Tech news picked on 2026-05-24
- OpenAI announced that its model has found a counterexample that breaks an unresolved conjecture in discrete mathematics.
- This is not merely about faster computation but about selecting a structure that undermines the theory from among a vast number of cases, making the effort fundamentally different.
- Since graph theory and combinatorics underpin algorithm design, this raises questions about how far we can trust and rely on AI as a research tool.
IBM Granite 4.1 Open Source Released: Multilingual LLM Based on ModernBERT
- IBM has released the Granite 4.1 series on HuggingFace.
- A noticeable change is the switch of the embedding model backbone from XLM-RoBERTa to ModernBERT, with a structure that reduces encoding costs even in long contexts.
- For teams running multilingual search directly, there are more candidates worth trying out.
- However, just because it can be downloaded doesn't mean operational expenses and data control issues are resolved automatically.
AI Coding Agent Competition 2026: From Autocomplete to Agent Loop
- The AI coding agent scene is quite bustling.
- Anthropic unveiled its agentic coding vision at the Code with Claude event, and OpenAI was named Leader in Gartner's enterprise coding agent category.
- From Copilot, Cursor, Windsurf, Devin, to Amazon Q, all are shifting their focus from autocomplete to self-running agent loops.
- Teams choosing tools should test how well multi-file edits hold up in their codebase rather than relying on demos.
Waymo Continues Driving Despite Flooding, Service Suspended in 4 Cities
- Waymo vehicles did not stop operating even in heavy rain and flooded roads, leading to service suspensions in four cities and increased pressure for NHTSA to review the system.
- Trust depends more on whether it stops itself when beyond its design limits than how well it drives under normal conditions.
- Whether autonomous driving or on-site robots, any service that moves real-world objects should not expand its operating range before deciding under what conditions it should stop operating.
US Government Makes $2 Billion Direct Equity Investment in 9 Quantum Computing Startups
- The US government is injecting $2 billion in direct equity investments into nine quantum computing startups.
- Unlike the CHIPS Act grants and tax credits, this structure involves the government becoming a shareholder.
- The funds are directed more towards covering long R&D periods that are difficult for private capital to sustain, rather than short-term sales.
- Companies receiving government equity should consider not only the size of the funding but also the choices and restrictions that arise when the state becomes a shareholder.
SpaceX Starship V3 First Launch: Successful Orbit Despite Booster Loss
- In the first flight of Starship V3, the upper Ship reached the target orbit, but the Super Heavy booster lost control during reentry and fell into the sea.
- Recalling the scene when Mechazilla caught the booster in V2 makes this result disappointing.
- SpaceX called it a partial success and said they would hurry the next flight.
- Ultimately, the challenge lies in how quickly they can fix the cause of the booster loss and launch again.
- Microsoft has settled the antitrust lawsuit concerning its acquisition of Activision Blizzard for $250 million.
- Although the deal was worth $68.7 billion, the settlement amount is relatively small. The key issue was the promise to continue releasing Call of Duty on PlayStation and Switch.
- It has been confirmed that regulatory oversight will continue after approval to ensure this promise is kept.
- However, it is still too early to say this single settlement sets the standard for game M&A regulation.