News
Google's Gemini 3. 5 Flash scores within two points of Anthropic's flagship at a third of the price
5+ day, 5+ hour ago (354+ words) R&D World Google has also made 3. 5 Flash available in AI Mode in Google Search Google says 3. 5 Pro is currently in testing and will be available next month. If Flash already scores 55 on the composite intelligence index, Pro could land…...
Why Anthropic hired Open AI co-founder and Software 3. 0 proponent Karpathy and acquired the dev tools company Stainless
5+ day, 6+ hour ago (246+ words) By Brian Buntz | May 19, 2026 A 2023 Tweet from Karpathy who also helped popularize the term "vibe coding" and, later, agentic engineering. [Adobe Stock] Weeks earlier, Karpathy told Sequoia's AI Ascent audience that LLMs had become "a new programmable layer for digital…...
Defenders have months, not years, to prepare for AI-powered hacking
5+ day, 20+ hour ago (174+ words) By Brian Buntz | May 18, 2026 Instead of Spy vs. Spy, the cybersecurity world is quickly becoming AI vs. AI. The Cooling Tower result matters for R&D security leaders specifically because it is an industrial control system simulation. Lab automation controllers,…...
NVIDIA-backed robotics startup RLWRLD targets dexterous labor worth trillions with RLDX-1
6+ day, 2+ hour ago (295+ words) By Brian Buntz | May 18, 2026 The real world, as RLWRLD's name implies, is messy. Automating complex workflows has proved difficult even in knowledge work, where physics is not a constraint. In a panel discussion at the event, RLWRLD USA president Carl…...
Stanford bioengineers compress protein engineering cycle to 24 hours
6+ day, 7+ hour ago (184+ words) R&D World In a practical test, MIDAS allowed researchers to evaluate 384 protein variants with roughly four hours of hands-on lab work and about $2, 000 in reagents. By comparison, traditional cloning-based approaches would require an experienced researcher to spend approximately 192 hours…...
Why Twist Bioscience's complex genes offering is a bet on AI-driven protein design
1+ week, 2+ hour ago (252+ words) Research & Development World By Brian Buntz | May 17, 2026 That is roughly the strategic logic behind the latest product launch from the DNA synthesis firm Twist Bioscience, which is expanding its clonal genes line to cover longer and more structurally difficult sequences....
Sandia turns to lightweight AI to speed up ceramic inspections for nuclear weapons components
1+ week, 1+ day ago (466+ words) Research & Development World By Brian Buntz | May 16, 2026 At Sandia National Laboratories, inspecting ceramic components destined for nuclear deterrence applications traditionally meant lots of manual work. Inspectors would sit at a microscope for up to an hour per part where they…...
How academia is dealing with federal cuts to scientific research
1+ week, 2+ day ago (509+ words) Research & Development World By Julia Rock-Torcivia | May 15, 2026 Federal funding cuts are affecting scientists across the country. In academia, cuts are causing budget reductions, termination of ongoing research and disruption to the talent pipeline." Universities are facing a 15% cap on facilities…...
NSF bets $1. 5 B on X-Labs initiative to fund "generational breakthrough" as core budget faces proposed 55% cut
1+ week, 2+ day ago (267+ words) R&D World The NSF X-Labs initiative, announced May 14, will fund full-time teams of researchers, engineers and entrepreneurs through milestone-based awards issued as Other Transactions Agreements. The contracting mechanism bypasses traditional grant infrastructure. . The NSF X-Labs push comes as NSF…...
Hi Fi Consortium identifies genetic causes in 1 in 10 infertile couples
1+ week, 2+ day ago (481+ words) Research & Development World By Julia Rock-Torcivia | May 15, 2026 Pac Bio's Hi Fi Solves Sub-fertility Consortium published a preprint of its first major study. The study focused on couples with unexplained subfertility or recurrent pregnancy loss after standard clinical evaluation had ruled…...