{"id":16817,"date":"2026-01-22T13:42:51","date_gmt":"2026-01-22T13:42:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/22\/the-download-yann-lecun-lithium-rise\/"},"modified":"2026-01-22T13:42:51","modified_gmt":"2026-01-22T13:42:51","slug":"the-download-yann-lecun-lithium-rise","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/01\/22\/the-download-yann-lecun-lithium-rise\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: Yann LeCun\u2019s new venture, and lithium\u2019s on the rise"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

This is today\u2019s edition of\u00a0The Download<\/a><\/em>,\u00a0our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what\u2019s going on in the world of technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Yann LeCun\u2019s new venture is a contrarian bet against large language models\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Yann LeCun is a Turing Award recipient and a top AI researcher, but he has long been a contrarian figure in the tech world. He believes that the industry\u2019s current obsession with large language models is wrong-headed and will ultimately fail to solve many pressing problems.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Instead, he thinks we should be betting on world models\u2014a different type of AI that accurately reflects the dynamics of the real world. Perhaps it\u2019s no surprise, then, that he recently left Meta, where he had served as chief scientist for FAIR (Fundamental AI Research), the company\u2019s influential research lab that he founded.\u00a0<\/p>\n

LeCun sat down with MIT Technology Review in an exclusive online interview from his Paris apartment to discuss his new venture, life after Meta, the future of artificial intelligence, and why he thinks the industry is chasing the wrong ideas.\u00a0Read the full interview<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2014Caiwei Chen<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Why 2026 is a hot year for lithium<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u2014Casey Crownhart<\/em><\/p>\n

In 2026, I\u2019m going to be closely watching the price of lithium.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re not in the habit of obsessively tracking commodity markets, I certainly don\u2019t blame you. (Though the news lately definitely makes the case that minerals can have major implications for global politics and the economy.)<\/p>\n

But lithium is worthy of a close look right now. The metal is crucial for lithium-ion batteries used in phones and laptops, electric vehicles, and large-scale energy storage arrays on the grid.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Prices have been on quite the roller coaster over the last few years, and they\u2019re ticking up again. What happens next could have big implications for mining and battery technology.\u00a0Read the full story<\/a>.\u00a0This story first appeared in The Spark, our newsletter all about the tech we can use to combat the climate crisis.\u00a0Sign up<\/a>\u00a0to receive it in your inbox every Wednesday.<\/strong>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

The must-reads<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve combed the internet to find you today\u2019s most fun\/important\/scary\/fascinating stories about technology.<\/em><\/p>\n

1 Trump has climbed down from his plan for the US to take Greenland\u00a0<\/strong>
To the relief of many across Europe. (BBC<\/a>)
+\u00a0Trump says he\u2019s agreed a deal to access Greenland\u2019s rare earths. Experts say that\u2019s \u2018bonkers.\u2019<\/em>\u00a0(CNN<\/a>)
+\u00a0European leaders are feeling flummoxed about what\u2019s going on<\/em>. (FT<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n

2 Apple is reportedly developing a wearable AI pin<\/strong>
It\u2019s still in the very early stages\u2014but this could be a huge deal if it makes it to launch.\u00a0(The Information<\/a>\u00a0$)
+ It\u2019s also planning to revamp Siri and turn it into an AI chatbot. (Bloomberg<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0Are we ready to trust AI with our bodies?\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

3 CEOs say AI saves people time. Their employees disagree.<\/strong>
Many even say that it\u2019s currently dragging\u00a0down<\/em>\u00a0their productivity. (WSJ<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0The AI boom will increase US carbon emissions\u2014but it doesn\u2019t have to.<\/em>\u00a0(Wired<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0Let\u2019s also not forget that large language models remain a security nightmare.<\/em>\u00a0(IEEE Spectrum<\/a>)<\/p>\n

4 This chart shows how measles cases are exploding in America<\/strong>
They\u2019ve hit a 30-year high, with the US on track to lose its \u2018elimination status.\u2019 (Axios<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0Things are poised to get even worse this year.\u00a0<\/em>(Wired<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n

5 Your first humanoid robot coworker will almost definitely be Chinese<\/strong>
But will it be truly useful? That\u2019s the even bigger question. (Wired<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says Europe could do more to compete in robotics and AI.\u00a0<\/em>(CNBC<\/a>)<\/p>\n

6 Bezos\u2019 Blue Origin is about to compete with Starlink<\/strong>
It plans to send the first \u2018TeraWave\u2019 satellites into space next year. (Reuters<\/a>\u00a0$)
+\u00a0On the ground in Ukraine\u2019s largest Starlink repair shop.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

7 Trump\u2019s family made $1.4 billion off crypto last year\u00a0<\/strong>
Move along, no conflicts of interest to see here. (Bloomberg<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n

8 Comic-Con has banned AI art<\/strong>
After an artist-led backlash last week. (404 Media<\/a>)
+\u00a0Hundreds of creatives are warning against an AI future built on \u2018theft on a grand scale\u2019.<\/em>\u00a0(The Verge<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n

9 What it\u2019s like living without a smartphone for a month<\/strong>
Potentially blissful for you, but probably a bit annoying for everyone else. (The Guardian<\/a>)
+\u00a0Why teens with ADHD are particularly vulnerable to the perils of social media.<\/em>\u00a0(Nature<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

10 Elon Musk is feuding with a budget airline\u00a0<\/strong>
The airline is winning, in case you wondered. (WP<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Quote of the day<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn\u2019t edit anything about Donald Trump, because the man makes me insane.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2014Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales tells\u00a0Wired<\/a>\u00a0why he\u2019s steering clear of the US President\u2019s page. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

One more thing<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\"\"<\/p>\n
BOB O\u2019CONNOR<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

How electricity could help tackle a surprising climate villain<\/h4>\n

Cement hides in plain sight\u2014it\u2019s used to build everything from roads and buildings to dams and basement floors. But it\u2019s also a climate threat. Cement production accounts for more than 7% of global carbon dioxide emissions\u2014more than sectors like aviation, shipping, or landfills.<\/p>\n

One solution to this climate catastrophe might be coursing through the pipes at Sublime Systems. The startup is developing an entirely new way to make cement. Instead of heating crushed-up rocks in lava-hot kilns, Sublime\u2019s technology zaps them in water with electricity, kicking off chemical reactions that form the main ingredients in its cement.<\/p>\n

But it faces huge challenges: competing with established industry players, and persuading builders to use its materials in the first place.\u00a0Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Casey Crownhart<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

We can still have nice things<\/strong><\/p>\n

A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? <\/em>Drop me a line<\/em><\/a> or <\/em>skeet \u2019em at me<\/em><\/a>.)<\/em><\/p>\n

+ Earth may be a garbage fire, but space is\u00a0beautiful<\/a>.\u00a0
+ Do you know how to tie your shoelaces up properly?\u00a0Are you sure<\/a>?!
+ I defy British readers not to feel a pang of nostalgia at these\u00a0crisp packets<\/a>.
+ Going to bed around the\u00a0same time every night<\/a>\u00a0seems to be a habit worth adopting. ($)<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is today\u2019s edition of\u00a0The Download,\u00a0our weekday newsletter that provides […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[226],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16817","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16817","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16817"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16817\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16817"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16817"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16817"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}