In the Media

Prof. Danielle Li, graduate student Lindsey Raymond and Stanford University Prof. Erik Brynjolfsson released an “empirical study of the real-world economic effects of new AI systems,” reports Greg Rosalsky for NPR. The researchers found “AI caused a group of workers to become much more productive.” Rosalsky adds that the study also “shines a spotlight on just how powerful AI is, how disruptive it might be, and suggests that this new, astonishing technology could have economic effects that change the shape of income inequality going forward.”

Researchers from MIT and elsewhere have tested the impact of generative AI among 5,000 customer service agents within a Fortune 500 software company, reports Jo Constantz for Bloomberg. “The company’s lowest-skilled workers became 35% faster with the tool,” explains Constantz. “The researchers think this was because the AI essentially transferred top performers’ knowledge to less-experienced colleagues through the automatically-generated recommended responses.”

Hala Hanna, executive director of Solve, writes for The Boston Globe about how to empower young people to address and solve today’s problems. “Engaging young people is not just a moral imperative, it is also a strategic one,” writes Hanna. “By investing in our youth and promoting civic engagement, we can help shape a generation of passionate, informed, and engaged citizens ready to tackle the challenges of tomorrow and make a lasting impact on the world around them.”

Boston Globe reporter Yvonne Abraham spotlights Postdoctoral Fellow Lydia Harrington and Boston University Postdoctoral Associate Chloe Bordewich and their work examining the history of Boston’s former Little Syria neighborhood. “It’s important that Bostonians think about this as part of their history,” says Bordewich. “But we also wanted to contribute something so that recent Syrian arrivals can engage and see part of their history, too.”

Researchers from MIT and NYU have “developed a first-of-its-kind treatment to help spur hunger via stimulating hormone levels in the gut—an “electroceutical” ingestible capsule inspired by a “water wicking” reptile,” writes Andrew Paul for Popular Science. “The team explored a novel way to “significantly and repeatedly” induce the production of ghrelin, a hormone that triggers hunger.”

According to the US Department of Education, MIT is among the least expensive American universities for undergraduate students receiving federal financial aid, reports Justin Fox for Bloomberg. 

Ginkgo Bioworks, a biotech company founded by Jason Kelly BS ’03, PhD ’08, Reshma Shetty PhD ‘08, Barry Canton PhD ’08, Austin Che PhD ’08 and Professor Tom Knight, is working to develop synthetic fragrances, reports Scott Kirsner for The Boston Globe.

TechCrunch reporter Brian Heater spotlights how MIT researchers have developed a new approach to robotic gripping that incorporates reflexes to help grasp and sort objects. “The new system is built around an arm with two multi-joint fingers,” writes Heater. “There’s a camera on the base and sensors on the tips that record feedback. The system uses that data to adjust accordingly.”

Researchers at MIT have developed a new nanoparticle sensor that can detect cancerous proteins through a simple urine test. “The researchers designed the tests to be done on a strip of paper, similar to the at-home COVID tests everyone became familiar with during the pandemic,” writes Lambert. “They hope to make it as affordable and accessible to as many patients as possible.”

Prof. Yossi Sheffi joins Bloomberg Business Hour to discuss the impact of artificial intelligence on businesses, supply chain management, and risk management. “In general, over the last 50 years, supply chain has changed dramatically, infusing more and more technology into the operation,” says Sheffi.

Professor Yet-Ming Chiang of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering (DMSE) talks to NOVA’s Miles O’Brien about his research aimed at closing gaps in renewable energy availability when there’s no sun or wind. Through their company, Form Energy, Chiang and William Woodford PhD ’13 have developed iron-air batteries that can store electricity for up to 100 hours. “This is something that just a few years ago was considered impossible,” Chiang explains.

New York Times reporter Dennis Overbye spotlights how scientists have captured a new image of the black hole at the center of the Messier 87 galaxy, bringing visibility to the “cooler outer regions of the black hole’s fiery accretion disk.” Research Scientist Kazunori Akiyama explained, “I’m really excited to see this result, because now we have a new tool to capture what is surrounding the famous E.H.T.’s black hole. We will be able to film how the matter falls into a black hole and eventually manages to escape.”

New Scientist reporter Grace Wade writes that MIT researchers have developed a non-invasive capsule the size of a raisin that electrically stimulates stomach cells, and could one day be used to “treat nausea, vomiting and lack of appetite in people with eating disorders, or those receiving treatments for cancer.”

Scientists have captured a new image of M87*, the black hole at the center of the Messier 87 galaxy, showing the “launching point of a colossal jet of high-energy particles shooting outward into space,” reports Will Dunham for Reuters. "This is what astronomers and astrophysicists have been wanting to see for more than half a century," explains Research Scientist Kazunori Akiyama. "This is the dawn of an exciting new era."

A team of researchers have produced a new image of the black hole at the center of galaxy Messier 87, reports Isaac Schultz for Gizmodo. “The new image shows a larger ring of accreted material than the first images of the black hole indicated. At the center of the ring is the black hole—or its ‘shadow,’ as scientists say, because the black hole itself cannot be imaged,” writes Schultz.