In the Media

WBUR reporter Rachell Sanchez-Smith spotlights two health tech devices being developed by Prof. Yoel Fink and Prof. Canan Dağdeviren, respectively, that aim to “give the wearers — and their doctors — a clearer picture of their overall health.” Fink has created “a thread capable of storing data, running artificial intelligence algorithms, sensing motion and sound, and communication through Bluetooth,” while Dağdeviren’s wearable ultrasound scanner can be used to make breast cancer screening “more comfortable and more accurate,” explains Sanchez-Smith.  

Researchers at MIT have “developed an antenna that can adjust its frequency range by physically changing in its shape” reports Mrigakshi Dixit for Interesting Engineering. “Instead of standard, rigid metal, this antenna is made from metamaterials — special engineered materials whose properties are based on their geometric structure,” explains Dixit. “It could be suitable for applications like transferring energy to wearable devices, tracking motion for augmented reality, and enabling wireless communication.”

Writing for The Guardian, Prof. Carlo Ratti highlights his work using “AI to compare footage of public spaces from the 1970s with recent video” from the same locations in Boston, New York and Philadelphia. “The findings are striking: people walk faster, linger less, and are less likely to meet up,” explains Ratti. “By using AI to study urban public spaces, we can gather data, pick out patterns and test new designs that could help us rethink, for our time, our modern versions of the agora– the market and main public gathering place of Athens.” 

In a new LinkedIn ranking, MIT has been named one of the best colleges for long-term career success “because of its place in the top 5 for entrepreneurship, C-suite experience (CEO, CFO, etc.), internships, and recruiter demand,” reports Madison Lucchesi for Boston.com. 

With a time of 1 hour, 52 minutes, and 20 seconds, Milo Knowles '19, SM '20 was awarded first place in the Olympic distance elite division at the 2025 Boston Triathlon, reports Emma Healy for The Boston Globe. 

Writing for The Atlantic, Prof. Joshua Bennett explores the relationship between poetry and AI. “A large language model is a prediction machine. Crucially, it does not think or dream. It establishes the likeliest sequence of words based on its training data and relays it back to you,” writes Bennett. “A well-crafted poem performs a nearly opposite function. It is made from original, dynamic language choices, and it lives and dies on its ability to surprise. It is a means of preserving the particular.” 

MIT has been named among the top US schools for long-term career success in a new LinkedIn ranking, reports Ava Berger for The Boston Globe. “The list compiles public member data from the networking platform based on five factors: job placement, internships and recruiter demand, career success, network strength, and 'the unique skills' gained by graduates,” writes Berger. 

MIT researchers have developed a new method to fortify foods and beverages as part of an effort to combat global malnutrition, reports Insha Naureen for Food Ingredients First. “The innovation offers a potential solution to the global malnutrition crisis due to iron deficiency, which can lead to anemia, impaired brain development in children, and increased infant mortality,” Naureen explains. “Beyond iron and iodine, this platform can also deliver multiple micronutrients or bioactive compounds in a single formulation, enabling targeted nutritional strategies,” explains Ana Jaklenec, a principal investigator at the Koch Institute. 

Using AI, researchers at MIT have developed new antibiotics for gonorrhoea and MRSA, two infections that are typically hard to treat. The team “trained the AI to help it learn how bacteria was affected by different molecular structures built of atoms in order to design new antibiotics,” writes Ruth Stainer for the Daily Mail. “[A]nything too similar to the current antibiotics available, or with the potential to be toxic to human beings, was eradicated.” 

Researchers at MIT used AI to “design antibiotics that can tackle hard-to-treat infections gonorrhoea and MRSA,” reports ITV News. "Our work shows the power of AI from a drug design standpoint, and enables us to exploit much larger chemical spaces that were previously inaccessible,” says Prof. James Collins. 

Researchers at MIT have developed a new nutrient fortification process “to deliver essential nutrients such as iron and iodine in foods and drinks,” reports Ben Cornwell for New Food Magazine. “With around two billion people worldwide suffering from iron deficiency, which can lead to anemia, impaired brain development in children and higher infant mortality, this solution from MIT could address a major global issue,” writes Cornwell. 

After observing the collision between a supernova and a black hole, researchers at MIT and elsewhere are rethinking our understanding of the life and death of stars, reports Jeanine Santucci for USA Today. "One of the only reasons that we were able to make this discovery and understand how scientifically interesting it was was through the combination of researchers in machine learning and in astrophysics," says postdoctoral scholar Alex Gagliano. 

With the help of a newly designed machine learning algorithm, researchers at MIT and elsewhere have spotted a “never-before-seen type of supernova that involves a nearby black hole,” reports Andrew Paul for Popular Science. “We’re now entering an era where we can automatically catch these rare events as they happen, not just after the fact,” said postdoctoral scholar Alex Gagliano. “That means we can finally start connecting the dots between how a star lives and how it dies, and that’s incredibly exciting.”

Using generative AI, researchers at MT have designed new antibiotics to combat MRSA and gonorrhea, reports James Gallagher for the BBC. "We're excited because we show that generative AI can be used to design completely new antibiotics," says Prof. James Collins. "AI can enable us to come up with molecules, cheaply and quickly and in this way, expand our arsenal, and really give us a leg up in the battle of our wits against the genes of superbugs."

Prof. Daniela Rus, director of CSAIL, speaks with CBS News reporter Tony Dokoupil about her work developing AI-powered robots. “AI and robots are tools,” says Rus. “They are tools created by the people, for the people. And like any other tools they’re not inherently good or bad; they are what we choose to do with them. And I believe we can choose to do extraordinary things.”