DTN 126: Deep Sea Desalination

Deep-Sea Desalination Pulls Fresh Water from the Depths

“From Cape Town to Tehran to Lima to Phoenix, dozens of cities across the globe have experienced water shortages recently. And in the next five years the world’s demand for fresh water could significantly outpace supply, according to a United Nations forecast. Now several companies are turning to an unexpected source for a solution: the bottom of the ocean.”

Scientific American

• US embeds trackers in AI chip shipments to catch diversions to China, sources say
• NASA has sparked a race to develop the data pipeline to Mars
• Brain device that reads inner thoughts aloud inspires strategies to protect mental privacy
• Taiwan’s “silicon shield” could be weakening
• Army sees 3D printing taking off ‘very, very soon’
• Trump administration considers stake in Intel
• DOE to deliver $1B for critical mineral projects
• Anduril opens solid rocket motor factory amidst ongoing chemical chokepoint
• Vulcan Centaur rocket launches experimental military satellite on its 1st-ever US Space Force mission
• Biotech industry goes six months without an IPO
• Fuel constraints impact uptake of autonomy in orbit, colonel says
• Semiconductor rivalry rages on in high-temperature chips
• America's clean hydrogen dreams are fading, again
• Intuitive Machines to build its own lunar communications satellites
• Chinese launch startup unveils autonomous rocket recovery ship
• Booz Allen Ventures hungry for more space investments
• Biochips could transform AI’s energy efficiency
• Department of Energy announces initial selections for new reactor pilot program
• How the FAA’s new BVLOS proposal could unlock the next phase of US drone operations

Screenshot of the video demo that showcases new AI-powered tool of potential use in quantum computers

A research team created a cartoon video of Schrödinger’s cat to illustrate a breakthrough system for rapidly rearranging thousands of atoms, a critical step toward building quantum computers, which rely on qubits for their computational power. In the video, each yellow dot represents one of 549 rubidium atoms being precisely moved within an array just 230 microns wide. The atoms fluoresce in response to a laser, allowing their positions to be tracked in real time. To efficiently guide the atoms to their target locations, the researchers developed an AI model that calculates the optimal laser path on the fly. The process is extremely fast—the video is slowed down by a factor of 33—and highly scalable: the system currently handles up to 2,024 atoms, with the potential to scale to thousands more. (via Science) 

• Cornell researchers develop invisible light-based watermark to detect deepfakes
• Using sound to remember quantum information 30 times longer
• Advancing semiconductor interconnects for next-gen transistors
• This device uses light to fly
• The first all-carbon ring that’s stable at room temperature
• CREAM: avoiding collisions in space through automation
• Finding the shadows in a fusion system faster with AI
• Optical magnetometer measures magnetic field direction for the first time
• Bioelectrosynthesis platform enables switch-like, precision control of cell signaling
• Cleaning up space with gecko technology
• Energy-efficient ultracompact laser reduces light loss in all directions
• Thin films, big science: chemists expand imaging possibilities with new X-ray material
• Fruit fly study achieves first transfer of behavior between species through single gene manipulation
• Engineered telomerase RNA and polygenic scores reveal new insights into telomere biology
• Graphene capacitors achieve rapid, high-depth modulation of terahertz waves
• AI-designed DNA repair templates improve gene editing precision
• AI automatically designs optimal drug candidates for cancer-targeting mutations
• Quantum dot technique improves multi-photon state generation
• Wafer-scale nano-fabrication of multi-layer diffractive optical processors enables unidirectional visible imaging
• Powerful form of quantum interference paves the way for phonon-based technologies
• This quantum radar could image buried objects
• Self-assembling nanoparticles at room temp could transform drug delivery

• Perplexity makes longshot $34.5B offer for Chrome
• Fertility startup Gameto raises $44M to fund phase 3 study of stem cell IVF therapy
• Tony Robbins’ and Peter Diamandis’ longevity company Fountain Life raises $18M
• Life sciences investor Portal Innovations eyes $100M seed fund
• Celestial AI raises $255M to solve the scalability demands of modern AI infrastructure 
• Claros raises $10M for its suite of environmental solutions that address PFAS destruction 
• VC firm Hatteras closes $200M for life sciences as it reaches 100th investment
• India-based electric motorcycle startup, Ultraviolette, raises $21M in funding
• Squint raises $40M Series B for its manufacturing intelligence platform
• Jocasta Neuroscience lands $35M Series A to advance longevity protein program for managing cognitive impairment
• Celera Semiconductor raises $20M in Series A equity funding
• Clean energy company Aira raises €150M in equity funding
• Biotech startup Tahoe Therapeutics raises $30M to build AI models of living cells

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