Ollama, a runtime for running large language models on a local machine, has added compatibility with Apple’s open-source MLX machine-learning framework. Ollama also reports better caching performance and now supports Nvidia’s NVFP4 model-compression format, which can considerably reduce memory use for certain models.

Taken together, these changes should deliver noticeably improved performance on Macs with Apple Silicon (M1 or later)—and the timing is apt, since local models are starting to gain momentum beyond the research and hobbyist spheres.

OpenClaw’s recent breakout—which surged past 300,000 stars on GitHub, grabbed attention with experiments like Moltbook, and became a particular phenomenon in China in particular—has pushed many people to try running models locally.

As developers grow frustrated with rate limits and the high prices of premium plans for services such as Claude Code or ChatGPT Codex, experimentation with local coding models has intensified. (Ollama has also recently expanded its Visual Studio Code integration.)

The new capability is available in preview (Ollama 0.19) and currently supports only one model—the 35 billion-parameter variant of Alibaba’s Qwen3.5. The hardware requirements are steep for typical users: besides an Apple Silicon Mac, you need at least 32GB of RAM, according to Ollama’s announcement.

Safety concerns

On March 22, The Wall Street Journal said Kennedy was “poised” to carry out his proposal to remove FDA limits on peptides. Two days later, The Washington Post’s editorial board denounced Kennedy’s proposal as “hypocritical quackery.” Today, The New York Times reported that the FDA is moving toward permitting compounding pharmacies to produce 14 peptides that are now restricted. The Times added that senior FDA officials have “reservations” about the shift and worry the agency could be accused of deciding on political grounds rather than on scientific evidence.

Which 14 peptides might be included hasn’t been made public. Observers expect several well-known compounds to appear on the list, such as BPC-157 (Body Protection Compound-157), originally isolated from gastric secretions and promoted for tissue repair. Growth-hormone–releasing peptides like CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin are also likely candidates.

Specialists point out there are no randomized controlled trials proving the effectiveness of these peptides. Furthermore, experts warn of a range of safety issues, including contaminants from gray- or black-market sources, inconsistent dosing, and mixtures of unproven peptides known as “stacks.” Some peptides that stimulate growth could increase cancer risk, and others may disrupt hormonal balance. Last year, two women fell critically ill after receiving peptide injections at an anti-aging event in Las Vegas.

The evidence for these peptides is “just woefully minuscule,” Eric Topol, director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, told the Times. “It’s a mess, because we don’t have any data that these work,” he added. “Maybe one of them actually does something good. But right now, we just know that they’re a liability.”

“This is the identical board that vowed transparency. The very leadership that said they would operate this utility the right way. And now they can’t even comply with a basic notification statute before removing a public health measure from the drinking water of hundreds of thousands of people,” Woodfin wrote.

Late last week, the City of Birmingham filed a lawsuit against CAW, alleging that CAW failed to provide notice of the change and seeking an emergency court order to restore fluoridation, according to local WVTM13. The city argued in its filing that removing fluoride from the water endangered residents’ dental health, particularly low-income residents and children who lack access to dental care.

When contacted by Ars Technica, the City of Birmingham declined to comment on the suit. CAW told reporters that it does not comment on pending litigation.

Fluoride recommendations

The American Dental Association (ADA) and the American Academy of Pediatrics endorse fluoridating community water to prevent tooth decay, especially in children. In areas without fluoridated water, medical experts recommend prescribing fluoride supplements for children.

Water fluoridation is considered one of the top 10 public health achievements. Still, since its introduction in the US in 1945, baseless fears and conspiracy theories have swirled around the practice. Those concerns have been stoked recently by anti-vaccine Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Although he has no background in medicine, public health, or science, Kennedy has rejected scientific evidence on fluoridation and made forceful, unsubstantiated claims that fluoridated water is unsafe. As health secretary, he has pledged to remove it from US water. A modeling study by Harvard University researchers last year estimated that if Kennedy follows through on that pledge, it would lead to 25 million more decayed teeth among children and teens in the first five years.

Health experts have also pushed back against the idea that fluoridation is unnecessary now that fluoride-containing toothpaste and mouthwash are available. In comments to NBC News, Scott Tomar, head of the department of population oral health at the University of Illinois Chicago, said: “It certainly is true that fluoride-containing toothpaste is effective at preventing decay, but it’s not true that that alone justifies removing fluoride from our drinking water.” Tomar warned that CAW’s decision to remove fluoride will increase residents’ risk of cavities. “It has probably put youngest children at the greatest risk, because that’s usually where we see it show up first when fluoridation stops,” he said.

“Nunley wrote that the defendants likewise do not dispute the plaintiff’s claim that in the 16 [market areas] where Nexstar or Tegna holds a Big Four duopoly or triopoly, they appoint a single news director to run one newsroom and employ the same on-air talent across all Big Four channels they own in the [market area],” Nunley wrote.

Before the merger, Nexstar controlled 201 full-power TV stations and Tegna controlled 64, for a combined total of 265. They agreed to divest six stations, which would bring the total down to 259.

DirecTV argues that “without a hold-separate order, Nexstar will fully absorb Tegna and eliminate the firms’ head-to-head competition in the 31 overlapping markets,” Nunley wrote. “Plaintiff asserts it will suffer irreparable harm from a substantially reduced bargaining position vis-à-vis Nexstar in retransmission consent talks. Plaintiff maintains it will soon be negotiating access to highly sought-after content, including Big Four sports and local news, with a merged company that plans to threaten blackouts at rates that could double or even triple the current risk.”

Judge: Nexstar can’t absorb Tegna yet

Nunley concluded that DirecTV’s Clayton Act claim is likely to succeed on the merits and that “the public interest favors a hold-separate order.” The hold-separate directive contains multiple elements intended to stop Nexstar and Tegna from integrating assets or coordinating decisions.

“Nexstar must allow Tegna to continue operating as a separate and distinct, independently managed business unit from Nexstar, and Nexstar must implement measures to preserve Tegna as an ongoing, economically viable, and active competitor,” Nunley wrote. “Tegna shall have separate management that conducts Tegna’s affairs in the ordinary course consistent with pre-closing practices.”

One clause in the order requires Tegna’s leadership to retain control over decision-making “with respect to retransmission consent agreements and negotiations, newsroom personnel, operations and programming, product and service offerings, product development, advertisement sales, and personnel.”

Another provision states that all local TV stations owned by Tegna “will be maintained and operated as independent, ongoing, economically viable, and active competitors in the business of licensing retransmission consent” to TV providers. A clause aimed at preventing layoffs requires the companies “shall use all reasonable efforts to maintain” Tegna stations’ pre-merger staffing levels.

Nexstar has until April 1 to file arguments explaining why a preliminary injunction should not be entered, and a hearing is scheduled for April 7 to consider the potential injunction. The judge also ordered Nexstar to file a report by April 6 detailing the steps it has taken to comply with the temporary restraining order.