science

Microbiome startups respond as industry is accused of ‘questionable practices’

The biotech sector has embraced the microbiome in recent years, a green field market powered by cheap genome sequencing and venture dollars, promising bespoke treatments for everything from gut troubl

Propelled by ‘science for humanity,’ this Chinese AI startup sets sight on US

Amid rising geopolitical tensions, many Chinese tech companies find themselves recalibrating their overseas pursuits, often sidestepping any reference to their origin. One bold startup called DP Techn

Voiijer’s new app offers a social community for nature-lovers and explorers

Social media often disconnects people from the real world, keeping people inside scrolling feeds on their phones. New social app Voiijer wants to do the opposite by connecting nature enthusiasts to th

With this brain map we are one step closer to total fruit fly simulation

In a way, fruit flies are just like us. They have eyes, legs, nervous systems, and they love fruit. Unlike us, however, they only have a few thousand neurons in their brains, which means scientists ca

Space tomatoes and prescription yogurt incubator rocket to the ISS

If astronauts are going to undertake multiyear missions or establish a sustainable presence on the moon and Mars, they’ll need fresh food and medical supplies, not exactly easy to come by off-pl

Perceptron: Multilingual, laughing, Pitfall-playing and streetwise AI

Research in the field of machine learning and AI, now a key technology in practically every industry and company, is far too voluminous for anyone to read it all. This column, Perceptron, aims to col

Finally, an underwater messaging app

Don’t you hate it when, after going just five or 10 meters underwater, you lose signal completely? Now this vexing limitation of modern technology is being addressed by researchers at the Univer

Perceptron: Face-tracking ‘earables,’ analog AI chips and accelerating particle accelerators

Research in the field of machine learning and AI, now a key technology in practically every industry and company, is far too voluminous for anyone to read it all. This column, Perceptron, aims to col

New White House directive will require free access to studies funded by tax dollars

A new White House directive will require academic journals to provide immediate access to papers that are publicly funded. Announced Thursday, the policy, which will be phased in over the next several

From ‘literally zero’ experience to $100M, this VC is raising his second climate tech seed fund

If you ask me, climate tech investor Contrarian Ventures isn’t so contrarian anymore. The five-year-old firm is targeting $100 million for its second seed-stage fund, and it’s doing so sma

A year in the making, BigScience’s AI language model is finally available

After more than a year of planning and training, a volunteer-led project has produced an open source language model that they claim is as powerful as OpenAI’s GPT-3, but free and open for anyone

‘How can you understand life if you don’t look at it live?’ — Eikon Therapeutics rakes in $518M

Adam Goulburn, a partner at Lux Capital, was first struck by Eikon Therapeutics’ pitch to use super microscopes to develop drugs when founder Eric Betzig posed a simple question: How can you underst

‘Flying’ microchips could ride the wind to track air pollution

Researchers have created a winged microchip around the size of a sand grain that may be the smallest flying device yet made. They're designed to be carried around by the wind and track pollution.

GSK and R/GA Ventures are launching a health studio for startups

GSK Next, the innovation arm of GSK Consumer Healthcare, is launching a new mentorship and business development program. Called the Re/Wire Health Studio, the program will eventually select six startu

With its newest round, Liquid Death will exclusively ‘murder your thirst’ at Live Nation events

Liquid Death, a  four-year-old, LA-based canned mountain water startup that has steadily garnered market share and press coverage by promising, amusingly, to “murder your thirst,” just ra

Erase All Kittens raises $1M seed round for Mario-style game which teaches girls to code

Erase All Kittens (EAK) is an edtech startup that created a “Mario-style” web-based game designed for kids aged 8-12. However, the game has a twist: it places an emphasis on inspiring girl

Watch a monkey equipped with Elon Musk’s Neuralink device play Pong with its brain

Elon Musk’s Neuralink, one of his many companies and the only one currently focused on mind control (that we’re aware of), has released a new blog post and video detailing some of its rece

Curran Biotech’s new nanocoating could prevent indoor transmission of COVID-19

A new nanocoating from Curran Biotech could dramatically improve air filtration to prevent the spread of COVID-19 indoors. Their Capture Coating technology acts as a supplement to any household or com

VC Lindy Fishburne on the seemingly sudden democratization of science

Deep science investor Lindy Fishburne cofounded the seed- and early-stage venture firm Breakout Ventures several years ago, after cofounding Breakout Labs within the Thiel Foundation back in 2011, and

Toronto’s UHN launches a study to see if Apple Watch can spot worsening heart failure

A new study underway at Toronto’s University Health Network (UHN), a group of working research hospitals in the city, could shift our approach to treatment in an area of growing concern in human
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