For the first time, a privately developed aircraft has flown faster than sound
“High above a barren California desert on Tuesday, a privately developed aircraft broke the sound barrier for the first time when Boom Supersonic’s XB-1 demonstrator reached Mach 1.122.
Piloted by a former US Navy aviator, Tristan “Geppetto” Brandenburg, the XB-1 vehicle broke the supersonic barrier on three separate occasions before safely landing back at Mojave Air & Space Port, where it had taken off half an hour earlier. It marked a triumphant moment for Boom, which was founded a decade ago to commercialize supersonic air travel.
‘A small band of talented and dedicated engineers has accomplished what previously took governments and billions of dollars,’ said Boom Supersonic’s founder and chief executive, Blake Scholl, in a statement.”
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- Trump orders planning for ‘iron dome’ missile shield for US
- Scientists recreate the conditions that sparked complex life
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- Heritable Agriculture, a Google spinout, is bringing AI to crop breeding
- Trump asks SpaceX to return NASA’s ‘stranded’ astronauts to Earth ASAP
- Stem cells used to partially repair damaged hearts
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- DeepSeek exposed internal database containing chat histories and sensitive data
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The FDA has approved a bioengineered blood vessel created by Humacyte to treat patients with traumatic injuries, particularly those facing amputation due to damaged blood vessels. This lab-grown vessel, made from human cells, integrates with the patient’s body, offering a safer alternative to synthetic grafts, which are prone to infection and failure. Early tests have shown promising results, with the engineered vessel proving more effective in maintaining blood flow and reducing the need for amputation compared to synthetic options. (via WIRED)
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- Biosensor can detect rare earth elements for more efficient resource extraction
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- Blackstone secures $1.6B so far for new life sciences fund targeted at $5B+
- Rolls-Royce lands record £9B nuclear submarine contract in UK
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- Sound Blade Medical closes $16.5M in Series A financing for its handheld ultrasound-guided histotripsy technology
- Omnitron Sensors raised $13M so its MEMS could rid us of the spinning tops on self-driving cars (and lower costs too)
- ElevenLabs, the hot AI audio startup, confirms $180M in Series C funding at a $3.3B valuation
- Controversial genetics testing startup Nucleus Genomics raises $14M Series A
- Robotics company Progressive Robotics closes €1.55M seed funding
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- Commit Biologics, which specializes in the activation of the complement system to treat cancer and autoimmune disease, raises €5.5M in seed financing extension
- Quantum computing startup Alice & Bob raises $100M Series B to double down on R&D and open new production site
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- SoftBank to invest $500M in robotics startup SkildAI
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- Retro Biosciences, backed by Sam Altman, is raising $1B to extend human lifespan
- esVolta, a startup developing utility-scale battery energy storage projects, raised a $243M preferred equity round
- Metafuels, a Swiss-based tech for sustainable aviation fuel compatible with existing aircrafts, raised $9M in funding
- AI robotics start-up Skild AI is in talks to raise an over $300M round at a $4B valuation
- Rad AI, a healthcare AI company, raised a $60M Series C at a $525M valuation
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