“An AI program developed by Google DeepMind called GNoME was trained using data from the Materials Project, a free-to-use database of 150,000 known materials overseen by Persson. Using that information, the AI system came up with designs for 2.2 million new crystals, of which 380,000 were predicted to be stable—not likely to decompose or explode, and thus the most plausible candidates for synthesis in a lab—expanding the range of known stable materials nearly 10-fold. In a paper published today in Nature, the authors write that the next solid-state electrolyte, or solar cell materials, or high-temperature superconductor, could hide within this expanded database. Finding those needles in the haystack starts off with actually making them, which is all the more reason to work quickly and through the night. In a recent set of experiments at LBNL, also published today in Nature, Ceder’s autonomous lab was able to create 41 of the theorized materials over 17 days, helping to validate both the AI model and the lab’s robotic techniques.” (WIRED)

“On Wednesday, the X Prize Foundation, which funds global competitions to spark development of breakthrough technologies, announced a new $101 million prize—the largest yet—to address the mental and physical decline that comes with aging. The winners will have to prove by 2030 that their intervention can turn back the clock in older adults by at least a decade in three key areas: cognition, immunity, and muscle function. The intent isn’t to reverse aging per se, says Diamandis, but rather to restore some of the function we lose as we age. Although several high-profile billionaires have invested in longevity companies, “most investor dollars in the space go towards treating specific diseases, including the chronic diseases of aging,” said James Peyer, CEO of Cambrian Bio, in an email. When the focus is a single disease, there’s a clear path to regulatory approval. But many researchers believe that age-related diseases such as heart attacks, cancer, and Alzheimer’s are caused by the aging process itself. A therapy targeting that process could, in theory, prevent or delay the onset of those diseases. The X Prize purse could help fund a trial to demonstrate that, Peyer says: “That outcome trial is what the FDA and other regulators will ultimately require for an approval.” (MIT Technology Review)