{"id":3968,"date":"2026-03-18T13:05:47","date_gmt":"2026-03-18T13:05:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=3968"},"modified":"2026-03-18T13:05:47","modified_gmt":"2026-03-18T13:05:47","slug":"the-download-the-pentagons-new-ai-plans-and-next-gen-nuclear-reactors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?p=3968","title":{"rendered":"The Download: The Pentagon\u2019s new AI plans, and next-gen nuclear reactors"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<p><em>This is today&#8217;s edition of <\/em><em>The Download<\/em>,<em> our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what&#8217;s going on in the world of technology.<\/em><\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The Pentagon is planning for AI companies to train on classified data,&nbsp;defense&nbsp;official says<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p>The Pentagon plans to set up secure environments for generative AI companies to train military-specific versions of their models on classified data, MIT Technology Review has learned.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>AI models like&nbsp;Anthropic&#8217;s&nbsp;Claude are already used to answer questions in classified settings, including for&nbsp;analyzing&nbsp;targets in Iran. But allowing them to train on and learn from classified data is a major new development that presents unique security risks.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>It would embed sensitive intelligence\u2014like surveillance reports or battlefield assessments\u2014into the models themselves. It would also bring AI firms closer to classified data than ever before.&nbsp;Read the full story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014James O&#8217;Donnell<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What do new nuclear reactors mean for waste?<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p>The way the world currently deals with nuclear waste is as creative as it is varied: drown it in water pools, encase it in steel, bury it hundreds of meters underground. But an approaching wave of new reactors could introduce fresh challenges to nuclear waste management.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/>&nbsp;<br \/>The&nbsp;new designs&nbsp;and materials could require some engineering solutions. And&nbsp;there\u2019s&nbsp;a huge range&nbsp;of them coming, meaning&nbsp;there\u2019s&nbsp;an equally wide range of potential waste types to handle.&nbsp;Read the full story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Casey Crownhart<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>This&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>story<\/strong><strong>&nbsp;is part of&nbsp;our&nbsp;MIT&nbsp;Technology Review Explains series, which untangles the complex, messy world of technology to show you&nbsp;what\u2019s&nbsp;coming next. Check out the full series&nbsp;<\/strong><strong>here<\/strong><strong>.<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>MIT Technology Review Narrated: how uncrewed&nbsp;narco&nbsp;subs could transform the Colombian drug trade<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h3>\n<p>For decades, handmade&nbsp;narco&nbsp;subs have been among the cocaine trade\u2019s most elusive and productive workhorses, ferrying tons of drugs from Colombia to the rest of the world.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Now off-the-shelf technology\u2014Starlink terminals, plug-and-play nautical autopilots, high-resolution video cameras\u2014may be advancing that cat-and-mouse game into a new phase.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Uncrewed subs could move more cocaine over longer distances, and they&nbsp;wouldn\u2019t&nbsp;put human smugglers at risk of capture. Law enforcement agencies are only just beginning to grapple with the consequences.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Eduardo Echeverri L\u00f3pez<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>This is our&nbsp;latest&nbsp;<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>story<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>&nbsp;to be turned into an MIT Technology Review Narrated podcast, which&nbsp;we\u2019re&nbsp;publishing each week on&nbsp;<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>Spotify<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>Apple Podcasts<\/em><\/strong><strong><em>. Just navigate to MIT Technology Review Narrated on either platform,&nbsp;and&nbsp;follow us to get all our&nbsp;new content&nbsp;as&nbsp;it\u2019s&nbsp;released.<\/em><\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>The must-reads<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>1 Nvidia has joined the&nbsp;OpenClaw&nbsp;craze with the launch of&nbsp;NemoClaw&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>It\u2019s adding privacy and security to the AI agent platform. (Business Insider)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ Chinese AI stocks surged on the news.<\/em>&nbsp;(Bloomberg&nbsp;$)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ Nvidia has also gained Beijing\u2019s approval to sell H200 chips.<\/em>&nbsp;(Reuters)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ Tech-savvy \u201cTinkerers\u201d are cashing in on China&#8217;s&nbsp;OpenClaw&nbsp;frenzy.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>2 Microsoft is mulling legal action over the&nbsp;Amazon-OpenAI cloud&nbsp;deal&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>Citing a potential violation of its exclusive partnership. (FT&nbsp;$)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>3 The Pentagon wants to mass-produce the drones it used to strike Iran&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>The kamikaze drone, called Lucas, is a copy of Iran&#8217;s Shahed UAV. (WSJ&nbsp;$)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ The&nbsp;Shaheds&nbsp;have proven highly effective in the conflict.<\/em>&nbsp;(NBC News)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ AI is turning the war into&nbsp;theater.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>4 US officials say Anthropic&nbsp;can\u2019t&nbsp;be trusted with warfighting systems&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>They want to oust the AI company from all government agencies. (Wired&nbsp;$)&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ OpenAI has taken advantage of the spat.&nbsp;<\/em>(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ Here\u2019s how GenAI may be used in strikes.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>5 China is penalizing people linked to Meta\u2019s $2 billion acquisition of Manus&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>It\u2019s seen as an attempt to stop Chinese AI leaders from relocating. (NYT)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>6 DeepSeek&nbsp;appears to be quietly&nbsp;testing a next-generation AI model&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>An official launch of the new system may be imminent. (Reuters)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ DeepSeek ripped up the AI playbook.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>7 Meta is ending VR access to Horizon Worlds in June&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>It was Meta\u2019s flagship metaverse project. (Engadget)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ And became notorious for sexual harassment.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>8 \u201cSensorveillance\u201d is turning consumer tech into tracking tools for police<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>It\u2019s turning our most personal devices into digital informants. (IEE Spectrum)&nbsp;&nbsp;<br \/><em>+ In the surveillance capitalism era, we need to rethink privacy.<\/em>&nbsp;(MIT Technology Review)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>9 Two landmark lawsuits could transform social media for the better&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>They target the dangers that the platforms pose to children. (New Scientist)&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><strong>10 A DNA discovery suggests humanity may have seeded from space&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<br \/>An asteroid&nbsp;may have transported the ingredients for life to Earth. (404 Media)&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>Quote of the day&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">\u201cIt is now the largest, most popular, the most successful open-sourced project in the history of humanity. This is&nbsp;definitely the&nbsp;next ChatGPT.\u201d&nbsp;<\/h2>\n<p>\u2014Nvidia CEO tells&nbsp;CNBC&nbsp;why&nbsp;OpenClaw&nbsp;is a big step forward for AI.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>One More Thing&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"3000\" height=\"1688\" src=\"https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg?w=3000\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1114243\" srcset=\"https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg 3000w, https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg?resize=300,169 300w, https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg?resize=768,432 768w, https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg?resize=1536,864 1536w, https:\/\/wp.technologyreview.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/04\/250404_kathleenhicks_hero_395fda.jpg?resize=2048,1152 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 3000px) 100vw, 3000px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">AP Photo\/Alex Brandon<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How the Pentagon is adapting to China\u2019s technological rise<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/h4>\n<p>It\u2019s&nbsp;been just over a year since Kathleen Hicks stepped down as US deputy secretary of&nbsp;defense.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>As the highest-ranking woman in Pentagon history, Hicks shaped US military posture through an era defined by renewed competition between powerful countries and a scramble to modernize&nbsp;defense&nbsp;technology.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In this conversation with MIT Technology Review, Hicks reflects on how the Pentagon is adapting\u2014or&nbsp;failing to adapt\u2014to a new era of geopolitical competition. She discusses China\u2019s technological rise, the future of AI in warfare, and her signature initiative: Replicator.&nbsp;Read the full story.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014Caiwei&nbsp;Chen<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p class=\"has-medium-font-size\"><strong>We can still have&nbsp;nice things&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>A place for comfort, fun and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas?&nbsp;<\/em><em>Drop me a line<\/em><em>.)<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>+ Give typing a tuneful tempo by turning your keyboard into a piano with this&nbsp;new tool.&nbsp;<br \/>+&nbsp;Barry\u2019s Border Points&nbsp;is a fascinating photographic journey through the lines that divide us.&nbsp;<br \/>+ Feast your eyes on these&nbsp;five architectural contenders&nbsp;for \u201ca new wonder of the world.&#8221;&nbsp;<br \/>+&nbsp;This Ancient Rome cosplay game&nbsp;lets you live your best gladiator life.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>#Download #Pentagons #plans #nextgen #nuclear #reactors<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This is today&#8217;s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3893,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[3896,803,1825,412,3319,675,3884,3895],"class_list":["post-3968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-stories","tag-and-next-gen-nuclear-reactors","tag-download","tag-nextgen","tag-nuclear","tag-pentagons","tag-plans","tag-reactors","tag-the-download-the-pentagon039s-new-ai-plans"],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data.jpg",1200,600,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-300x150.jpg",300,150,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-768x384.jpg",640,320,true],"large":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-1024x512.jpg",640,320,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data.jpg",1200,600,false],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data.jpg",1200,600,false],"covernews-featured":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-1024x512.jpg",1024,512,true],"covernews-medium":["https:\/\/news678.top\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/classified-data-540x340.jpg",540,340,true]},"author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/news678.top\/?author=1"},"category_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/news678.top\/?cat=7\" rel=\"category\">Stories<\/a>","tag_info":"Stories","comment_count":"0","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3968\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3893"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news678.top\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}