This is as we speak’s version of The Download, our weekday e-newsletter that gives a every day dose of what’s occurring on the earth of know-how.
Inside the billion-dollar assembly for the mega-rich who wish to stay endlessly
Back in September, Jessica Hamzelou, our senior biotech reporter, traveled to Gstaad, a swanky ski-resort city within the Swiss Alps, to attend the primary in-person Longevity Investors Conference.
Over the two-day occasion, scientists and biotech founders made the case for numerous approaches to prolonging the variety of years we’d spend in good well being. The majority of them had been attempting to win over deep-pocketed traders.
As the sector of longevity makes an attempt to outline itself as scientifically sound, loads of “anti-aging treatments” based mostly on little-to-no human proof proceed to enter the market. But can billions of investor cash—a few of it from ethically doubtful sources—ever supply a concrete path to evidence-based life extension? Read the total story.
Read extra in regards to the quest to increase our wholesome years:
+ How scientists wish to make you younger once more. Research labs are pursuing know-how to “reprogram” getting older our bodies again to youth. Read the total story.
+ Aging clocks purpose to foretell how lengthy you’ll stay. These clocks promise to measure organic age and assist establish anti-aging medicine, however there are lingering questions over their accuracy. Read the total story.
A giant settlement for one Chinese-American scientist gained’t finish wrongful prosecutions
Last week, our senior investigative reporter Eileen Guo wrote a few historic settlement gained by Chinese-American scientist Sherry Chen, who was wrongly accused of being a Chinese spy.
Her case illustrates simply how onerous it’s to go up towards a strong federal company and maintain it accountable. It’s additionally an anomaly—it’s often extremely troublesome to show racial bias in court docket, however a broad sample of misconduct by her accusers was confirmed definitively.
However, Chen’s win doesn’t essentially imply others in her scenario could have a neater time getting justice. Read the total story.
—Zeyi Yang
Zeyi’s story is from China Report, his weekly e-newsletter protecting every thing you could learn about China. Sign up to obtain it in your inbox each Tuesday.
Podcast: Farming a conflict zone
Tune into the newest episode of our In Machines We Trust podcast, the place we have a look at how shortages of every thing from seeds to fertilizer would possibly speed up the adoption of applied sciences that may assist provides go additional in war-torn Ukraine. Listen to it on Apple Podcasts, or wherever else you often hear.
The must-reads
I’ve combed the web to seek out you as we speak’s most enjoyable/necessary/scary/fascinating tales about know-how.
1 Donald Trump goes to run for the presidency once more
He’s ignoring the critics, notably these inside his personal social gathering. (Vox)
+ Republicans aren’t thrilled by their midterms efficiency. (The Atlantic $)
+ His resolution to run hasn’t precisely come as a shock. (New Yorker $)
+ Trump and Elon Musk at the moment are social media rivals, technically. (Insider $)
2 FTX boss Sam Bankman-Fried is hustling for cash (once more)
He’s desperately attempting to repair the $8 billion gap within the crypto alternate’s funds. (WSJ $)
+ The Bahamas arm of FTX has filed for chapter, too. (Bloomberg $)
3 Twitter is enjoying with fireplace within the EU
The more and more risky platform may fall foul of its new guidelines policing Big Tech. (FT $)
+ Twitter’s Blue Verified service is relaunching on 29 November. (Reuters)
+ Social media giants might be pressured to reveal particulars about their algorithms within the UK. (FT $)
+ Musk has a snarky new nickname: Elmo. (Insider $)
+ What precisely is Musk considering proper now? (Vox)
4 NASA’s Artemis 1 mission has lastly taken off 
After months of setbacks, it took flight within the early hours. (CNN)
+ The mission hopes to make clear what area does to our our bodies. (Vox)
+ Watch the second NASA’s DART spacecraft crashed into an asteroid. (MIT Technology Review)
5 Taylor Swift has uncovered simply how terrible Ticketmaster’s system is
Buying live performance tickets is more and more like battling a rigged lottery. (WP $)
6 The world’s inhabitants has reached 8 billion individuals
But that’s neither a cause to panic—nor calm down. (Economist $)
+ New world map exhibits populations are rising sooner in flood-prone areas. (MIT Technology Review)
7 Millions of Indians are counting on companies managed by one man
Mukesh Ambani’s conglomerate has made him uber-powerful. (Rest of World)
8 Boston Dynamics is suing a rival over its robotic canine
It claims Ghost Robotics’ four-legged design was a bit too much like its personal. (The Register)
+ This robotic canine simply taught itself to stroll. (MIT Technology Review)
9 TikTok has emboldened manufacturers to clap again at prospects 
Unfortunately, it means they’re extra irritating than ever. (Wired $)
+ The platform can also be repackaging MTV Cribs for a brand new technology. (The Guardian)
10 Your subsequent Tinder match might be AI-generated
For simply $19, you too might be “the best you’ve ever looked.” (Motherboard)
+ No one is aware of what’s subsequent for AI copyright. (The Verge)
Quote of the day
“The higher-ups, they mostly played chess and board games. There was no partying. They were undersexed, if anything.”
—Dr George Lerner, crypto alternate FTX’s in-house efficiency coach, tells the New York Times that reviews of hedonistic conduct on the agency are wildly overblown.
The large story
The supply apps reshaping life in India’s megacities
From 7am till nicely previous nightfall, seven days per week, N. Sudhakar sits behind the counter of his hole-in-the wall grocery retailer within the south Indian metropolis of Bangalore. Packed ground to ceiling with every thing from 20-kilogram sacks of rice to one-rupee ($.01) shampoo sachets, this one-stop store provides many of the every day wants for a lot of within the neighborhood. It’s a carbon copy of the roughly 12 million family-run “kiranas” discovered on nearly each avenue nook in India.
Increasingly, the know-how trade is presenting shops like his with a brand new problem. Across the highway, a gradual stream of supply drivers line as much as seize groceries from a “dark store”—a mini-warehouse constructed to allow ultra-fast deliveries run by Dunzo, a Bangalore-based startup.
In India’s megacities, the city center class is step by step getting hooked on on-line procuring. These buyers make up a fraction of the inhabitants, however their spending energy is appreciable, and in additional prosperous pockets of huge cities, the battle for India’s avenue nook is nicely underway. Read the total story.
—Edd Gent
We can nonetheless have good issues
A spot for consolation, enjoyable and distraction in these bizarre instances. (Got any concepts? Drop me a line or tweet ’em at me.)
+ If you loved the ebook Fleishman is in Trouble, a TV adaptation begins streaming on Hulu tomorrow.
+ John Wick is again, and he’s angrier than ever.
+ If your Birkenstocks are trying a little bit grubby, don’t fear—somebody simply paid $218,000 for Steve Jobs’ previous pair (thanks Allison!)
+ I had no concept Skyfall was very almost known as one thing else totally.
+ Paper peepshows had been the nineteenth century’s reply to digital actuality—and simply as cool.