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SpaceX has built the machine to build the machine. But what about the machine?

STARBASE, Texas—I first visited SpaceX's launch site in South Texas a decade ago. Driving down the pocked and barren two-lane road to its sandy terminus, I found only rolling dunes, a large mound of dirt, and a few satellite dishes that talked to Dragon spacecraft as they flew overhead. A few years later, in mid-2019, the company had moved some of that dirt and built a small launch pad. A handful of SpaceX engineers working there at the time shared some office space nearby in a tech hub buildin

Meet Wukong, the AI Chatbot China Has Installed on Its Space Station

The latest addition to China’s Tiangong space station is an AI chatbot with expertise in navigation and tactical planning. Named Wukong AI—after the protagonist of the “Monkey King” legend in Chinese mythology, Sun Wukong—the chatbot was introduced on the space station in mid-July, and has already completed its first mission: supporting three taikonauts during a spacewalk. Information about Wukong AI remains limited. Chinese authorities have said that they developed it from a domestic open-sour

Understanding Moravec's Paradox

Understanding Moravec's Paradox Morevec's paradox is a little weird in a few ways. First it's not a paradox, and second it's widely miss-interpreted. At its core, Moravec's paradox is the observation that reasoning takes much less computation compared to sensorimotor and perception tasks. It's often (incorrectly) described as tasks that are easy for humans are difficult for machines and visa versa. The answer from the human's side is relatively simple to explain. As hypothesised by Morvec, hum

Space is open for business with Even Rogers and Max Haot at TechCrunch Disrupt 2025

The next era of the space economy isn’t just about rockets and satellites — it’s about infrastructure, autonomy, and entirely new models for building and defending off-Earth assets. At TechCrunch Disrupt 2025 this October 27–29 in San Francisco’s Moscone West, the Space Stage is where this shift gets real. If you’re ready to explore how next-gen tech meets the cosmos, grab your ticket before prices rise on September 1 and save your seat at the Space Stage. Building the new backbone of space I

Starship launches could delay Florida flights up to 2 hours, FAA says

As regulators weigh SpaceX’s plans to launch its massive Starship rocket from Kennedy Space Center, federal documents warn those flights could ripple through Florida airspace, forcing ground stops at multiple airports, reroutes, and delays of up to two hours. Even after launch, reentry of Starship’s two stages could require ground stops at some of the busiest airports in the country, according to a draft environmental impact statement (EIS) released by the Federal Aviation Administration this m

Forging connections in space with cellular technology

The Intuitive Machines IM-2 Mission in March marked a milestone moment for cellular technology capable of withstanding the rigors of space travel, a level of connectivity that will be critical in fueling any future space economy. The inaugural journey of a new lunar network Nokia's ‘network in a box’ (NIB) was delivered to the Moon’s surface in March attached to the Intuitive Machines’ Athena lunar lander. And there, in an area of the lunar highlands called Mons Mouton, the network powered up

Material Cultures looks to the past to build the future

Gormley has been finding a “way around it” by systematically exploring how tradition can be harnessed in new ways to repair what she has dubbed the “oil vernacular”—the contemporary building system shaped not by local, natural materials but by global commodities and plastic products made largely from fossil fuels. Though she grew up in a household rich in art and design—she’s the daughter of the famed British sculptor Antony Gormley—she’s quick to say she’s far from a brilliant maker and more o

Appeals court says NLRB structure unconstitutional, in a win for SpaceX

A federal appeals court handed SpaceX a win on Tuesday, in a ruling that prevents the National Labor Relations Board from prosecuting unfair labor practices against the company. The ruling by the Fifth District Court of Appeals, which suggests the structure of the NLRB is likely unconstitutional, could have far-reaching effects. The ruling keeps unfair labor practice cases against SpaceX and two other companies, Energy Transfer and Findhelp, on hold while the companies pursue their claim that t

Guile bindings for Sway window manager

Guile Swayer I am an Emacs user and previously used StumpWM , an X11 window manager written in Common Lisp . I believe window managers should be scriptable because the level of workflow customization required by users often exceeds what can be achieved with simple configuration parameters (see my workflow below for a clearer understanding of why this is the case). Unfortunately, Sway/i3 lacks a straightforward programmable interface for customization. This project provides complete control over

Adobe’s AI Acrobat file hub is designed for more than PDFs

is a news writer focused on creative industries, computing, and internet culture. Jess started her career at TechRadar, covering news and hardware reviews. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Adobe is introducing a new Acrobat platform that combines the PDF app with its Adobe Express content creation service and AI assistants that can automate specific productivity tasks. Acrobat Studio allows users to upload up to 100 documents and consolida

The Cutaway Illustrations of Fred Freeman (2016)

During the two-year research for our book LOOK INSIDE we discovered many amazing illustrations and artists that, for one reason or another, did not make it into the final version of the book. It would be a pity to leave these forgotten on a drawer, so during the next few weeks we will present here some of these masters of the cutaway. A while ago we wrote here about Frank Soltesz, an American illustrator active from the 30’s to the 60’s, and author of a marvelous series of architectural cutaw

Despite Getting Billions From the Government, Elon Musk’s SpaceX Pays Basically No Taxes

Despite Getting Billions From the Government, Elon Musk’s SpaceX Pays Basically No Taxes "Billionaire freeloaders don’t pay taxes." Launch and Taxes For all his trash-talk of government welfare, billionaire Elon Musk has benefited from a lot of it in his time at the helm of his businesses, including SpaceX — and according to newly leaked documents, his space firm isn't even paying any taxes, either. As the New York Times reports, internal documents show that Musk has intimated to investors t

Roblox is locking down sexual content and access to ‘adult’ locations after lawsuits

is a news editor covering technology, gaming, and more. He joined The Verge in 2019 after nearly two years at Techmeme. Posts from this author will be added to your daily email digest and your homepage feed. Roblox is updating its policies prohibiting romantic or sexual content to also forbid “content, settings, or behavior that implies sexual activity,” according to a Friday post from chief safety officer Matt Kaufman (emphasis Kaufman’s). The changes follow recent lawsuits against the compa

Musk's Starlink suffers apparent outage as SpaceX launches more satellites

Satellite internet service Starlink, which is owned and operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX, appeared to suffer a brief network outage on Monday, with thousands of reports of service interruptions on Downdetector, a site that logs tech issues. The outage marked the second in two weeks for Starlink. SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The network's July 24 outage lasted for several hours, with SpaceX Vice President of Starlink Engineering Michael Nicolls blaming the matter o

The Cutaway Illustrations of Fred Freeman

During the two-year research for our book LOOK INSIDE we discovered many amazing illustrations and artists that, for one reason or another, did not make it into the final version of the book. It would be a pity to leave these forgotten on a drawer, so during the next few weeks we will present here some of these masters of the cutaway. A while ago we wrote here about Frank Soltesz, an American illustrator active from the 30’s to the 60’s, and author of a marvelous series of architectural cutaw

After recent tests, China appears likely to beat the United States back to the Moon

In recent weeks, the secretive Chinese space program has reported some significant milestones in developing its program to land astronauts on the lunar surface by the year 2030. On August 6, the China Manned Space Agency successfully tested a high-fidelity mockup of its 26-ton "Lanyue" lunar lander. The test, conducted outside of Beijing, used giant tethers to simulate lunar gravity as the vehicle fired main engines and fine control thrusters to land on a cratered surface and take off from ther

This Linux distro puts more than 20 desktops a click away

Jack Wallen/ZDNET ZDNET's key takeaways Sparky Linux is a lightweight distribution based on Debian 13. With Sparky Linux, you can install from over 20 desktops. Sparky Linux is a great option, even for new Linux users. Get more in-depth ZDNET tech coverage: Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome and Chromium browsers. Sparky Linux is well-known as a very good lightweight Linux distribution. Typically, Sparky defaults to the LXQt desktop, but offers versions with MATE, Xfce, and KDE

NASA’s acting chief calls for the end of Earth science at the space agency

Sean Duffy, the acting administrator of NASA for a little more than a month, has vowed to make the United States great in space. With a background as a US Congressman, reality TV star, and television commentator, Duffy did not come to the position with a deep well of knowledge about spaceflight. He also already had a lot on his plate, serving as the secretary of transportation, a Cabinet-level position that oversees 55,000 employees across 13 agencies. Nevertheless, Duffy is putting his imprin

A gigantic jet caught on camera: A spritacular moment for NASA astronaut

Left: Gigantic Jet Event from the International Space Station, taken by NASA Astronaut Nichole Ayers. (Credit: Ayers) Right: Sprite event appearing over a lightning strike, seen from space. This photo was taken by astronauts aboard the International Space Station during Expedition 44. Credit: NASA astronauts on board Expedition 44 Did you see that gorgeous photo NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers took on July 3, 2025? Originally thought to be a sprite, Ayers confirmed catching an even rarer form of a

Show HN: OverType – A Markdown WYSIWYG editor that's just a textarea

Hi HN! I got so frustrated with modern WYSIWYG editors that I started to play around with building my own. The problem I had was simple: I wanted a low-tech way to type styled text, but I didn't want to load a complex 500KB library, especially if I was going to initialize it dozens of times on the same page. Markdown in a plain <textarea> was the best alternative to a full WYSIWYG, but its main drawback is how ugly it looks without any formatting. I can handle it, but my clients certainly can'

SpaceX reveals why the last two Starships failed as another launch draws near

SpaceX is continuing with final preparations for the 10th full-scale test flight of the company's enormous Starship rocket after receiving launch approval Friday from the Federal Aviation Administration. Engineers completed a final test of Starship's propulsion system with a so-called "spin prime" test Wednesday at the launch site in South Texas. Ground crews then rolled the ship back to a nearby hangar for engine inspections, touchups to its heat shield, and a handful of other chores to ready

SpaceX Has Likely Skirted Federal Income Taxes for Decades, Investigation Reveals

Since its founding in 2002, Elon Musk’s SpaceX has emerged as the leading force in commercial spaceflight and a key launch provider for the U.S. government. A recent investigation suggests its dominance may stem—at least in part—from two decades of federal tax avoidance. Internal company documents reviewed exclusively by The New York Times show that SpaceX can exploit net operating loss (NOL) carryforwards, a U.S. tax provision that lets companies use past losses to offset future taxable income

Trump wants to clean up the space industry’s red tape: Here’s who wins

During a press conference in late 2024, President Donald Trump vowed to “slash massive numbers of job-killing regulations” in his second term and pledged to eliminate 10 old rules for every new one. Now, he’s bringing that deregulation drive to commercial space, ordering federal agencies to streamline launch licensing, fast-track spaceport development, and clear out the Federal Aviation Administration’s industry advisory board. “Inefficient permitting processes discourage investment and innova

Death and What Comes Next (2002)

The L-Space Web Death and What Comes Next A Discworld short story By Terry Pratchett Copyright © Terry Pratchett 2002 When Death met the philosopher, the philosopher said, rather excitedly: "At this point, you realise, I'm both dead and not dead." There was a sigh from Death. Oh dear, one of those, he thought. This is going to be about quantum again. He hated dealing with philosophers. They always tried to wriggle out of it. "You see," said the philosopher, while Death, motionless, watched

Show HN: Understanding the Spatial Web Browser Engine

Understanding the Spatial Web Browser Engine ​ 1. What Is a Spatial Web Browser? ​ A Spatial Web Browser is a user agent that loads, interprets, and presents Web content (HTML, CSS, JS, WebGL/WebGPU, WebXR, media) directly inside a 3D coordinate space instead of flattening everything onto a 2D rectangular viewport. Every DOM element (text nodes, images, canvas, form controls, SVG, etc.) can be: Positioned, rotated, and scaled in world / XR reference spaces Layered with true depth ordering (n

Topics: 3d html jsar spatial web

Trump Rips Up Environmental Rules Protecting Wildlife From Destructive Rocket Launches

Their friendship may be over, but president Donald Trump just handed Elon Musk and his company SpaceX a major boon by brushing aside major environmental regulations. On Wednesday, Trump signed an executive order to accelerate space launches by effectively deregulating the industry. As part of this push, the Federal Aviation Administration is directed to "eliminate or expedite" environmental reviews — an obstacle that has been a persistent thorn in Musk's side. Covering all its bases, the order

Starlink tries to block Virginia’s plan to bring fiber Internet to residents

Starlink operator SpaceX is fighting Virginia's plan to deploy fiber Internet service to residents, claiming that federal grant money should be given to Starlink instead. SpaceX is already in line to win over $3 million in grant money in the state but is seeking $60 million. Starlink is poised to benefit from the Trump administration rewriting rules for the $42 billion Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) grant program. While the Biden administration decided that states should priori

Private Spaceflight Enters the Wild West as Trump Slashes Regulations

President Donald Trump is calling for an ease of regulations for commercial spaceflight and streamlining licensing for rocket launches and reentries. The move highly favors companies like SpaceX but could have negative repercussions on environmental habitats surrounding launchpads. On Wednesday, August 13, Trump signed an executive order intended to bolster the spaceflight industry and increase the overall commercial launch cadence. In it, Trump calls on Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who

The Grimmest Ensign Deaths on ‘Star Trek’

Lots of people die in Star Trek, and do so pretty horrifically. Boldly going is deadly business, but there’s always something particularly grim when tragedy strikes at the lowest rung on Starfleet’s officer ladder: the lowly ensigns that keep any good starship or space station humming along as they try to survive long enough to eke it out to lieutenant junior grade and beyond. In last week’s episode of Strange New Worlds, we got to sadly see poor Ensign Gamble pay the ultimate price in a particu

Starlink Rival Announces Plans to Take on Musk With a $1.5 Billion Satellite Push

Texas startup AST SpaceMobile announced its plan to launch 45 to 60 satellites by 2026, establishing itself as a worthy competitor to SpaceX’s Starlink constellation in building space-based broadband networks. The company announced its second-quarter earnings on Monday, revealing that it had $1.5 billion on its balance sheet to fund the deployment of dozens of its satellites, CNBC reported. The next day, AST SpaceMobile’s shares soared by more than 10% with the prospect of the company providing