{"id":19140,"date":"2026-03-06T13:37:24","date_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:37:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/06\/the-download-10-things-that-matter-in-ai-anthropics-plan-sue-pentagon\/"},"modified":"2026-03-06T13:37:24","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T13:37:24","slug":"the-download-10-things-that-matter-in-ai-anthropics-plan-sue-pentagon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/06\/the-download-10-things-that-matter-in-ai-anthropics-plan-sue-pentagon\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: 10 things that matter in AI, plus Anthropic\u2019s plan to sue the Pentagon"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

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

Coming soon: our 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now<\/strong><\/h3>\n

For years, MIT Technology Review\u2019s newsroom has been ahead of the curve, tracking the developments in AI that matter and explaining what they mean. Now, our world-leading AI team is creating something definitive: the 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now.<\/p>\n

Publishing in April to be launched at our flagship AI event, EmTech AI, this special report will reveal what our expert journalists are tracking most closely, what breakthroughs have excited them, and what transformations they see on the horizon. It\u2019s our authoritative snapshot of where AI is heading in the year ahead\u2014a curated expert list of 10 technologies, emerging trends, bold ideas, and powerful movements reshaping our world.<\/p>\n

Attendees at EmTech AI will get much more than an exclusive heads-up of what made our 10 Things That Matter in AI Right Now list. We\u2019re at a pivotal moment as AI moves from pilot testing into core business infrastructure, and to reflect that we\u2019ve curated a program that will help you navigate what\u2019s going on, and get ahead of what\u2019s coming next.\u00a0<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll hear from top leaders at OpenAI, Walmart, General Motors, Poolside, MIT, the Allen Institute for AI (Ai2) and SAG-AFTRA. Topics will include everything from how organizations are preparing for AI agents to how AI will change the future of human expression. As well as networking with speakers, you\u2019ll have the chance to mingle with MIT Technology Review\u2019s editors too.\u00a0Download readers get 10% off tickets<\/a>, so what are you waiting for? See you there!<\/p>\n

<\/h3>\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 Anthropic says it plans to sue the Pentagon<\/strong>
It believes the DoD\u2019s ban on its software is unlawful. (BBC<\/a>)\u00a0
+ CEO Dario Amodei has nonetheless apologized for a leaked memo criticizing Trump.\u00a0<\/em>(Axios<\/a>)
+ Trump, meanwhile, says he fired Anthropic \u201clike dogs.\u201d\u00a0<\/em>(The Guardian<\/a>)
+ In happier news for Anthropic, its models can remain in Microsoft products.<\/em>(CNBC<\/a>)<\/p>\n

2 The Pentagon has been secretly testing OpenAI models for years<\/strong>
Which shows exactly how effective OpenAI\u2019s ban on military use of its models has been. (Wired<\/a>\u00a0$)<\/p>\n

3 A new lawsuit says Trump\u2019s TikTok deal helped firms that \u2018personally enriched\u2019 him<\/strong>
The suit aims to reverse the sale of the app\u2019s US operations. (CBS News<\/a>)
+ It could shed light on the majority American-owned joint venture for TikTok.\u00a0<\/em>(Reuters<\/a>)<\/p>\n

4 AI could give smart homes a reboot\u00a0<\/strong>
Google and Amazon are betting on smarter assistants\u2014but not everyone\u2019s convinced (NYT<\/a>)<\/p>\n

5 Iran has struck Amazon data centers, rattling the Gulf\u2019s AI ambitions<\/strong>
The first military hit on a US hyperscaler has shaken the region\u2019s tech sector. (FT<\/a>\u00a0$)
+ The conflict has thrown a spotlight on AI\u2019s current use in warfare\u2014and what\u2019s next.<\/em>\u00a0(Nature<\/a>)<\/p>\n

6 Trump and tech CEOs have promised to protect consumers from AI\u2019s energy costs<\/strong>
Google, Microsoft, Meta, Amazon, OpenAI, Oracle and xAI have all signed the pledge. (Axios<\/a>)
+ But what is AI\u2019s true\u00a0energy footprint? We did the math.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

7 Meta\u2019s getting sued over surveillance through smart glasses\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong>
The suit claims Meta misled users over the devices\u2019 privacy features. (TechCrunch<\/a>)<\/p>\n

8 There\u2019s a new field of study: researching \u2018AI societies\u2019<\/strong>
Scientists are examining human behavior without even involving humans. (Nature<\/a>)
+ Hundreds of AI agents built their own society in Minecraft.\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)<\/p>\n

9 Oh great, teenage boys are using ChatGPT to chat up girls<\/strong>
Of all the things to outsource to AI, flirting surely ain\u2019t it.\u00a0(Vox<\/a>)<\/p>\n

10 The mythical Nintendo PlayStation has a new home\u00a0<\/strong>
The US National Video Museum has bought the fabled console\u2019s development kit. (Engadget<\/a>)<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\n

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

\u201cIt\u2019s sort of bitterly ironic.\u201d\u00a0<\/h3>\n

\u2014Dean Ball, a former Trump administration AI adviser, tells\u00a0Politico<\/a>\u00a0that the Anthropic spat contradicts the president\u2019s pledge to cut bureaucratic red tape for tech.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

One more thing<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\n
\"three<\/p>\n
KATHERINE LAM<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

These scientists are working to extend the life span of pet dogs\u2014and their owners<\/h4>\n

Gavesh\u2019s journey began with a Facebook job advert promising a better life. Instead, he was trafficked into \u201cpig butchering\u201d\u2014a form of fraud where scammers build close relationships with online targets to extract money.<\/p>\n

We spoke to Gavesh and five other workers from inside the scam industry, as well as anti-trafficking experts and technology specialists. Their testimony reveals how global tech platforms have industrialized this criminal trade\u2014and why those same companies now hold the key to dismantling it.\u00a0Read the full story<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u2014Peter Guest and Emily <\/em>Fishb<\/i>ein<\/p>\n

<\/h4>\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?\u00a0Drop me a line<\/a>\u00a0o<\/em>r\u00a0skeet \u2019em at me<\/a><\/em>.)\u00a0<\/p>\n

+ The\u00a0Blood Moon<\/a>\u00a0of March 3 was sublime.
+ Orysia Zabeida\u2019s\u00a0imperfect animations<\/a>, drawn frame-by-frame from memory, are hypnotizing.
+ This stunning snap of\u00a0a white whale calf<\/a>\u00a0scooped the top prize at the World Nature Photography Awards.
+ Two \u201cLazarus\u201d marsupial species just\u00a0came back from the dead<\/a>\u00a0in a big win for biodiversity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This is today\u2019s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter […]<\/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-19140","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19140","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=19140"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19140\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19140"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19140"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19140"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}