The Download: an exclusive Jeff VanderMeer story and AI models too scary to release

This is today's edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.

Constellations

-Constellations is a short story by Jeff VanderMeer, the author of the critically acclaimed, bestselling Southern Reach series.

A spacecraft has crash-landed on a hostile planet. The only survivors are three members of the exploration team and the ship's AI mind.

Little exists on the planet except deserts of snow. But alien artifacts lie nearby, in the form of 13 domes, spread across the terrain. Linked by cables threaded through metal posts, the domes form a series of paths-the only hope for life support.

As the team treks across the frozen hellscape, they discover the remains of countless astronauts from unknown species who followed the same route before them. Is their trail a path to salvation, or a cosmic trap?

Read the rest of this short story in full.

This story is from the next issue of our print magazine, packed with stories all about nature.Subscribe nowto read the full thing when it lands on Wednesday, April 22.

Themust-reads

I'vecombedtheinternettofindyoutoday'smostfun/important/scary/fascinatingstoriesabouttechnology.

1OpenAIhasjoinedAnthropicincurbinganAIreleaseoversecurityfears
Onlyselectpartnerswillgetitsnewcybersecuritytool. (Axios)
+Anthropicsaidonlyyesterdaythatitsnew AIistoodangerousforthepublic.(NBC News)
+ Topmodelsmaynotbe sopublicgoingforward.(Bloomberg$)
+TheUS hassummonedbankCEOstodiscusstherisks.(FT$)

2 FloridaisinvestigatingOpenAIoveranallegedrole in ashooting
ChatGPTmayhavehelpedsomeoneplan amassshootingin Florida. (WSJ$)
+OpenAIhasbackedabillthatwouldlimitAIliabilityfordeaths.(Wired$)
+Thefamilyofavictimplanstosuethecompany.(Guardian)
+AI'srole indelusionsisdividingopinion.(MIT Technology Review)

3 VolkswagenisditchingEVproductionformoregasolinemodels
ThecarmakerwillstopmakingitstopelectricvehicleintheUS. (NYT$)
+Instead,itwillconcentrateondevelopinga new SUV.(Ars Technica)
+ Westerncarmakersareretreatingfromelectricvehicles.(Guardian)

4 ElonMusk'sxAIhassuedColoradooveranAIanti-discriminationlaw
It'sthefirststatebillofitskind. (Bloomberg$)
+xAIsaysitwillforcethefirmtopromotethestate'sideologicalviews."(FT$)

5AfifthofUSemployeessayAInowdoespartsoftheirjob
ThesurveyfoundhalfofUSadultsusedAI inthepastweek. (NBC News)
+MissingdatacouldshedlightonAI'sjobimpact.(MIT Technology Review)

6 GoogleDeepMind'sCEOwantstoautomatedrugdesign
He hopestodevelopAIcapableofcuringalldiseases. (The Economist)
+AscientistisusingAItohuntforantibiotics.(MIT Technology Review)

7 China's Unitree is launching a viral robot on the international market
R1, its cheapest humanoid, will go on sale outside China next week. (SCMP)
+ Gig workers are training humanoids at home. (MIT Technology Review)

8 An experiment on Artemis II astronauts could reshape space medicine
Chips containing their cells will model spaceflight's effects. (WP $)

9 A pro-Iran meme machine is trolling Trump with AI Lego cartoons
Thevideoshaverackedupmillionsofviews. (Wired$)
+YoucanlearntoloveAIslop.(MIT Technology Review)

10Shortbreakscoulderase 10yearsofsocial mediabraindamage
Studiesshowthatatwo-weekdetoxcouldhaveadramaticbenefit. (WP$)

Quoteoftheday

AI should advance mankind, not destroy it. We're demanding answers on OpenAI's activities that have hurt kids, endangered Americans, and facilitated the recent FSU mass shooting."

-FloridaAttorneyGeneral JamesUthmeierexplainson Xwhyhe'sprobingOpenAI.

OneMoreThing

TOM HUMBERSTONEIt'stimetoretirethetermuser"

People have been called users" for a long time. Often, it's the right word to describe people who use software. But users" is also unspecific enough to refer to just about everyone. It can accommodate almost any big idea or long-term vision.

We use-and are used by-computers and platforms and companies. The label user" suggests these interactions are deeply transactional, but they're frequently quite personal. Is it time for a more human vocabulary?Read the full story.

-TaylorMajewski

Wecanstillhavenicethings

A placeforcomfort,funanddistractiontobrightenupyourday. (Gotanyideas?Drop me a line.)

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