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- DTN 132: Making Semiconductors in Space
DTN 132: Making Semiconductors in Space
Plus: Meteorite smuggling, shoplifter tracking drones, a 6,100 qubit array, MLB approves robot umpires, NASA's new astronaut class, Cloudflare launches a stablecoin, and more.

New Partnerships Aims to Make Semiconductors in Space
“A new agreement between Space Forge and United Semiconductors LLC will aim to manufacture advanced semiconductors in space for future quantum computers and electronic devices…The collaboration with CA-based United Semiconductors, a specialist in crystal growth processes, is intended to help Space Forge design specialized equipment and explore new pathways for in-space manufacturing. There’s no timeline for when the first payloads or experiments could be launched, but the companies will develop a plan in the coming months to demonstrate the business case for commercial semiconductor production in orbit, according to the press release.”

NATO investing $728M in new space capabilities, including a new ‘data lake’
Meta launches super PAC to fight AI regulation as state policies mount
Sila opens U.S. factory to make silicon anodes for energy dense EV batteries
Zeno Power signs deal for material to scale nuclear space power
Next chapter in space defense: satellites that never stop moving
Cloudflare to launch stablecoin for AI-driven internet economy
Nuclear fusion: the race among start-ups to harness limitless, clean energy
Elon Musk’s xAI offers Grok to federal government for 42 cents
Fusion power plants don’t exist yet, but they’re making money anyway


Maxar image of China's Shijian-26 next generation earth observation satellite. Image via Twitter @AJ_FI.
China has been actively demonstrating its space capabilities by imaging U.S. commercial and military satellites using its own spacecraft. On September 13, Chinese company Changguang Satellite Technology (CGST) released images of the U.S.-owned Maxar Worldview Legion 2 satellite captured by its Jilin-1 constellation. These actions reflect China’s increasing focus on Non-Earth Imaging (NEI) for space situational awareness, intelligence gathering, and potential counterspace operations. Meanwhile, Chinese satellite Shiyan-12 (02) made a close approach—within 60 km—of a U.S. missile early warning satellite in geosynchronous orbit, highlighting ongoing cat-and-mouse maneuvers between Chinese, U.S., and Russian satellites. (via Space News)

Beneath 300 kilometers: scientists find first natural evidence of nickel-rich alloys deep in mantle
Nanovaccine halts tumor growth and reduces cancer recurrence in lab models
Artificial plant device purifies radioactive soil with sunlight alone
With AI, chemists create rubber-like materials in record time
New method for making graphene turns defects into improvements
AI detects schizophrenia and bipolar disorder neural signatures in organoids
Chip-scale cold atom experiments could unleash the power of quantum science in the field
Coexisting magnetic states in 2D material promise major energy savings in memory chips
Engineers develop a magnetic transistor for more energy-efficient electronics
Physicists nearly double speed of superconducting qubit readout in quantum computers
A new twist on Heisenberg's uncertainty principle can sharpen quantum sensors
Scientists use electrons to pattern light sources and wiring directly onto crystals
How researchers are making precision agriculture more affordable
Supercomputer unveils new cell sorting principle in microfluidic channels
Light-sensitive nanoparticles could serve as contrast agents for advanced imaging
Quantum memories reach new milestone with secure quantum money protocol
Nature-inspired nanocage serves as gold nanoparticle reactor
Stretchable light-emitting material holds promise for photon-based devices

NanoQT secures $14M in Series A funding to revolutionize quantum computing
Coinbase leads Bastion's $14.6M raise as enterprise stablecoin demand surges
Sparrow flies forward with $95M Series B for midstage diabetes asset
SciTech Development raises $5.5M for cancer clinical trials platform
Belfort launches world's first hardware accelerator for encrypted compute and raises $6M seed round
FYR Bio raises $8M to support blood-based biomarker discovery
Cetasol secures €2.3M funding for AI-driven vessel optimization
TELO Trucks raises $20M Series A for its electric truck redefining urban pickup trucks
Morse Micro secures $59M funding to lead the next era of IoT
Earthmover raises $7.2M seed round to transform earth science data management
DaltonTx raises £4M seed financing to build the intelligence backbone of drug discovery
GHGSat raises $34M to expand its greenhouse gas monitoring constellation and analytic services
India-based aerospace startup, Akashalabdhi, raises $1.2M in pre-seed funding
UK government reveals £50M R&D fund as it attempts to assuage drugmakers’ concerns
Pharma company Sanofi adds $625M to its corporate venture arm
Invivo Partners prepares launch of a €100M fund at the intersection of AI and science
Nuclide Therapeutics secures over $6M for drugs against treatment-resistance cancers
Delta.g secures £4.6M in oversubscribed seed round to advance quantum sensing
Axon Therapies raises $32M in oversubscribed Series A to transform heart failure treatment

Pink pineapples and lab-grown meat: tasting the foods of the future / This stunning new sculpture visualizes what climate change could do to the Earth / This AI-powered robot keeps going even if you attack it with a chainsaw / Painting stripes on cows to lizards' pizza pick: Ig Nobel winners / AI Is gorging on venture capital. This is why ‘physical AI’ is next / NASA’s new astronaut class includes SpaceX veterans Anna Menon and Yuri Kubo / Shoplifters could soon be chased down by drones / MLB approves robot umps in 2026 for challenges / Palantir wants to be a lifestyle brand / Inside the mysterious smuggling of the El Ali meteorite / 'Beast mode' to 'teraflop': 10 words from the Merriam-Webster dictionary update / Gravitational wave detectors affected by daylight savings time / Information could be a fundamental part of the universe, and may explain dark energy and dark matter / Thousands of flies keep landing on North Sea oil rigs then taking off a few hours later. Here's why / In Maine, prisoners are thriving in remote jobs / Metamaterials, AI, and the road to invisibility cloaks / Trevor Milton's Nikola case dropped by SEC following Trump pardon