A German startup has secured new funding for a peculiar twisted-looking reactor that could prove a quicker path to clean, virtually limitless fusion energy. Proxima Fusion has raised €20mn as it looks to bring its designs for the so-called stellarator fusion reactor to life. "We are working to deliver a demonstrator of net-energy production in continuous operation by 2031, and a first-of-a-kind power plant in the mid-2030s," Dr Francesco Sciortino, CEO and co-founder of Proxima Fusion,...
There’s no escaping the hype around artificial general intelligence. Barely a day passes without a new headline about the concept, which envisions computer systems outperforming humans at various cognitive tasks. In the last month alone, a trio of tech luminaries have added fresh proclamations. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang suggested AGI would arrive within five years. Ben "father of AGI" Goertzel forecasted a mere three. Elon Musk typically made the boldest prediction for the tipping point: the...
Welcome to the new episode of the TNW Podcast — the show where we discuss the latest developments in the European technology ecosystem and feature interviews with some of the most interesting people in the industry. In today’s episode, Linnea and Andrii talk about a promising quantum breakthrough, a public funding disaster in Poland, the first Macintosh in Europe, and much more. The guest of the show is Jean-David Malo, Director of the Executive Agency for EIC and SMEs (EISMEA). It’s...
Backed by state lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), Italy is committing €1bn to AI development over the course of the next five years. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni first announced the plan for a dedicated AI fund last month. “The purpose of this mechanism is clearly to act as a multiplier and serve to attract further investment,” Meloni said in a video message. CDP’s venture capital arm will provide the capital, divided into three areas. Some €580mn will be invested in startups, while...
A vertical farming startup from the UK is taking its technology to new heights. The UK Space Agency has awarded Vertical Future £1.5mn to build an autonomous farm in orbit. The high-tech veggie garden will be installed on the world’s first commercial space station. Currently being constructed by US-based Axiom Space, the station is due to open its doors to eager astronauts in 2026. Space stations are an ideal testing ground for growing fruit, veggies, and even pharmaceuticals in...
Ukraine has launched a defence tech accelerator programme for new startups aiming to deliver innovative solutions for military applications. The Defence Builder Accelerator is a four-month-long training programme, which will provide full-cycle support for product development. This includes 100 hours of online lectures and eight 1:1 meetings with mentors. As part of the programme, startups will also receive introductions to investors and further fundraising assistance. In addition, they...
Helsinki-based startup ReOrbit is preparing for the first demonstration of its “software-enabled” satellite. This marks the next phase of the ESA’s UKKO programme, which works with ReOrbit to develop and test next-gen tech for Earth observation satellites. (Fun fact: Ukko is the god of the sky, weather, harvest, and thunder in Finnish mythology). ReOrbit’s first in-orbit demonstration satellite is scheduled for launch in the second quarter of 2025. It will be a crucial test of the...
Helsinki-headquartered Basemark has raised €22mn to bring its augmented reality (AR) “toolkit” to automakers across the globe. Basemark’s software, dubbed Rocksolid AR, is an AI-based computer vision system that enables carmakers to develop their own AR applications for Heads-up Displays (HUDs). Car companies are embracing AR HUDs as a means of relaying important information to the driver. Instead of having to look down at a screen, HUDs project real-time driving guidance, alerts, and...
If, as a software developer, you want to know what the most popular or best-paid programming languages are in the industry right now, there’s always a constant stream of surveys and reports to let you know. And career advice for developers will typically recommend that constant learning on the job is essential. But if AI can produce code from a few plain-speaking prompts, has learning programming languages become redundant? Certainly, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang believes that future...
US pressure to block ASML from servicing the chip-making machines it has sold to China is increasing the Netherlands’ entanglement into an escalating geopolitical race for tech supremacy. Implementing a clear technological and economic decoupling strategy from China, the Biden Administration has introduced a series of thorough export rules aiming to restrict Beijing from obtaining key chip technology. But as the world’s only manufacturer of equipment for advanced chips, ASLM has also been...
Spotify is further tapping AI to boost its services with a new feature that enables users to create playlists using text prompts. Dubbed AI Playlist, the feature is currently in beta and available on Android and iOS devices for premium subscribers in Australia and the UK. Interestingly, the new tool goes beyond standard playlist creation requests based on genre or artists. Instead, prompts can include activities, colours, places, and emojis. At the same time, users can get as creative...
A UK startup has claimed a major breakthrough in its plans to beam solar energy from space to Earth. At a lab in Belfast, Oxford-based Space Solar managed to light up an LED sign by wirelessly beaming energy through the air, from all angles. This marks the world’s first 360-degree wireless power transmission, said the startup. “This steerable power beaming capability is the heart of our solar power satellite design,” Martin Soltau, founder at Space Solar, told TNW. Space-based solar...