The Download: Google playing AI search catchup, and forming relationships with chatbots

Chatbots are changing how we connect to each other and ourselves. But are these changes for the better, and how should they be monitored and regulated? To learn more, join me for a live Roundtable session this Thursday at 12pm ET. I’ll be chatting with MIT Technology Review editor Rachel Courtland and senior reporter Eileen Guo, and we’ll be unpacking the landscape around chatbots. Register to ensure you don’t miss out! The must-reads I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology. 1 How Trump's foreign aid cuts will hurt millions of peoples' health The world is going to struggle to cope with the loss of US support. (Vox) + Hundreds of thousands of people are likely to lose their lives as a result. (New Yorker $) + The cuts could cause tuberculosis to become untreatable again. (The Atlantic $) + Top scientific universities are being forced to slash jobs. (The Guardian) + Pregnant women may die because of cuts to rep ... Read full article.