[Most Recent Entries] [Calendar View]
Saturday, September 6th, 2025
| Time | Event |
| 12:45a | America's First Sodium-Ion Battery Manufacturer Ceases Operations Grady Martin writes: Natron Energy has announced the immediate cessation of all operations, including its manufacturing plant in Holland, Michigan, and plans to build a $1.4 billion "gigafactory" in North Carolina. A company representative cited "efforts to raise sufficient new funding [being] unsuccessful" as the rationale for the decision. When previously covered by Slashdot, comments on the merits of sodium-ion included the ability to use aluminum in lieu of heavier, more expensive copper anodes; a charge rate ten times that of lithium-ion; and Earth's abundance of sodium -- though at least one anonymous coward predicted the cancellation of the project. 
Read more of this story at Slashdot. |
| 1:25a | Apple's Vision Pro Gaining Traction in Some Niches of Business Apple's $3,500 Vision Pro is finding real traction in niche enterprise use, like CAE's pilot training, Lowe's kitchen design visualization, and Dassault's engineering workflows. "Over the last few weeks, I had an opportunity to try out some of those applications, and they are game-changers, albeit within their specific domains," writes Steven Rosenbush via the Wall Street Journal. "Companies should pay attention now to what's going on in these niche markets. Based on what I saw, these systems are having an impact on the way users integrate content development and engineering, which has implications for the way companies approach roles, teams and workflow." From the report: Home-improvement retailer Lowe's has deployed the Vision Pro at five locations in the San Francisco Bay Area and five locations in the Austin, Texas area. Customers use them to visualize how design ideas will look in their actual kitchen. The company plans to scale the effort to 100 of approximately 1,700 stores by the end of the year, eventually ramping up to 400 locations in markets with sufficient scale to justify the investment, Chief Digital and Information Officer Seemantini Godbole told me. [...] Dassault Systemes, the French industrial software company, has long created virtual worlds for commercial use. Scientists, manufacturing experts, product managers and others use its platforms to design and engineer molecules for drug development, as well as data centers, factories, aircraft and electric cars. The 3DExperience platform was launched more than a decade ago, pulling together a range of Dassault brands including 3DExcite on the premise that "everything is going to become an experience," 3DExcite Chief Executive Tom Acland said. In February, Dassault Systemes and Apple announced a collaboration to produce the 3DLive App, which went live February 7. Users include Hyundai, Virgin Galactic and Deutsche Aircraft, he said. [...] Canadian aircraft training company CAE is using Vision Pro to provide pilot training that complements full-motion flight simulator experience required for certification and recurrent checks, according to Chief Technology and Product Officer Emmanuel Levitte. The company has employed mixed reality and immersive training for at least 10 years. The Vision Pro has unlocked new capabilities, he said. The display is as sharp and readable as the controls in a real cockpit, which Levitte found not to be the case with other devices. The haptic feedback and audio quality also contribute to a more realistic training experience, he said. Remote crew members will also be able to be co-located virtually, enabling training that was previously only possible when individuals were physically in the same cockpit, according to Levitte.
Read more of this story at Slashdot. |
| 7:00a | Europe Hopes To Join Competitive AI Race With Supercomputer Jupiter Europe on Friday inaugurated Jupiter, its first exascale supercomputer and the most powerful AI machine on the continent. Built in Germany with 24,000 Nvidia chips, the 500-million-euro system aims to close the AI gap with the US and China while also advancing climate modeling, neuroscience, and renewable energy research. France 24 reports: Based at Juelich Supercomputing Centre in western Germany, it is Europe's first "exascale" supercomputer -- meaning it will be able to perform at least one quintillion (or one billion billion) calculations per second. The United States already has three such computers, all operated by the Department of Energy. Jupiter is housed in a centre covering some 3,600 meters (38,000 square feet) -- about half the size of a football pitch -- containing racks of processors, and packed with about 24,000 Nvidia chips, which are favored by the AI industry. Half the 500 million euros ($580 million) to develop and run the system over the next few years comes from the European Union and the rest from Germany. Its vast computing power can be accessed by researchers across numerous fields as well as companies for purposes such as training AI models. "Jupiter is a leap forward in the performance of computing in Europe," Thomas Lippert, head of the Juelich centre, told AFP, adding that it was 20 times more powerful than any other computer in Germany. [...] Yes, Jupiter will require on average around 11 megawatts of power, according to estimates -- equivalent to the energy used to power thousands of homes or a small industrial plant. But its operators insist that Jupiter is the most energy-efficient among the fastest computer systems in the world. It uses the latest, most energy-efficient hardware, has water-cooling systems and the waste heat that it generates will be used to heat nearby buildings, according to the Juelich centre.
Read more of this story at Slashdot. |
| 5:34p | Bill Gates-Backed Nuclear Fusion Developer Wants to Deploy a Reactor in Japan "A U.S.-based nuclear fusion developer wants to deploy a reactor in Japan in the late 2030s or early 2040s," reports Bloomberg, "in line with the Asian country's broader plans to adopt the potent, low-carbon energy source." Commonwealth Fusion Systems, which last week announced it raised $863 million from investors including Nvidia, has been in dialogue with Japanese government officials on the use of its technology, CEO Bob Mumgaard said in an interview in Tokyo on Wednesday... Several countries are eyeing the technology for its climate and energy security benefits but only some, like China, the U.S., Russia and South Korea have managed to crack the basics. Japan revised its national strategy in June to support fusion deployment and build a demonstration plant in the 2030s. The article notes that Commonwealth "does not currently have any reactors in operation" — but that Mitsubishi this week invested in the company, in collaboration with a consortium of 12 Japanese companies. From Mitsubishi's announcement: The Japanese Consortium will acquire technical and commercial expertise in policy, regulatory, and the development, construction, operation, and maintenance of ARC [power plant] from CFS's commercialization projects in the United States. In addition, each consortium company will bring together its know-how and expertise and aspire to expedite the commercialization and industrialization of fusion energy power generation in Japan.
Read more of this story at Slashdot. |
| 6:34p | BMW Unveils New iX3 EV With 500-Mile Range, AI-Enabled Software BMW unveiled its new iX3 — with nearly 500 miles of rangeand ultra-fast charging. The EV news site Electrek reports: To maximize range, BMW gave it a clean, aerodynamic design with very few lines... The BMW iX3 offers an impressive WLTP range of up to nearly 500 miles (800 km). On the EPA scale, it's expected to deliver around 400 miles of range. Based on an 800V architecture, the BMW iX3 can deliver charging speeds of up to 400 kW. According to BMW, that means it can add over 230 miles (370 km) in just 10 minutes. It's also BMW's first EV with bidirectional charging, according to the article. But MotorTrend calls it "BMW's Biggest Reinvention Since the '60s." The decision to move forward in every aspect — design, architecture, technology, software, and manufacturing — was made five years ago... The new Neue Klasse architecture will start out with EVs only, but aspects of this new vision will be adopted by 40 vehicles — SUVs, sedans, coupes, maybe even a supercar — with an assortment of powertrains by the end of 2027. In other words, Neue Klasse will touch and influence everything BMW does going forward... The design philosophy for the Neue Klasse vehicles is that they should look like they skipped an entire generation. From BMW's announcement for the iX3: Physical controls are on hand, including for the windscreen wipers, turn signal indicators, exterior mirrors, volume control, gear selector, parking brake, hazard warning lights, rear window heating and defrost function. Other functions have been optimised for use by touch and voice command or via the multifunction steering wheel... [MotorTrends notes "you must use the screen to adjust the air vents."] The BMW Panoramic Vision projects information across the full width of the windscreen, from A-pillar to A-pillar. The content in the centre and on the front passenger side can be adapted to personal tastes and requirements. Key driving information appears in the driver's field of vision. And above the BMW Panoramic Vision, the BMW 3D Head-Up Display (if specified) can now also show integrated navigation and automated driving displays on the road with spatial depth. The free-cut-design Central Display with matrix backlight technology is located in an ergonomically ideal position next to the steering wheel. On the driver's side, vertically arranged widgets enable fast and direct access to particularly frequently used functions using QuickSelect tech. The new multifunction steering wheel serves as the primary physical control point. Its button panels help the driver and vehicle to work together symbiotically using illuminations, a relief-like surface and haptic feedback. Some details from MotorTrends: There's an avatar for the intelligent personal assistant, activated by saying, "Hey, BMW." The BMW roundel morphs into a blue circle with big, expressive eyes and eyebrows. It looks like an amiable alien that turns to face the person addressing it, and it's programmed to wink, blush, and more, as well as to not stare too long at anyone. The assistant is quick to respond, using Alexa tech and a male or female voice to provide directions, answer questions, and perform functions. MotorTrends adds that the iX3 "is BMW's first software-defined vehicle, meaning it can use over-the-air updates to fix problems and add features and functions, keeping it fresh over its lifetime with software that BMW developed itself." BMW's announcement also notes "the latest systems for automated driving optimise symbiotic human-vehicle interaction..." Whenever the driver wants to accelerate, brake or steer, their inputs merge seamlessly and intuitively with AI-enabled software... The functionality offered by the City Assistant includes traffic light detection, where the car automatically stops and then moves off again.
Read more of this story at Slashdot. |
| << Previous Day |
2025/09/06 [Calendar] |
Next Day >> |