SUSTAINABILITY
A group of more than 200 financial services firms and organizations, including investors representing €6.6 trillion in AUM, announced the release of a new investor statement, warning the European Commission that easing its key sustainability reporting regulations could lead to significant policy uncertainty, and risk the flow of capital towards the EU’s environmental sustainability goals. The statement follows the release last week by the EU Commission of its new roadmap aimed at boosting Europe’s productivity and global competitiveness. Among the first initiatives to be undertaken is an “Omnibus” package, set to be proposed later this month, which the Commission said will “cover a far-reaching simplification in the fields of sustainable finance reporting, sustainability due diligence and taxonomy.” DETAIL
Pharmaceutical supply chain decarbonization startup Energize announced today that it has signed a new bulk power purchase agreement (PPA) with renewable energy developer X-ELIO, which will provide 245 GWh of renewable energy per year for 10 years to healthcare companies Haleon and GSK, Gilead Sciences and Thermo Fisher Scientific. DETAIL
NASA is working to comply with President Donald Trump’s crusade targeting diversity and inclusion at federal agencies, reportedly scrapping key terms from its websites related to accessibility, indigenous people, women, and other topics deemed “wasteful” by the current administration. DETAIL
The U.S. Department of Energy will prioritize expanding energy production over achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions, according to an order issued on Wednesday by Energy Secretary Chris Wright. The secretarial order is meant to align the department with priorities outlined by President Donald Trump, who has called climate change a hoax and has vowed to maximize already record-high oil and gas output. DETAIL
Google tripled its carbon removal credit purchases in 2024, investing over $100M to accelerate solutions. Focused efforts include restoring natural carbon sinks, enhancing rock weathering, and optimizing biomass use. Investments in direct air capture aim to drive down costs and scale long-term climate solutions. DETAIL
HEALTH
In a new study conducted with 36 pregnant women, scientists in Mexico found that classical music has a calming effect on the heart rate of babies in the womb, which may support the healthy development of the baby's vital systems. DETAIL
Ireland has become the latest European country to detect a new strain of monkeypox that is sweeping across Central Africa. The Irish patient had recently returned from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the epicentre of the outbreak that has infected thousands of people since the new strain was first detected in 2023. DETAIL
A new study has found that humans tend to have higher concentrations of microplastics in the brain compared to other bodily organs. Researchers also found that people diagnosed with dementia have up to 10 times more microplastics present in their brains than those without the condition. DETAIL
A small study finds that a juicing-only diet can cause potentially harmful changes to our gut and mouth bacteria in as little as three days. DETAIL
DIGITAL / TECHNOLOGY / SCIENCE / ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE
Scientists have discovered a new type of fungus in Ireland and Wales that is pulling cave spiders out of their burrows and turning them into zombies. The fungus, called Gibellula attenboroughii, infects the spider and then takes control of its body. The fungus uses the spider's body as a host to produce spores, causing dozens of spiders to emerge that wander around in zombie form despite being dead. DETAIL
A proposed new law would make it illegal for Americans to download the popular Chinese AI app DeepSeek. On Monday, Sen. Josh Hawley, the Republican senator from Missouri, introduced legislation that would "prohibit the import from or export to China of artificial intelligence technology." DETAIL
Google has removed a section of its AI policy that said it would not use the technology for surveillance or weapons applications. The company’s previous policy, first published in 2018, stated that it would not pursue any AI development that could cause harm and that it would not design or deploy AI tools that could be used for weapons or surveillance technology. DETAIL
On September 24, 2182, a relatively large space rock has a 0.037% chance of crashing onto the surface of Earth. Although the chances of impact are slim, Bennu is still one of the most potentially hazardous known asteroids in our solar system, and we need to be prepared for what could come. A first-of-its-kind study simulated the planet-wide damage that would be caused by Bennu’s unlikely impact, leading to a sudden onset of winter and global food shortages. DETAIL
Apple has introduced Apple Invites, a new app designed to make event planning and invitation management easier for users. The app allows iPhone users to create and share custom invitations and manage events. DETAIL
ENERGY / TRANSPORTATION
Turkey has doubled its solar capacity in just two and a half years, exceeding its current target more than a year ahead of schedule. This progress demonstrates Turkey’s potential to raise the targets in its Nationally Determined Contribution, which is due to be updated. DETAIL
The French motorway company Vinci Autoroutes wants to test inductive charging of electric vehicles while driving on a 1.5 km section of the A10 close to the town of Angervilliers near Paris. However, this is currently a small-scale test - with just four vehicles. DETAIL
Corvus Energy will supply an LFP battery system with almost 25 MWh capacity for the first all-electric offshore vessel ever built. The vessel is an electric Commissioning Service Operation Vessel (eCSOV) being built by the Armon shipyard in Spain for UK-based ship owner Bibby Marine and is due to enter service in 2027. DETAIL
CYBERSECURITY
Grubhub, the food delivery service, has been hacked. On Monday, the company confirmed a data breach that affects both its drivers and customers. According to Grubhub, the malicious actor was able to gain entry into its systems via a third-party vendor that provides services for Grubhub's support team. DETAIL
A medical device used in hospitals has been found hosting a backdoor, paving the way for an unauthorized user to remotely control and tamper with the equipment. The threat was discovered in three firmware versions for a patient monitor called the Contec CMS8000 (also sold as the Epsimed MN-120), which can display a user’s vitals, including heart rate, according to an advisory from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). DETAIL
Even if you install just a single app on your factory-reset iPhone and ask it “Not to Track,” you still expose yourself to a vast tracking ecosystem and anyone willing to purchase your location and other sensitive data. DETAIL
Reps. Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.) and Darin LaHood (R-Ill.) on Thursday introduced a bill that aims to ban the use of DeepSeek on government-issued devices. The duo cited a study conducted by Feroot Security, which found direct links between the app and Chinese government-owned China Mobile, as the reason for the ban. DETAIL
CURIOSITY
The British rock band The Beatles' song Now and Then, completed with the help of artificial intelligence in November 2023, was deemed worthy of an award in the "Best Rock Performance" category at the 67th Grammy Awards.