The Lab
Google Willow Quantum Chip Cuts Magic State Errors 40-Fold
Google Quantum AI says magic state cultivation works on its Willow quantum chip, cutting errors 40-fold and hitting 99.99% fidelity in a new Science paper.
Notebun: AI and technology news, explained
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- The Lab
Nvidia and Baker Lab Release RFD4-Proteina Open Protein Design AI
What happened: Nvidia and the UW Institute for Protein Design released RFD4-Proteina, an open AI model that designs protein sequences and structures for drug discovery.
The details
- Nvidia and David Baker's Institute for Protein Design at the University of Washington released RFD4-Proteina, an open protein design model, announced at GTC Berlin on October 21, 2026.
- The roughly 0.4-billion-parameter model generates protein sequences and all-atom 3D structures together and is released under a BSD 3-Clause license.
- Reported benchmark gains are computational only, and designs still need laboratory testing to confirm they work.
- The Bigger Picture
Brain-Computer Interface Lets Unresponsive ICU Patients Control Sound
What happened: A Columbia study in Brain shows a noninvasive EEG brain-computer interface let one in three unresponsive ICU patients control a tone using thought alone.
The details
- Columbia researchers tested a noninvasive EEG brain-computer interface on 41 clinically unresponsive ICU patients with acute brain injury.
- About one in three patients learned to raise or lower a beeping tone by imagining hand movements, including every patient with hidden consciousness detected by a separate test.
- The team calls the system a first step and plans to refine it so patients could signal needs such as pain or hunger.
- Tools & Models
Anthropic Launches Claude Duet, a Proactive AI Agent for Pro and Max
What happened: Anthropic's Claude Duet is a proactive AI agent built on Opus 5.5 that works in the background, now in research preview for US Claude Pro and Max subscribers.
The details
- Anthropic announced Claude Duet on October 21, 2026, a proactive AI agent built on Opus 5.5 that monitors connected apps and works in the background.
- Duet is a waitlisted research preview for US Pro and Max subscribers, with no separate charge during the preview and no Team, Enterprise or API access yet.
- The launch puts Anthropic in direct competition with Meta's Muse and OpenAI's Dots in the race for always-on personal AI agents.
- Finance & Money
Meta Q3 Earnings: Revenue Up 26% as $9.9B Legal Charge Hits Profit
What happened: Meta Q3 earnings: revenue rose 26% to $64.6 billion, but a $9.89 billion legal charge cut operating income 37% as AI capex guidance hit $135-145 billion.
The details
- Meta's third-quarter revenue rose 26% year over year to $64.6 billion, and its fourth-quarter outlook of $73 billion to $76 billion topped expectations.
- A $9.89 billion charge tied to a settlement with 52 state attorneys general cut operating income 37% to $13.0 billion.
- Meta narrowed 2026 capital spending guidance to $135 billion to $145 billion and said it will keep investing heavily in AI in 2027; the stock fell about 3% the next morning.
- The Bigger Picture
Agile Robots Unveils Agile ONE SN Humanoid Built on Nvidia GR00T
What happened: Agile Robots unveiled Agile ONE SN at Nvidia GTC Berlin, a 31-degree-of-freedom research humanoid on Isaac GR00T and Jetson Thor, due in early 2027.
The details
- Agile Robots introduced Agile ONE SN, a humanoid reference platform for researchers, at Nvidia GTC Berlin on October 21, 2026.
- The 1.40-meter, 40-kilogram robot has 31 degrees of freedom and runs Nvidia Isaac GR00T software on a Jetson Thor computer.
- Nvidia says the platform is scheduled for early 2027, with Stanford University and ETH Zurich among the institutions showing interest.
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Finance & Money
Who is making money, and what is changing in the market?
More from Finance & Money →Finance & Money
Meta Q3 Earnings: Revenue Up 26% as $9.9B Legal Charge Hits Profit
Meta Q3 earnings: revenue rose 26% to $64.6 billion, but a $9.89 billion legal charge cut operating income 37% as AI capex guidance hit $135-145 billion.
The Lab
What is the technology behind these systems?
More from The Lab →The Lab
Nvidia and Baker Lab Release RFD4-Proteina Open Protein Design AI
Nvidia and the UW Institute for Protein Design released RFD4-Proteina, an open AI model that designs protein sequences and structures for drug discovery.
Tools & Models
Which model or tool should I choose?
More from Tools & Models →Tools & Models
Anthropic Launches Claude Duet, a Proactive AI Agent for Pro and Max
Anthropic's Claude Duet is a proactive AI agent built on Opus 5.5 that works in the background, now in research preview for US Claude Pro and Max subscribers.
The Bigger Picture
What does all this mean for society and the future?
More from The Bigger Picture →The Bigger Picture
Brain-Computer Interface Lets Unresponsive ICU Patients Control Sound
A Columbia study in Brain shows a noninvasive EEG brain-computer interface let one in three unresponsive ICU patients control a tone using thought alone.
The Bigger Picture
Agile Robots Unveils Agile ONE SN Humanoid Built on Nvidia GR00T
Agile Robots unveiled Agile ONE SN at Nvidia GTC Berlin, a 31-degree-of-freedom research humanoid on Isaac GR00T and Jetson Thor, due in early 2027.