Here is today’s issue of The Download, our newsletter published on weekdays that offers a daily glimpse into the happenings in technology.
US deputy health secretary: Vaccine recommendations remain provisional
In the past year, Jim O’Neill has emerged as a significant figure in public health. Serving as the US deputy health secretary, he occupies two key positions within the country’s federal health and scientific agencies. He manages a department with a budget exceeding a trillion dollars. He also endorsed the memorandum concerning the US’s highly debated new vaccine schedule.
Additionally, he is an advocate for longevity. In a recent exclusive interview with MIT Technology Review, O’Neill shared his vision for enhancing human healthspan through longevity-centered research funded by ARPA-H, an agency focused on biomedical innovation. Other longevity supporters expressed hopes that he will attract attention and resources to their initiatives.
Simultaneously, O’Neill justified the decision to reduce the number of recommended childhood vaccines, which has faced substantial backlash from health and medical experts. Read the complete article.
—Jessica Hamzelou
The illusion of the high-tech heist
Making a film resembles executing a heist. This is what Steven Soderbergh—director of the Ocean’s series, among other heist-inspired classics—remarked a while back. You devise a clever premise, assemble a team of experts, navigate technological hurdles, practice, operate with meticulous precision, and—if executed correctly—redistribute some wealth.
Conversely, carrying out a heist seldom resembles the cinematic portrayal. Surveillance equipment, computer-controlled security alarms, knockout gas, and lasers rarely come into play in high-profile crimes. In actuality, technical defenses are infrequently an issue, and high-tech devices seldom provide solutions. Read the full article.
—Adam Rogers
This piece is from the forthcoming print edition of MIT Technology Review magazine, dedicated to crime. If you haven’t yet, subscribe now to receive future issues as they are released.
RFK Jr. adheres to a carnivore diet. That doesn’t imply you should, though.
Americans now have a fresh set of dietary recommendations. Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has flipped the traditional food pyramid upside down, placing a steak and a stick of butter at the top.
Kennedy and his Make America Healthy Again collaborators have long praised the benefits of meat and whole-fat dairy, so it was not surprising to find these foods included alongside vegetables and whole grains (despite the well-documented evidence that excessive saturated fat can be extremely harmful).
Some influencers have taken the meat trend to the extreme, adopting a “carnivore diet.” A recent examination of nutritional misinformation on social media revealed that much shared diet information is unfounded. However, notably, some of this misinformation originates from those who currently lead America’s federal health agencies. Read the complete article.
—Jessica Hamzelou
This article originally appeared in The Checkup, MIT Technology Review’s weekly biotechnology newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every Thursday and to read such articles first, sign up here.
The must-reads
I’ve searched the internet to bring you today’s most entertaining/essential/terrifying/intriguing stories related to technology.
1 The Trump administration has rolled back a pivotal climate ruling
In its absence, it can eliminate restrictions on planet-warming emissions. (WP $)
+ Environmental advocates and Democrats have pledged to contest the reversal. (Politico)
+ They are deeply concerned about the impact on public health. (The Hill)
2 A mysterious surge of bot traffic is sweeping online
Websites worldwide are experiencing automated traffic that seems to originate from China. (Wired $)
3 Amazon’s Ring has canceled its partnership with Flock
Law enforcement can no longer request footage from Ring doorbell users. (The Verge)
+ Ring’s recent advertisement for a dog-finding feature caused backlash. (WSJ $)
+ How Amazon Ring markets doorbell cameras using domestic violence narratives. (MIT Technology Review)
4 Americans are bearing the burden of nearly all of Trump’s tariffs
Consumers and businesses in the US, not abroad, are absorbing 90% of the tariffs. (Reuters)
+ Trump has consistently claimed that foreign exporters will bear the costs of his tariffs. (FT $)
+ Broad tariffs might jeopardize the US manufacturing recovery. (MIT Technology Review)
5 Meta and Snap report that Australia’s social media ban hasn’t harmed business
They continue to generate substantial revenue despite the country’s decision to limit access for users under 16. (Bloomberg $)
+ Does blocking teenagers from online spaces yield any benefits? (Economist $)
6 AI professionals are cashing out their shares before their companies go public
Exiting early used to be a significant taboo in Silicon Valley. (WSJ $)
7 Elon Musk discussed race almost daily last month
His obsession with a white racial majority seems to be escalating. (The Guardian)
+ Race is a recurrent theme in the Epstein emails as well. (The Atlantic $)
8 The individual behind a viral alert about AI utilized AI to compose it
Yet he stands by its content.. (NY Mag $)
+ How AI-generated text is negatively affecting the internet. (MIT Technology Review)
9 Influencers are celebrating Chinese customs in anticipation of the New Year 🧧
On the internet, your true origins can remain unknown. (NYT $)
10 Farmers in Australia are leveraging AI to monitor sheep 🐑
No updates on whether this innovation helps with their sleep quality, however. (FT $)
Quote of the day
“Disregarding early warnings won’t prevent the storm. It merely places more Americans directly in harm’s way.”
—Former US secretary of state John Kerry criticizes the US government’s choice to revoke the critical rule that enables it to manage climate-related pollution, the Guardian reports.
One more thing
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory is prepared to revolutionize our comprehension of the universe
Perched high atop Chile’s 2,700-meter Cerro Pachón, the atmosphere is clear and arid, ensuring minimal cloud cover to obscure the stunning starlit vista. It is at this site that the Vera C. Rubin Observatory will soon employ a car-sized 3,200-megapixel digital camera—the largest ever constructed—to create a fresh map of the entire night sky every three days.
Results from the observatory will contribute to unraveling essential enigmas, such as the character of dark matter and dark energy, two forces that remain unobserved yet impact the binding and separation of objects in the cosmos.
With a quarter-century of development, the observatory is set to deepen our understanding of virtually every aspect of the universe. Read the full story.
—Adam Mann
We can still enjoy good things
A space for comfort, enjoyment, and diversion to uplift your day. (Have suggestions? Reach out or message me.)
+ Why 2026 appears to be the year for the return of pop.
+ Much of what we believed about Central America’s Maya has turned out to be entirely incorrect.
+ The Bigfoot hunters have shared their insights!
+ This amusing game puts you in the role of a distracted individual attempting to engage in a date while playing on a GameBoy.
