The Download: whole-body rejuvenation drugs and five things to know about AI

<p><em>This is today&#8217;s edition of </em><a href="https://forms.technologyreview.com/newsletters/briefing-the-download/?_ga=2.179569122.736533416.1649661040-405833893.1649413289"><em>The Download</em></a>,<em> our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what&#8217;s going on in the world of technology.</em></p> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>David Sinclair plans to test whole-body rejuvenation drugs in the XPrize competition</strong></h3> <p>The outspoken longevity scientist David Sinclair has predicted that, one day, you’ll go to the doctor and get a prescription that will make you 10 years younger. MIT Technology Review has learned of his latest step toward this: human tests of a “reprogramming” drug.</p> <p>Sinclair, a biologist at Harvard Medical School, plans to launch the tests in a $101 million competition organized by the XPrize Foundation. The winners will “restore” a person to an earlier apparent age, as measured by improvements in immune, cognitive, and muscle function.</p> <p>The grand prize goes to any team able to show a 10-year (or greater) relative improvement after one year of treatment.&nbsp;</p> <p>Sinclair says he plans to give an oral drug mixture to volunteers, in a bid to seek “evidence for age restoration in humans.” <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/06/09/1138545/david-sinclair-plans-to-test-whole-body-rejuvenation-drugs-in-the-xprize-competition/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">Find out how he hopes to reverse ageing through chemical reprogramming</a>.</p> <p><em>—Antonio Regalado</em></p> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Five things you need to know about AI</strong></h3> <p><em>—Will Douglas Heaven</em></p> <p>At SXSW London last week, I gave a talk called “Five things you need to know about AI,” in which I shared what I think are the biggest themes in AI right now.</p> <p>I pulled a few things from our first AI10 list, an <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/04/21/1135643/10-ai-artificial-intelligence-trends-technologies-research-2026/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">annual guide to the top trends in this buzzy world</a>, but I also veered off on several tangents. In my half-hour slot, I tried to cover the key talking points that I think help to make sense of what’s going on in tech—and thus the economy—today.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <p>Five key thoughts emerged: AI is everywhere all at once, it’s getting scary, a backlash is growing, it’s becoming a big deal for science—and I didn’t even need to show up at the talk. <a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/06/09/1138582/five-things-you-need-to-know-about-ai/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">Read the full story for all the details</a>.</p> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>The must-reads</strong></p> <p><em>I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.</em></p> <p><strong>1 OpenAI has confidentially filed for a US IPO</strong><br>The listing could come as early as September. (<a href="https://www.reuters.com/technology/openai-files-us-ipo-after-anthropic-ai-giants-head-public-markets-2026-06-08/">Reuters</a> $)<br><em>+ OpenAI is targeting a valuation of up to $1 trillion.</em> (<a href="https://www.ft.com/content/a347e00a-2952-41ad-9f12-88c01ba199d6?syn-25a6b1a6=1">Financial Times</a> $)<br><em>+ The IPO will test investor appetite for AI companies.</em> (<a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/openai-kicks-off-ipo-process-in-test-of-investor-appetite-for-top-ai-labs-eb7bebe1?mod=hp_lead_pos2">WSJ</a> $)<br><em>+ The move follows IPO filings from Anthropic and SpaceX. </em>(<a href="https://edition.cnn.com/2026/06/08/tech/openai-files-for-ipo">CNN</a>)</p> <p><strong>2 The US claims BYD, Baidu, Alibaba, and others are aiding China&#8217;s military</strong><br>The Pentagon added them to a list of military-linked companies. (<a href="https://www.wsj.com/politics/national-security/u-s-expands-list-of-chinese-tech-companies-it-says-assists-beijings-military-a2c6c6b9?mod=tech_lead_pos1">WSJ</a> $)<br><em>+ The designations limit their operations in the US. </em>(<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c75y6e5p9reo">BBC</a>)<br><em>+ The new additions also include humanoid firm Unitree.</em> (<a href="https://techcrunch.com/2026/06/08/pentagon-says-alibaba-baidu-byd-and-unitree-support-chinas-military/">TechCrunch</a>)<br><em>+ The Pentagon is adapting to China’s tech rise.</em> (<a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2025/04/07/1114242/kathleen-hicks-on-china/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">MIT Technology Review</a>)</p> <p><strong>3 Apple’s long-awaited AI overhaul of Siri is finally here<br>“</strong>Siri AI” promises to be a more conversational assistant. (<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/08/technology/apple-ai-siri.html">NYT</a> $)<br><em>+ It includes a standalone app and screen-reading features. </em>(<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/apples-wwdc-conference-kicks-off-investors-want-know-if-ai-will-save-siri-2026-06-08/">Reuters</a> $)<br><em>+ And arrives after two years of repeated delays. </em>(<a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/06/09/apple-siri-ai-agents-wwdc">Axios</a>)</p> <p><strong>4 The White House and Congress are working to limit state AI laws<br></strong>A new deal would curb state rules for federal legislation. (<a href="https://www.axios.com/2026/06/08/white-house-hill-relaunch-effort-block-state-ai-laws">Axios</a>)<br><em>+ AI regulation has divided US politicians. (</em><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/01/23/1131559/americas-coming-war-over-ai-regulation/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">MIT Technology Review</a>)</p> <p><strong>5 </strong> <strong>Meta is launching a “workforce academy” for building data centers<br></strong>The five-week program is free of charge and guarantees a job. (<a href="https://www.wsj.com/tech/ai/meta-launches-workforce-academy-to-train-workers-to-build-data-centers-35470a80?mod=tech_lead_pos4">WSJ</a> $)<br><em>+ It arrives shortly after Meta laid off 8,000 employees.</em> (<a href="https://www.npr.org/2026/05/20/nx-s1-5826917/meta-layoffs-ai-jobs">NPR</a>)<br><strong><br>6 Taiwan is mulling curbs on AI chip exports to China</strong><br>The new controls would further align with US restrictions. (<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-06-09/taiwan-mulls-curbs-on-ai-chip-exports-to-china-to-align-with-us?srnd=phx-technology">Bloomberg</a> $)<br><em>+ Future AI chips could be built on glass.</em> (<a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2026/03/13/1134230/future-ai-chips-could-be-built-on-glass/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C*">MIT Technology Review</a>)</p> <p><strong>7 Meta has quietly removed face-recognition code from its smart glasses app</strong><br>The code identified by investigators has disappeared. (<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/meta-removes-face-recognition-code-meta-ai-app-smart-glasses/">Wired</a> $)</p> <p><strong>8 Humanoid robots are edging towards the battlefield</strong><br>American and Chinese militaries are pursuing the tech. (<a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cedpxwe26l1o">BBC</a>)</p> <p><strong>9 The world’s first wind-powered underwater data center has launched<br></strong>It uses less power and water than land-based equivalents. (<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jun/09/worlds-first-wind-powered-underwater-datacentre-starts-operating-in-china">Guardian</a>)</p> <p><strong>10 You could get some benefits of sleep without having to nod off<br></strong>If new brain stimulation works as well on humans as on mice, that is. (<a href="https://www.newscientist.com/article/2529507-you-could-get-some-of-the-benefits-of-sleep-without-having-to-nod-off/">New Scientist</a> $)<strong><br></strong></p> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>Quote of the day</strong></p> <h2 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>“You’re on the train, but you know that there’s no destination.”</strong></h2> <p>—Clara Shih, a former top AI executive at Salesforce and Meta, tells <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/06/09/magazine/ai-jobs-workforce-labor.html">the New York Times</a> that AI training can’t keep up with the field’s advances.</p> <p class="has-medium-font-size"><strong>One More Thing</strong></p> <div class="wp-block-image"> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" height="2000" width="2921" src="https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg?w=2921" alt="biomilq concept illo" class="wp-image-1013859" srcset="https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg 3000w, https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg?resize=300,205 300w, https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg?resize=768,526 768w, https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg?resize=1536,1052 1536w, https://wp.technologyreview.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/JF21_biomilq_Opener.jpeg?resize=2048,1402 2048w" sizes="(max-width: 2921px) 100vw, 2921px" /><div class="image-credit">ILLUSTRATIONS BY AMRITA MARINO</div> </figure> </div> <h4 class="wp-block-heading"><strong><br>Inside the race to make human sex cells in the lab</strong></h4> <p>An embryo forms when sperm meets egg. But what if we could start with other cells—if a blood sample or skin biopsy could be transformed into “artificial” sperm and eggs? What if those were all you needed to make a baby?</p> <p>That’s the promise of a radical approach to reproduction. Scientists have already created artificial eggs and sperm from mouse cells and used them to create mouse pups. Artificial human sex cells are next.</p> <p>The advances could herald the end of infertility, but they raise major scientific and ethical challenges.&nbsp;</p> <p><a href="https://www.technologyreview.com/2022/08/23/1056921/lab-made-human-sex-cell/?utm_source=the_download&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_campaign=the_download.unpaid.engagement&amp;utm_term=*%7CSUBCLASS%7C*&amp;utm_content=*%7CDATE:m-d-Y%7C">Read the full story on the new recipes for sperm and eggs</a>.</p> <p><em>—Jessica Hamzelou</em></p> <p><strong>We can still have nice things</strong></p> <p><em>A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? </em><a href="mailto:[email protected]"><em>Drop me a line</em></a><em>.)</em></p> <p>+ These chefs <a href="https://www.instagram.com/reels/DVBywPAEV9n/">turn Pop-Tarts into the desserts that inspired them</a>.<br>+ A choir has beautifully <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbxPvnR40NE&amp;">transformed System of a Down’s “Chop Suey!”<br></a>+ Scientists finally traced crabs’ sideways walk in this <a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/when-did-crabs-evolve-their-iconic-sideways-scuttle-scientist-traced-it-to-a-200-million-year-old-common-ancestor-180988765/">fascinating study of evolution</a>.<br>+ This nostalgic<a href="https://mudmapmagazine.com/the-utopia-of-the-family-computer/"> essay on the family computer</a> is a touching throwback to early internet life.</p> <p><em>Top image credit: Stephanie Arnett/MIT Technology Review | Getty Images</em></p> <p>Please send Pop-Tarts to <a href="mailto:[email protected]">[email protected]</a>.&nbsp;</p> <p>You can follow me on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomasmacaulay/">LinkedIn</a>. Thanks for reading!</p> <p>—Thomas</p>