The Daily Innovation Newsletter

Enjoying this newsletter? Know someone who would too? Forward this email to them!

Sign up (it’s free) | Advertise

February 7^th 2025

💻 Technology

🇺🇸 US emergency services upgrade 911 with texting, video, and AI translation support

The North Platte 911 Center has introduced advanced technology to enhance emergency response, allowing residents to contact services via text, images, and video. This upgrade improves situational awareness for first responders, enabling better preparation before arriving at an emergency. The system also includes AI-powered translation for over 140 languages, ensuring faster assistance for non-English speakers. These innovations reflect a nationwide shift towards modernising emergency communication, aiming for more efficient and inclusive public safety services.

🇰🇷 South Korean researchers develop AI-powered tech to boost 5G and 6G reliability

Scientists at Incheon National University have created an AI-based method to enhance next-generation wireless networks by improving connectivity for fast-moving users and reducing signal errors. Their transformer-assisted parametric CSI feedback system streamlines data transmission, focusing on key signal aspects like angles and delays. Tested in real-world conditions, the technique significantly reduces errors and improves data reliability, benefiting high-speed travel, satellite communication, and disaster response. Published in IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications, this innovation sets a new standard for 5G and 6G efficiency.

🤖 Artificial Intelligence

🇬🇧 UK firm launches world's first quantum large language model, revolutionising AI and cybersecurity

British company SECQAI has unveiled the world’s first quantum large language model (QLLM), integrating quantum computing into AI to enhance efficiency, problem-solving, and linguistic processing. The model can optimise semiconductor layouts, uncover encryption patterns to bolster cybersecurity, and improve drug discovery by modelling molecular interactions with high precision. It also has applications in finance, aiding risk assessment and fraud detection. Currently in private Beta testing, the technology marks a major step in quantum machine learning, though its adoption may be limited by the high cost of quantum infrastructure.

💉 Biotechnology

🇦🇷 Argentine scientists create world’s first gene-edited polo horses for speed and strength

Kheiron Biotech in Argentina has used CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology to create five genetically enhanced polo horses, derived from the award-winning mare Polo Pureza. Designed for superior muscle growth and explosive speed, these horses aim to surpass their donor’s athletic performance. The biotech firm insists this does not qualify as genetic doping and sees the breakthrough as a step towards precision breeding. Kheiron also plans to gene-edit pigs for organ transplants and cows for better heat resistance, pushing Argentina to the forefront of gene-editing advancements.

💊 Healthcare

🇺🇸 US researchers use spinal stimulation to restore function in neurodegenerative disease

Scientists at the University of Pittsburgh have developed a spinal cord stimulation therapy that reactivates motor neurons and improves muscle strength in patients with spinal muscle atrophy (SMA). A pilot clinical trial showed that four weeks of targeted electrical stimulation significantly boosted neural function, reduced fatigue, and improved walking ability in all participants. Unlike existing SMA treatments, this approach reverses nerve cell dysfunction rather than just slowing disease progression. The findings, published in Nature Medicine, suggest potential applications for other neurodegenerative diseases like ALS.

🇺🇸 US researchers use AI to repurpose drug, saving patient with rare disease

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania used an AI tool to identify adalimumab, an existing arthritis drug, as a life-saving treatment for idiopathic multicentric Castleman’s disease (iMCD), a rare and often fatal immune disorder. The patient, previously entering hospice care, is now in remission, marking a breakthrough in AI-driven drug repurposing. The study, published in NEJM, highlights how AI can rapidly analyse vast medical datasets to uncover new treatments for rare diseases, with plans for clinical trials on additional repurposed drugs underway.

That’s all for today, please reply to this email if you have any comments or feedback, we’d love to hear from you about what we can do better!

Have you enjoyed this email? Make sure to share it with your friends and colleagues.

Thanks for reading!

Subscribe (it’s free) | Advertise