{"id":20075,"date":"2026-03-25T13:03:06","date_gmt":"2026-03-25T13:03:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/25\/the-download-reawakening-frozen-brains-and-the-ai-hype-index-returns\/"},"modified":"2026-03-25T13:03:06","modified_gmt":"2026-03-25T13:03:06","slug":"the-download-reawakening-frozen-brains-and-the-ai-hype-index-returns","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/2026\/03\/25\/the-download-reawakening-frozen-brains-and-the-ai-hype-index-returns\/","title":{"rendered":"The Download: reawakening frozen brains, and the AI Hype Index returns"},"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

This scientist rewarmed and studied pieces of his friend\u2019s cryopreserved brain<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h3>\n

L. Stephen\u00a0Coles\u2019s\u00a0brain sits in a vat at a storage facility in Arizona. It has been held there at a temperature of around \u2212146 degrees \u00b0C for over a decade,\u00a0largely undisturbed. Before he died in 2014, Coles had the brain frozen with an ambitious goal in mind: reanimation.\u00a0<\/p>\n

His friend, cryobiologist Greg Fahy, believes it could be revived one day. But other experts are less optimistic.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Still, Fahy\u2019s research could lead to new ways to study the brain. And using cryopreservation for organ transplantation is becoming\u00a0a viable\u00a0reality.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Read the full story to find out what the future holds for the technology<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2014Jessica\u00a0Hamzelou<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

The AI Hype Index<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h3>\n

Separating AI reality from hyped-up fiction\u00a0isn\u2019t\u00a0always easy.\u00a0That\u2019s\u00a0why\u00a0we\u2019ve\u00a0created the AI Hype Index\u2014a simple, at-a-glance summary of everything you need to know about the state of the industry. Take\u00a0a look at this month\u2019s edition<\/a>.\u00a0
\u00a0<\/p>\n

MIT Technology Review Narrated: how Pok\u00e9mon Go is giving delivery robots an inch-perfect view of the world\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h3>\n

Pok\u00e9mon Go was the world\u2019s first augmented-reality megahit. Released in 2016 by Niantic, the AR twist on the juggernaut Pok\u00e9mon franchise fast became a global phenomenon. \u201c500 million people installed that app in 60 days,\u201d says Brian McClendon, CTO at Niantic Spatial, an AI company that Niantic spun out last year.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Now Niantic Spatial is using that vast trove of crowdsourced data\u00a0to build a kind of world model<\/a>\u2014a buzzy\u00a0new technology\u00a0that grounds the smarts of LLMs in real environments. The firm wants to use it to help robots navigate more precisely.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2014Will Douglas Heaven<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is our latest\u00a0<\/strong>story<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0to be turned into an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0publishing each week on\u00a0<\/strong>Spotify<\/strong><\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<\/strong>Apple Podcasts<\/strong><\/a>. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform,\u00a0and\u00a0follow us to get all our\u00a0new content\u00a0as\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0released.<\/strong>\u00a0<\/p>\n

The next era of space exploration<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h3>\n

Our footprint in the solar system is rapidly expanding. Programs to build permanent Moon bases and find life on Mars have transitioned from science fiction to active space agency missions. The scientists behind them will not only shed new light on the\u00a0cosmos, but\u00a0also reveal where humanity is headed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

To examine what the future holds in store, MIT Technology Review features editor Amanda Silverman will sit down today with award-winning science journalist and author Robin George Andrews for an exclusive subscriber-only Roundtable conversation about \u201cThe Next Era of Space Exploration.\u201d\u00a0Register here<\/a>\u00a0to join the session at 16:00 GMT \/ 12:00 PM ET \/ 9:00 AM PT.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The must-reads\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve\u00a0combed the internet to find you today\u2019s most fun\/important\/scary\/fascinating stories about technology.<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

1 OpenAI is shutting down AI video generator Sora\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0
The app attracted at least as much controversy as acclaim. (CNBC<\/a>)\u00a0
+ Closing it means saying goodbye to $1 billion from Disney.<\/em>\u00a0(BBC<\/a>)\u00a0
+ OpenAI is cutting back on side projects ahead of an expected IPO.\u00a0<\/em>(WSJ<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+ But\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0focusing its efforts on building a fully automated researcher.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

2 A judge suspects the Pentagon is illegally punishing Anthropic<\/strong>\u00a0
She labelled the DoD\u2019s ban \u201ctroubling.\u201d (Bloomberg<\/a>)\u00a0
+ Anthropic and the Pentagon are facing off in court.\u00a0<\/em>(Guardian<\/a>)\u00a0
+ The DoD wants AI companies to train on classified data.\u00a0<\/em>(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

3 Meta has been ordered to pay $375 million for endangering children online<\/strong>\u00a0
Prosecutors said the company knew it put children at risk. (Engadget<\/a>)\u00a0
+ Meta is offering its top talent stock options as incentives for its AI push.<\/em>\u00a0(CNBC<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

4 Arm will sell its own computer chips for the first time<\/strong>\u00a0
It\u2019s\u00a0aimed at data\u00a0centers\u00a0that run AI tasks. (NYT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+ Arm stock jumped 13% on the news.\u00a0<\/em>(CNBC<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

5 Manus\u2019s founders have been barred from leaving China following Meta\u2019s takeover<\/strong>\u00a0
Beijing is reviewing the $2 billion acquisition of the AI startup.\u00a0<\/em>(FT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0<\/p>\n

6 Baltimore has sued\u00a0xAI\u00a0over\u00a0Grok\u2019s\u00a0fake nude images\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0
The chatbot allegedly violated consumer protections. (Guardian<\/a>)\u00a0
+\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0a big market for pornographic deepfakes of real women.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

7 NASA plans to send a nuclear-powered spacecraft to Mars in 2028<\/strong>\u00a0
It\u2019ll\u00a0take a payload of Ingenuity-class helicopters to the Red Planet. (NYT<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+ NASA also wants to put a $20 billion\u00a0base\u00a0on the Moon.\u00a0<\/em>(The Verge<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

8 A company is secretly turning Zoom meetings into AI-generated podcasts<\/strong>\u00a0
WebinarTV\u00a0turns the calls into content without telling anyone. (404 Media<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

9 Iranian volunteers have built their own missile warning map<\/strong>\u00a0
It fills the gap left by Iran\u2019s lack of a public emergency alert tool. (Wired<\/a>\u00a0$)\u00a0
+ Here\u2019s where OpenAI\u2019s tech could show up in Iran.<\/em>\u00a0(MIT Technology Review<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

10 A nonprofit is sending basic income payments to AI-impacted workers<\/strong>\u00a0
It\u2019s\u00a0starting by giving 25-50 people $1,000 per month. (Gizmodo<\/a>)\u00a0<\/p>\n

Quote of the day\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI am\u00a0first and foremost\u00a0a scientist. My goal is to understand nature. But doing science is, sort of, like reading the mind of God.\u201d<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h2>\n

\u2014DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis shares his approach to AI strategy with\u00a0the FT<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

One More Thing\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n
\"many<\/p>\n
EVA REDAMONTI<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Inside the hunt for the most dangerous asteroid ever\u00a0<\/strong>\u00a0<\/h4>\n

As asteroid 2024 YR4 hurtled toward Earth, astronomers\u00a0determined\u00a0that this massive rock posed a higher risk of impact than any object of its size in recorded history. Then, just as quickly as history was made, experts declared that the danger had passed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This is the inside story of the network of global scientists who found, followed, planned for, and finally dismissed the most dangerous asteroid ever found\u2014all under the tightest of timelines and with the highest of stakes.\u00a0Find out how they did it<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u2014Robin George Andrews<\/em>\u00a0<\/p>\n

We can still have\u00a0nice things\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas?\u00a0<\/em>Drop me a line<\/em><\/a>.)<\/em>\u00a0
\u00a0
+ Soothe subscription fatigue with\u00a0this simple cancellation tool<\/a>.\u00a0
+\u00a0Takashi Murakami\u2019s\u00a0reimagined Monets<\/a>\u00a0are pop-art magic.\u00a0
+ Jump into a rabbit hole with this app that\u00a0visualizes links<\/a>\u00a0between Wikipedia pages.\u00a0
+ This\u00a0playful lynx<\/a>\u00a0that snatched the top prize in a photo competition is a delight.\u00a0<\/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-20075","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-technology"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20075","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=20075"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20075\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=20075"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=20075"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ideainthebox.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=20075"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}