⤴⤵ Up Wing/Down Wing #36
A curated selection of pro-progress and anti-progress news items from the week that was
In case you missed it .. .
🤖 Why China might lead the Robot Revolution (Monday)
🎇 What if super AI happens during Trump's presidency? (Wednesday)
🚀 My chat (+transcript) with economist Matt Weinzierl on the growing business of space (Thursday)
🌅 America's new Golden Age: an update (Friday)
Up Wing Things
🚀 Private company lands a robot on the Moon. Firefly Aerospace has successfully landed its Blue Ghost lunar lander, making it only the second private company to achieve a soft landing on the Moon. Touching down in Mare Crisium, the lander is carrying ten NASA instruments to study lunar dust, heat flow, and GPS-based navigation. This mission is part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) program, which is boosting private-sector space exploration. With two more CLPS missions lined up, including a far-side landing in 2025, Firefly is solidifying its role in America’s growing lunar ambitions. As private companies continue pushing boundaries, the Moon is becoming busier than ever. (NYT)
🐁Colossal Biosciences develops woolly mice. Colossal Biosciences is making major strides in its quest to bring back the woolly mammoth, successfully altering mouse genes to mimic mammoth-like fur. Using CRISPR gene editing, researchers modified up to five genes, creating mice with long, curly, blondish fur similar to preserved mammoth specimens. This breakthrough is a crucial step toward engineering cold-resistant Asian elephants, with teams also working on elephant egg collection—a key step for future genetic modification. While challenges remain, these advancements bring Colossal closer to its 2028 goal of creating a mammoth-like elephant, potentially revolutionizing conservation and ecosystem restoration. (NS)
🚢 Singapore’s Tuas mega port is on track to become the world’s largest. Singapore’s Tuas mega port is on track to become the world’s largest. The automated container terminal will reportedly handle 65 million shipping containers annually by the 2040s. The port has already made significant progress in automation and sustainability:
The Tuas mega port has successfully handled 10 million containers since it kicked off operations in September 2022, and is expected to increase that to a massive 65 million shipping containers per year in the 2040s, when its four-phase development is complete. The electrified equipment and vehicles are said to help cut the port's carbon emission by about 50% compared to current diesel-powered machines.
With its AI-powered vessel tracking and expansion to 16 berths, Tuas will soon surpass Shanghai’s 50 million TEU (20-ft-equivalent units) record, solidifying Singapore’s role as a global shipping leader. (NA)
💵 TSMC announces a $100 billion expansion. Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co.’s (TSMC) investment is meant to expand its chip manufacturing footprint in Arizona, strengthening America’s semiconductor industry. The plan includes three new chip plants, two packaging facilities, and an R&D center, bringing TSMC’s total US investment to $165 billion. With support from the Chips Act and federal grants totalling $6.6 billion, this expansion ensures cutting-edge AI and advanced computing chips will be produced domestically, enhancing national security and supply chain resilience by reducing reliance on Taiwan for critical semiconductor technology. (WSJ)
🌱 AI is cultivating a greener future for gardening. New AI innovations are helping track plant health, optimize resources, and boost resilience. At this year’s Chelsea Flower Show, the Avanade “Intelligent” Garden will showcase AI sensors that monitor soil moisture, light levels, and sap movement, offering real-time insights that gardeners would otherwise miss. The RHS Plants for Purpose project is using machine learning to categorize 400,000 plants by their environmental benefits, helping to combat climate change. Meanwhile, AI-powered apps can already identify plants, insects, and birds, making gardening more accessible and informed. As AI develops, it’s becoming a powerful companion, ensuring healthier plants and more sustainable gardens for the future. (FT)
☀️ Stick-on solar film brings clean energy anywhere. The future of affordable, lightweight solar power is coming within reach. UK-based Power Roll has developed a thin, flexible solar film that can be applied virtually anywhere, from rooftops to remote areas, making clean energy more accessible than ever. The company’s innovative design is driving major efficiency gains:
The new design also increased the number of grooves in each component of the back-contact perovskite solar cell, from 16 to 362. That improved power conversion efficiencies (PCEs) by up to 12.8%.
Mass production is on the horizon, with the company aiming to generate 1 GW of electricity in the near future. This game-changing solar tech could transform how we power the world. (NA)
🔧 A shop class revival presents new career opportunities. High schools across the US are revamping shop classes, equipping students with hands-on skills in manufacturing, construction, and engineering. Schools like Middleton High in Wisconsin have seen a surge in enrollment, with over 25 percent of students signing up for vocational courses. Programs offer training in high-demand fields, where jobs like welders, electricians, and automotive technicians can lead to six-figure salaries. Investment is growing in areas like Ohio, where schools are offering incentives to provide industry-certifying classes, helping students secure jobs or transition to trade schools. With rising college costs and AI reshaping white-collar work, shop class is making a major comeback, offering students more career options than ever. (WSJ)
🛰️ DARPA aims to grow giant biological structures in space. The future of space construction is about to get a major upgrade. DARPA is developing ways to grow massive biomechanical structures in microgravity, potentially revolutionizing how we build in orbit. Instead of launching heavy, costly components from Earth, scientists are exploring directional growth using biological organisms to form kilometer-scale antennas, debris-collecting nets, and even space elevator tethers. The challenge? Controlling growth without gravity and integrating these structures with electronics. While still early-stage, this breakthrough could pave the way for self-assembling space infrastructure—unlocking cheaper, faster, and larger-scale manufacturing in space. (NS)
🧠 Start-up unveils first brain cell-powered computer. Melbourne-based Cortical Labs has launched CL1, the world’s first commercial biological computer, powered by lab-grown human neurons. This breakthrough system, which learned to play Pong in 2022, offers unmatched efficiency, using just a few watts of power compared to energy-hungry AI models. Scientists see vast potential for its applications in medical research and artificial intelligence:
It could be 'disease modelling, or drug testing,' Dr. Kagan said. But their ultimate goal, and what they've pushed at this conference, is to use these tiny collections of neurons as a type of biological AI. 'We're looking to harness these cells for intelligence.'
While ethical concerns remain, scientists emphasize that these neurons lack consciousness, making them a powerful tool for research and innovation. The brain-powered future is here. (AuBC)
🚀 Ariane 6 restores Europe’s independent access to space. The Ariane 6 rocket successfully launched its first operational mission, deploying the CSO-3 reconnaissance satellite for the French military. This marks a key step in Europe’s effort to maintain independent access to space, following the retirement of Ariane 5 and the loss of Russian Soyuz launches. Developed for $4 billion, Ariane 6 aims to be a more cost-effective alternative, though its €80–100 million per launch price remains higher than SpaceX’s Falcon 9. Despite this, European officials see Ariane 6 as essential for strategic autonomy, ensuring that key missions do not depend on US or other foreign launch providers. (Ars)
🤖 AI Thunderforge enhances US military planning. Scale AI has secured a multimillion-dollar contract with the US Department of Defense to power Thunderforge, an AI system designed to accelerate military decision-making. Spearheaded by the Defense Innovation Unit, the program will deploy AI agents for wargaming, strategic planning, and real-time battlefield analysis—giving US forces an edge in speed and precision. With global partners like Microsoft and Anduril, Thunderforge marks a decisive shift toward AI-powered warfare, ensuring rapid, data-driven responses to emerging threats. (CNBC)
🔬 Scientists achieve a new diabetes breakthrough. For the first time, a patient with type 1 diabetes has lived insulin-free for a year after receiving lab-grown β cells from her own stem cells. This groundbreaking achievement, led by researchers in China, could revolutionize diabetes treatment. By reprogramming a patient’s own cells, scientists have created functional insulin-producing islets, eliminating the need for donor tissue. New transplantation sites—like the abdominal cavity—are improving long-term success. At the same time, further research is being done to develop immune-evasive cells to remove the need for immunosuppressants. A cure for diabetes is closer than ever. (The Scientist)
On sale everywhere ⏩ The Conservative Futurist: How To Create the Sci-Fi World We Were Promised
Down Wing Things
⚡ EV charging infrastructure is failing to keep up. The biggest roadblock to widespread EV adoption isn’t range—it’s charging station availability. While most EV owners charge at home, the lack of fast, reliable public chargers is making long-distance travel and daily use highly impractical for many. A 2022 Forbes survey found that 62 percent of EV owners have had to scrap travel plans due to charging concerns. Even worse, DC fast-charging stations are expensive—with just one four-port station costing up to $725,000 to install. Without major cost reductions and better infrastructure, the EV revolution risks stalling. Until charging becomes as convenient as gas stations, mass adoption will remain an uphill battle. (IEEE)
📉 Trump’s CHIPS reversal sparks uncertainty. Congress and the semiconductor industry are scrambling to interpret Trump’s call to “get rid of” the CHIPS Act, a $52.7 billion law that has already spurred $400 billion in private investments and 50,000 jobs. While some Republicans back the program, others are waiting for more details from the administration:
Indiana Sen. Todd Young, a vocal advocate for CHIPS among Republicans, told reporters he had reached out to the White House for clarification, and his spokesperson said that Trump’s comments ‘are not consistent with the extensive conversations we’ve had with the administration about the many successes and future of the CHIPS program.’
Despite Trump’s opposition, key projects, including TSMC’s $100 billion expansion, remain in motion, leaving lawmakers uncertain about how, or if, the CHIPS Act will change. (Politico)
💻 US government guts its own tech experts. The shutdown of 18F, a key government tech team, marks a major setback for digital modernization. This in-house group helped agencies streamline services, from healthcare applications to environmental damage tracking and even the National Weather Service's forecast site. Their work saved taxpayer dollars by preventing costly IT failures. Now, with Elon Musk taking control of the rebranded Department of Government Efficiency, expertise is being replaced by chaos. With 85 experts laid off and no clear replacement, essential projects like Direct File tax filing for 30 million Americans face an uncertain future. The government’s digital transformation just hit a massive roadblock. (NS)
💥 Failed Starship test sends debris flying, causing air traffic disruptions. SpaceX’s latest Starship test flight ended in failure Thursday when its upper stage exploded in space, marking the second consecutive test where the spacecraft lost control. Debris from the breakup disrupted flights from Miami to Philadelphia, prompting an FAA ground stoppage. Starship’s booster successfully landed, but the upper stage suffered engine failures before tumbling out of control. The FAA has grounded Starship pending an investigation. With NASA relying on Starship for the Artemis III moon mission, setbacks like this raise questions about the timeline—and whether a Trump administration shift to Mars could reshape the program entirely. (NYT)
📜 EU pushes back on US criticism of tech law. European lawmakers are rejecting claims that the Digital Markets Act (DMA) unfairly targets US tech giants like Apple, Google, and Meta. In a formal response to US officials, they emphasize the law's role in promoting fair competition:
"Given the importance of our shared values in promoting fair competition and innovation, it is essential that we align our efforts to address the challenges posed by dominant digital platforms," the note said. It was signed by nine members of the European parliament, including France’s Stephanie Yon-Courtin and Germany’s Andreas Schwab.
Critics argue the DMA disproportionately impacts US firms while sparing European companies. US lawmakers, including Jim Jordan, have questioned why American tech giants are labeled "gatekeepers" while European firms face fewer restrictions. (WSJ)
🧪 Microplastics are everywhere, making us sick. Microplastics have invaded our bodies, showing up in blood, lungs, liver, and even the brain. A 2024 study found that people with microplastics in their blood vessels were 4.5 times more likely to suffer a heart attack or stroke. Worse, research suggests these plastic particles could contribute to neurodegeneration, inflammation, and even cancer. With up to 40 million tons of microplastics released into the environment annually—and with that number expected to double by 2040—this crisis is only getting worse. Without serious action to reduce plastic consumption, we may be facing a public health disaster (Cosmos)