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In China, robotics firm UBTech has opened what it calls the world's first high-volume humanoid robot factory, a fourteen-thousand square meter facility capable of producing one android every ten minutes, adding up to ten thousand units per year. The plant itself relies heavily on autonomous machines to build other machines — a detail that says something about where this industry is heading.
Shifting to a quieter but pointed debate in Washington, the US House of Representatives has passed legislation that would require automakers to include AM radio as standard equipment in new vehicles, at no extra cost to buyers. Manufacturers including Tesla, Volvo, and BMW had been quietly dropping the century-old technology, citing interference issues in electric vehicles. Supporters of the bill argue AM remains a lifeline during emergencies when other networks fail.
And on the AI safety front, computer scientist Stuart Russell has published a pointed op-ed in The Guardian arguing that simply slowing the pace of AI development is not enough to ensure safety. Russell, one of the field's most respected voices, contends that meaningful safety requires structural changes in how these systems are designed and governed — not just a pause button.
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