How Technology Is Redefining Nature and What Comes Next for AI, Fusion, and Disaster Response

MIT Technology Review’s “Nature issue” examines how technology both alters and may help repair the planet, featuring stories on anthropogenic noise affecting bird communication, cloned red wolves that challenge species definitions, artificial grass sparking heated debates and the search for meaning in extreme environments from Arctic ice to distant worlds through new fiction by Jeff VanderMeer.

The issue explores how human influence now reaches every corner of Earth, from microplastics in rainforest wildlife to artificial light in the Arctic Ocean, prompting questions about what constitutes nature and whether technology should be used to make the world more “natural.”

In parallel coverage, The Download highlights developments in large language models (LLMs), noting that after ChatGPT’s launch in late 2022, the tech industry raced to develop rival products, with the next evolution being LLMs+—described as cheaper, more efficient, and more powerful versions of current models.

LLMs+ is featured as one of the “10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now” in MIT Technology Review’s guide, with plans to unpack each item daily in The Download newsletter.

A new study published in Nature Energy suggests fusion power, while promising as a steady, zero-emissions electricity source, may not become cheap even if successfully deployed, based on analysis of the technology’s experience rate—the percentage by which cost declines as capacity doubles.

The must-reads section of The Download includes: Trump signaling openness to reversing the Anthropic ban; SpaceX planning to manufacture its own GPUs to support AI ambitions; Tencent unveiling its first flagship AI model led by a former OpenAI researcher; high earners accelerating AI adoption, widening workplace divides; thousands of Samsung workers demanding 15% of AI profits; AI aiding mediocre North Korean hackers in stealing millions through “vibe coding”; Kalshi suspending political candidates for betting on their own races; a Sony AI ping-pong robot beating elite human players via reinforcement learning; crypto scammers luring ships into the Strait of Hormuz with false safe passage promises; and “age tech” apps, wearables, and remote monitoring potentially filling caregiving gaps for seniors at home.

The quote of the day features Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki, telling the New York Times that Elon Musk’s shifting goals for SpaceX ahead of its IPO represent “a hallucinogenic business plan.”

One More Thing highlights rapid DNA analysis technology used to identify victims of the Maui wildfires within hours, bringing faster closure to families while previewing a future of more frequent catastrophic events requiring such forensic breakthroughs.

The “One can still have nice things” section offers distractions including a botanical history dive into the world’s first true plants, using Google’s reference desk to find overlooked information, watching duct tape deconstruction to reveal its stickiness physics, and Radiohead covering Joy Division as an intersection of two musical eras.