service area. The partnership builds on a 2‑MW pilot and targets 20 MW of capacity by the end of...
Xbox Isn't Ditching Mobile Games, Says New CEO
Microsoft appointed Asha Sharma as Xbox CEO, promptly retiring the "This is an Xbox" campaign. Sharma clarified that the previously hinted Xbox mobile games store is still in development, underscoring a more open, cross‑platform vision. The move follows a recent...
PR Meets Influence: The New Engine of Brand Growth
On the latest Adspeak podcast, Dana Paolucci of Dove and Raven Walker of Collectively discuss how heritage brands can stay culturally relevant through creator‑led strategies. Dove has moved from one‑off influencer spots to community‑driven partnerships that produce authentic user‑generated content,...
Framework Laptop to Get Royalty-Free Oculink Port
Framework announced that its upcoming Laptop 16 will feature a royalty‑free Oculink port, enabling 128 Gbps optical connectivity for eGPUs, NVMe drives and other high‑speed peripherals. The company is releasing an Oculink Dev Kit and plans dedicated graphics and PCIe docks, positioning...
Autodesk Announces Fusion MCP Servers and More AI Updates
Autodesk announced that its AI‑powered Autodesk Assistant is now live across Fusion, Inventor, Moldflow and Vault, expanding from a simple chatbot to a task‑orchestrating tool. The company also launched AI rendering in Fusion, granting commercial subscribers 20 photorealistic image generations...
Every Click, Stream, and Device Builds a Digital Footprint & Data Brokers Are Cashing In
ClearNym warns that cord‑cutters’ expanding use of streaming apps, smart TVs and voice assistants creates a sprawling digital footprint that data brokers harvest, especially during the spring data‑refresh season. Recent breaches—including Conduent’s 8.5 TB health‑data leak affecting over 25 million people and...
Self-Propagating Supply Chain Worm Hijacks Npm Packages to Steal Developer Tokens
Security researchers have uncovered a self‑propagating supply‑chain worm, dubbed CanisterSprawl, that compromises npm packages and injects malicious post‑install scripts to harvest developer credentials. The worm steals a wide range of secrets—including .npmrc files, SSH keys, cloud provider tokens, Docker and...
Online Financial Marketplace Munivestor Sets Summer Launch
Munivestor is set to launch a digital municipal bond marketplace this summer, allowing cities to issue bonds of $50 million or less directly to a broad pool of investors, including retail participants. The platform digitizes the issuance workflow with a 30‑day...
Client Alert: The White House Makes a Cyber and AI Policy Push
In March 2026 the White House issued a National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence and a Cyber Strategy, signaling a coordinated federal push to shape AI and cybersecurity policy. Both documents favor industry‑led standards and “common‑sense” regulation over new prescriptive...
Google Brings Auto Browse and Skills to Chrome Enterprise - and a New 'Gemini Summary'
Google announced three new AI‑driven features for Chrome Enterprise: Auto Browse, which lets Gemini act across open tabs to automate tasks like creating CRM contacts; Skills, a one‑click library for saving and reusing frequent Gemini prompts; and Gemini Summary, an...
Why Early Process Design Is Key to Cell and Gene Therapy Success
At INTERPHEX 2026, Charles River’s Dr. Alan Smith warned that cell and gene therapy developers often prioritize rapid first‑in‑human studies at the expense of scalable manufacturing. He highlighted recurring gaps where insufficient early‑stage process design forces costly redesigns during later trials or...
Five Ways Utilities Can Make Better Decisions with the Data They Already Have
U.S. utilities spent over $50 billion on distribution upgrades in 2023, yet control rooms still drown in fragmented, uncontextualized data. Everardo Camacho outlines five practices—unifying data streams, correlating alerts, adding operational context, adopting predictive analytics, and aligning teams around a shared...
Nordex Pushes Forward Development: N175/6.X Turbine Receives 7.3 MW Operating Mode and New Hybrid Tower Options for Higher Yields -...
Nordex is upgrading its flagship N175/6.X turbine with a new 7.3 MW operating mode that can lift annual energy output by up to 1.7 % without increasing noise. The company also secured certification for two hybrid tower variants—a 162.5 m concrete‑steel design and...
The AI Boom Is Single-Handedly Carrying the U.S. Import Market—And Adding $200 Billion to the Trade Deficit, Fed Study Finds
The Federal Reserve’s Minneapolis branch reports that AI‑related products accounted for 23% of U.S. imports in 2025, driving a 73% year‑over‑year surge that dwarfs the 3% rise in non‑AI goods. AI imports totalled roughly $265 billion versus $71 billion in exports, adding...
The Road Ahead for FMVSS 127: Whither the Automatic Emergency Braking Mandate?
In May 2024 NHTSA issued FMVSS 127, requiring automatic emergency braking, pedestrian‑AEB and forward‑collision warning on all new light vehicles by September 1, 2029, with an extra year for small manufacturers. The rule, projected to save 360 lives and prevent 24,000 injuries annually,...
Microsoft to Test Third-Party AI Models for Incorporation in Its Security Offerings
Microsoft announced it will evaluate third‑party AI models, including Anthropic's Claude Mythos, to augment its security suite. The tests will pair these models with Microsoft Defender, Security Exposure Management and the open‑source CTI‑REALM framework for continuous network vulnerability scanning. A...
Datacenter Boom Keeps Dirty Coal Plants Alive in the US
Datacenter construction in the United States, driven by AI and other high‑power workloads, is pushing electricity demand sharply upward. The surge is causing utilities to keep aging coal‑fired plants online, delaying roughly 40% of retirements scheduled through 2025. At the...
Exclusive Roundtable: Hiring Challenges in Tough Labour Market
HR leaders from Walmart Canada, law firm McCarthy Tétrault and industrial firm Wajax convened to discuss how talent shortages, skills gaps and evolving employee expectations are reshaping recruitment. Walmart is overhauling its hiring model toward data‑driven, quality‑focused processes, while the...
CDRH Director Tarver Previews AI Guidance at AAMI Event
At the AAMI neXus conference, FDA CDRH Director Michelle Tarver announced that final guidance on AI lifecycle management will be issued later this year, building on the draft released in January 2025. The guidance will codify requirements for representative training...
10x Science: The Founders Who Built the Field Are Now Building the Platform
10x Science is launching an AI‑driven platform that automates molecular characterization of biologic drugs, a step traditionally performed manually by PhD scientists using outdated software. The company’s founders—two Stanford‑trained researchers with Nobel‑linked publications and a veteran YC entrepreneur—bring deep scientific...
Temu Named Portugal’s Leading International Marketplace
Temu, the U.S.-based Chinese‑origin e‑commerce platform, was named Portugal’s leading international marketplace by Portal da Queixa’s Recommended Brand 2026 awards. The distinction reflects its 2025 performance, especially fast complaint resolution and high consumer satisfaction. An Ipsos study shows roughly 80%...
Frezzi’s PocketLight LED Kit for DJI Osmo Pocket 3: The Perfect Match
Ashley Esqueda, founder of Rowdy Skeleton, tested Frezzi’s PocketLight LED kit with the DJI Osmo Pocket 3 while covering CES 2026. The magnetic LED attaches to the camera’s extended‑battery case, delivering adjustable brightness without adding bulk. The kit’s lightweight design let her...
Today Is the Day Anthropic Promised That Fully Autonomous Employees Would Be Tearing Through the Business World
A year after Anthropic’s CISO Jason Clinton warned that AI‑powered virtual employees would be roaming corporate networks, the promise remains unfulfilled. Security breaches, unreliable performance and a string of failed hype‑driven demos have kept autonomous agents out of production. Earlier...