Governance, Legislation, and Geostrategies
As tensions grow, an Australian AI safety institute is a no-brainer
(Greg Sadler – The Strategist – 8 April 2025) Australia needs to deliver its commitment under the Seoul Declaration to create an Australian AI safety, or security, institute. Australia is the only signatory to the declaration that has yet to meet its commitments. Given the broader erosion of global norms, now isn’t the time to break commitments to allies and partners such as Britain, South Korea and the European Union. China has also entered this space: it has created an AI safety institute, signalled intent to collaborate with the Western network of such organisations and commented on the global governance of increasingly powerful AI systems. – https://www.aspistrategist.org.au/as-tensions-grow-an-australian-ai-safety-institute-is-a-no-brainer/
Ghost of the Machine: India’s Quantum Ambitions Confront Hardware Limits, Lead Physicist Persists
(Quantum Insider – 8 April 2025) India has developed a comprehensive quantum strategy through its National Quantum Mission, integrating research, workforce training, and commercial efforts. The country still lacks a domestically built quantum computer, exposing it to hardware export controls and limiting its autonomy in the global quantum landscape. Physicist Rajamani Vijayaraghavan’s lab at TIFR leads a key indigenous effort, but faces delays due to procurement rules, funding bottlenecks, and administrative hurdles. India’s ability to lead in quantum will depend on building domestic hardware, improving research infrastructure, and retaining talent through stronger industry-academic partnerships. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/08/ghost-of-the-machine-indias-quantum-ambitions-confront-hardware-limits-lead-physicist-persists/
Governing AI for the Future of Humanity
(Nudhara Yusuf, Julian Mueller-Kaler, Juliana Lozano-Jaramillo – Stimson Center – 7 April 2025) At the 2024 UN Summit of the Future on September 22, 2024, Member States adopted a Declaration on Future Generations and a Global Digital Compact, marking a pivotal moment in international efforts to govern emerging technologies responsibly. The Declaration focuses on ensuring governance systems act in solidarity with future generations and the Compact emphasizes the sustainable governance of Artificial Intelligence (AI). This issue brief analyzes how these global initiatives can converge to promote AI governance that advances development while protecting long-term human and planetary well-being. It highlights the critical role of intentional multi-stakeholder partnerships and proposes efforts to coordinate governance across multilateral systems to ensure global AI governance is done in a way that protects the opportunities afforded to future generations. – https://www.stimson.org/2025/governing-ai-for-the-future-of-humanity/
Connecting “Cyber Diplomacy” to “Cyber Deterrence”
(James Siebens, Allison Pytlak – Stimson Center – 7 April 2025) The scale of cyber operations today has reached unprecedented levels, with state-sponsored actors, criminal syndicates, and independent hackers launching increasingly sophisticated attacks against critical infrastructure, financial systems, and government networks worldwide. These operations can compromise sensitive data affecting millions of individuals, disrupt essential services, and even potentially manipulate democratic processes or disable military capabilities. A strong deterrent response has become necessary because traditional defensive measures alone are insufficient against persistent and evolving threats. – https://www.stimson.org/2025/connecting-cyber-diplomacy-to-cyber-deterrence/
Will the future of fact-checking flourish or founder? 2025 marks a new turning point
(Angie Drobnic Holan – International Fact-Checking Network – 2 April 2025) Every year on April 2, fact-checkers celebrate International Fact-Checking Day. Usually it’s a time for celebration, fun, even for a little irreverence. This year, for example, the British actor Stephen Fry is giving fact-checkers a shout-out and asking people to think before they share. But this year’s fact-checking day also marks a very serious moment for the fact-checking community. We are facing multiple challenges to our ability to do our journalism, and it’s not clear what the next few years will bring. As director of the International Fact-Checking Network at Poynter, which connects 170 organizations around the world all adhering to high standards in fact-checking, I see a community under intense pressure. Not everyone loves fact-checking, and there are powerful political forces that would simply like it to go away. This is indeed a crisis for fact-checkers, but it’s even worse for the general public. Disinformation hurts people. It has real-world consequences. Without fact-checking, more grandparents will fall victim to financial scams. Adults will refuse to vaccinate children against proven killers like measles. Teens will read faked reports of current events with no way to tell them apart from the real thing. – https://www.poynter.org/fact-checking/2025/angie-drobnic-holan-international-fact-checking-day/
Defense, Intelligence, and Warfare
Space Command using experimentation to field high-need capabilities
(Courtney Albon – Defense News – 9 April 2025) U.S. Space Command’s top officer said his team is leaning hard into experimentation as a means for fielding capabilities that address some of its highest priority missions, including missile threat tracking, command and control and domain awareness. The command recently produced its first-ever strategies for experimentation and AI and machine learning, Gen. Stephen Whiting said — a step toward addressing operational needs by trying out capabilities that are available today from both traditional defense companies and new entrants to the market. The experimentation strategy was completed in December 2024 and the AI strategy was just signed out in March. – https://www.defensenews.com/space/2025/04/08/space-command-using-experimentation-to-field-high-need-capabilities/
(David Kirichenko – Lawfare – 8 April 2025) The rapid advancement of artificial intelligence is transforming industries at an unprecedented pace. The business of warfare is no exception. Nations are already racing to integrate AI into military operations, with Ukraine and Russia at the forefront of developing autonomous systems to gain an advantage on the battlefield. But as they integrate the technology into combat, one critical question remains: How much should we rely on it, and at what risk? As Austrian Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg warned, “This is the Oppenheimer moment of our generation.” Just as nuclear weapons redefined warfare in the 20th century, AI-enabled weapons are now reshaping battlefields—most notably in Ukraine. Speaking at a Vienna conference on autonomous weapons, Schallenberg warned of a growing risk: that AI-driven warfare could spiral into an uncontrollable arms race. Autonomous drones and algorithm-driven targeting systems threaten to make mass killing a mechanized, near-effortless process. – https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/how-will-artificial-intelligence-impact-battlefield-operations
Firefly’s Elytra Dawn to power Pentagon’s push for orbital missions
(Neetika Walter – Interesting Engineering – 8 April 2025) Texas-based Firefly Aerospace has secured a new contract with the U.S. Department of Defense to support orbital missions using its Elytra Dawn spacecraft. The contract is part of the Sinequone Project, a three-phase initiative led by the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) aimed at establishing “cost-effective, responsive access” to space regions beyond geosynchronous orbit (xGEO). The broader objective of the project is to address growing space-based challenges by enabling the rapid deployment of technologies through on-demand products and services. The latest contract marks Firefly’s advancement to Phase 2 of the program, during which the company will demonstrate Elytra’s maneuverability in low-Earth orbit (LEO). This mission is expected to yield key performance insights that will guide Phase 3—a delivery demonstration to more distant cislunar space, where lunar and deep-space operations are becoming increasingly strategic for national security and commercial interests. – https://interestingengineering.com/military/fireflys-elytra-dawn-to-power-pentagons-push-for-orbital-missions
Metal Shark’s new unmanned surface vessel promises low-cost, mission-ready features
(Neetika Walter – Interesting Engineering – 8 April 2025) American shipbuilder Metal Shark has introduced a new “rapidly producible” unmanned surface vessel (USV) engineered for autonomous naval operations with human-in-the-loop control. The surface vessel has been designed to offer the US Armed Forces and allies a low-cost multi-payload USV solution that can be rapidly produced and quickly fielded to meet emergent needs. – https://interestingengineering.com/military/metal-sharks-usv-blends-speed-autonomy
Frontiers
Researchers Demonstrate the UK’s First Long-Distance Communication Over a Quantum Network
(Quantum Insider – 8 April 2025) Researchers from the Universities of Bristol and Cambridge have demonstrated the UK’s first long-distance quantum-secure data transfer, including a quantum-encrypted video call, over a 410-kilometre fibre network. The network combines two quantum key distribution methods—encryption keys embedded in particles of light and distributed entanglement—using standard fibreoptic infrastructure. The experiment marks the first successful integration of multiple quantum-secure technologies within a long-distance network and lays the groundwork for a future quantum internet. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/08/researchers-demonstrate-the-uks-first-long-distance-communication-over-a-quantum-network/
Research Team Reports AI Model Trains Itself to Understand — and Predict — Quantum Systems
(Quantum Insider – 8 April 2025) A joint SpinQ research team developed a machine learning model that can both predict quantum system dynamics and infer hidden parameters, potentially improving calibration and control of quantum hardware. The model, based on a Long Short-Term Memory network, demonstrated sub-1% error rates in forecasting and parameter inference across tests on NMR and superconducting quantum platforms. The approach showed strong scalability and could aid future efforts in real-time noise tracking and system stability for quantum computing applications. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/08/research-team-reports-ai-model-trains-itself-to-understand-and-predict-quantum-systems/
CAS and Cleveland Clinic Partner to Advance Brain Health Research with AI and Quantum Computing
(Quantum Insider – 8 April 2025) CAS and Cleveland Clinic have announced a strategic collaboration to advance clinical research, initially focusing on health, wellness, and healthy aging, with an emphasis on drug discovery for brain health and Alzheimer’s disease. The partnership will combine Cleveland Clinic’s biomedical research and clinical expertise with CAS’s scientific data and AI capabilities, aiming to develop validated, disease-specific models. The initiative will leverage the CAS Content Collection™ along with emerging technologies such as AI and quantum computing, including the IBM Quantum System One housed at Cleveland Clinic. This collaboration aligns with the goals of the Cleveland Innovation District to accelerate research, create jobs, and train the future healthcare and technology workforce. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/08/cas-and-cleveland-clinic-partner-to-advance-brain-health-research-with-ai-and-quantum-computing/
University of Chicago Team Receives $2M to Advance Quantum Algorithm for Cancer Biomarker Discovery
(Quantum Insider – 8 April 2025) Fred Chong and his team at the University of Chicago have received $2 million from Wellcome Leap to begin Phase 3 of their project on quantum algorithms for cancer biomarker discovery. The project uses quantum-classical hybrid algorithms to identify predictive biomarkers in multimodal cancer datasets, including DNA and mRNA, with an intention to improve diagnosis and treatment. In Phase 2, the team reduced quantum hardware demands and simulated up to 32 qubits classically, validating their method on real cancer data and identifying clinically relevant biomarker signatures. Phase 3 will focus on demonstrating practical quantum advantage on real quantum hardware in hopes of showing how quantum computing might be applied in real-world healthcare settings. – https://thequantuminsider.com/2025/04/08/university-of-chicago-team-receives-2m-to-advance-quantum-algorithm-for-cancer-biomarker-discovery/
China: First-ever mega humanoid robot training hub opens with plans to teach 100+ models
(Kaif Shaikh – Interesting Engineering – 8 April 2025) China’s inaugural training facility for heterogeneous humanoid robots will become fully operational in July. Known as the National and Local Co-built Humanoid Robotics Innovation Center, it occupies over 5,000 square meters in Shanghai’s Zhangjiang area. It aims to catalyze the sharing and utilization of large-scale data among robot developers. Global Times reports that over 100 robot types from over a dozen companies are already undergoing training, aiming to establish a robust database for industrial, service, medical, and agricultural applications. – https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/china-humanoid-training-facility
GXO follows Amazon’s playbook, tests AI-powered humanoids in warehouses
(Neetika Walter – Interesting Engineering – 8 April 2025) What happens when AI-powered humanoids step onto the warehouse floor? Logistics giant GXO Logistics is testing the waters to find out. The U.S.-based warehousing firm has deployed humanoid robots developed by Agility Robotics, Reflex Robotics, and Apptronik in a bid to push the boundaries of what’s possible in warehouse automation. At a GXO-operated Spanx facility in Atlanta, Digit—the bipedal robot built by Agility Robotics—is already on the job, lifting heavy containers from a 6 River Systems robot and placing them onto a conveyor belt – https://interestingengineering.com/innovation/gxo-bets-on-humanoid-robots
Kawasaki Corleo Robot Debuts at Osaka Expo 2025
(Munazza Shaheen – TECHi – 6 April 2025) In a bold showcase of futuristic design and green innovation, Kawasaki Heavy Industries has unveiled the Kawasaki Corleo robot—a hydrogen-powered, four-legged robotic ride—at the Osaka-Kansai Expo 2025. This revolutionary concept reimagines mobility by blending clean energy, robotics, and artificial intelligence into a rider-ready machine that can walk, adapt, and navigate across rugged terrains. The Kawasaki Corleo robot walks on four independently powered legs, offering impressive stability and terrain agility that wheels often can’t match. Built with carbon fiber and metal, Corleo echoes the iconic DNA of Kawasaki’s motorcycle lineage—featuring sleek contours, aerodynamic symmetry, and a headlight faceplate that resembles a mechanical creature ready to roam. – https://www.techi.com/kawasaki-corleo-robot-debuts-at-osaka-expo/
Security
CISA, experts warn of Crush file transfer attacks as ransomware gang makes threats
(Jonathan Greig – The Record – 8 April 2025) Federal cybersecurity officials as well as incident responders at cyber companies say hackers are exploiting a vulnerability within the popular file transfer tool Crush. The warnings to customers of CrushFTP — used by thousands of companies to send and receive important data — have increased over the last two weeks, with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) confirming on Monday that the bug is being exploited. – https://therecord.media/crushftp-vulnerability-exploited
Microsoft: Zero-day bug used in ransomware attacks on US real estate firms
(Jonathan Greig – The Record – 8 April 2025) Hackers used a recently-patched zero-day vulnerability to attack real estate companies in the U.S. and several other organizations in Saudi Arabia, Spain and Venezuela. Microsoft published a blog post on Tuesday about the bug alongside its larger Patch Tuesday release, detailing how hackers exploited the vulnerability and used a strain of malware called PipeMagic before deploying ransomware on victims. – https://therecord.media/microsoft-zero-day-used-ransomware-attack-real-estate