Since the 2022 Nord Stream pipeline explosions and other attacks on subsea infrastructure near Taiwan and the Arctic, governments and companies have sharply increased investment in technology to protect underwater cables and pipelines. Chatham House researcher Katja Bego says advances in AI, drones and autonomous vehicles are enabling new forms of seabed surveillance, reversing decades of neglect since the Cold War. Over 1.5 million kilometers of submarine communications cables now underpin the global economy, making their protection a growing strategic priority.
Anthropic has confirmed to TechCrunch that it operates a physical biology lab in the Bay Area, where its AI models help design and test experiments in real life. The company says the lab focuses on fundamental biology research rather than drug discovery, and works both internally and with outside partners, building on its April acquisition of stealth biotech startup Coefficient Bio.
Anthropic and OpenAI are pursuing smaller data center deals in the 20-30 megawatt range, according to sources familiar with the discussions, even as both companies have already signed massive multi-hundred-megawatt and gigawatt infrastructure agreements. Anthropic has explored such deals in the UK and Nordics, while OpenAI has looked at similar opportunities in the Nordics, with talks also reportedly underway for smaller U.S. deployments. OpenAI confirmed it is building a 'diversified compute portfolio' but declined to discuss specific commercial talks; Anthropic did not comment.
Novo Nordisk, the Danish pharmaceutical company known for Ozempic and Wegovy, is rebranding itself as simply 'Novo' starting this week. The move shifts the company's public identity toward a shorter, more casual name as it markets directly to consumers rather than solely to healthcare providers.
Executives from Nord Quantique and QuSecure discussed how quantum computing is moving from theoretical research toward real-world application, with heavy investment from governments and companies. They highlighted potential across drug discovery, materials science, finance and logistics, alongside the parallel risk quantum poses to current encryption standards.
Design Bridge and Partners created Nordeste, a new destination brand meant to represent Brazil's nine northeastern states as a cohesive region while preserving each state's distinct cultural identity. The project has been named winner of the Best Design Latin America category in Fast Company's 2026 Innovation by Design Awards, moving past the region's traditional beach-and-sunshine tourism imagery.
NordVPN has released PriceMice, a free Chrome extension that uses AI to scan hotel booking prices across different countries and surface the cheapest option, including taxes and fees at checkout. Users can then switch their VPN to the country offering the lowest rate before completing their booking. In one test, the tool found a savings of about $120 on a Tokyo hotel by switching the browsing location from India to Taiwan.
The Nördlinger Ries is a large circular impact crater in Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg, Germany, that formed a lake covering roughly 400 square kilometers before silting up over about two million years. Buildings in the town of Nördlingen were constructed from local stone containing an estimated 72,000 tonnes of microscopic diamonds, created when the impact struck a graphite deposit. The same event is also linked to moldavite tektites scattered as far as 450 kilometers away in the Czech Republic.
Artist and musician Laurie Anderson has been chosen to contribute the next manuscript to Katie Paterson's Future Library project, joining previous participants such as Margaret Atwood, Han Kang and Ocean Vuong. Her submission will be stored unread in a dedicated room at Oslo's Deichman Bjørvika library until 2114, when it will finally be printed on paper made from a forest of spruce trees planted specifically for the project in 2014.
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