Adapting to new threats with proactive risk management

Published: 9 September 2025
Categories: MIT Tech Review

RSS Feed Source: MIT Technology Review

In July 2024, a botched update to the software defenses managed by cybersecurity firm CrowdStrike caused more than 8 million Windows systems to fail. From hospitals to manufacturers, stock markets to retail stores, the outage caused parts of the global economy to grind to a halt. Payment systems were disrupted, broadcasters went off the air, and flights were canceled. In all, the outage is estimated to have caused direct losses of more than $5 billion to Fortune 500 companies. For US air carrier Delta Air Lines, the error exposed the brittleness of its systems. The airline suffered weeks of disruptions, leading to $500 million in losses and 7,000 canceled flights.

The magnitude of the CrowdStrike incident revealed just how interconnected digital systems are, and the extensive vulnerabilities in some companies when confronted with an unexpected occurrence. “On any given day, there could be

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Why basic science deserves our boldest investment

Published: 8 September 2025
Categories: MIT Tech Review

RSS Feed Source: MIT Technology Review

In December 1947, three physicists at Bell Telephone Laboratories—John Bardeen, William Shockley, and Walter Brattain—built a compact electronic device using thin gold wires and a piece of germanium, a material known as a semiconductor. Their invention, later named the transistor (for which they were awarded the Nobel Prize in 1956), could amplify and switch electrical signals, marking a dramatic departure from the bulky and fragile vacuum tubes that had powered electronics until then.

Its inventors weren’t chasing a specific product. They were asking fundamental questions about how electrons behave in semiconductors, experimenting with surface states and electron mobility in germanium crystals. Over months of trial and refinement, they combined theoretical insights from quantum mechanics with hands-on experimentation in solid-state physics—work many might have dismissed as too basic, academic, or unprofitable.

Their efforts culminated in a moment that now marks the dawn of the information

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NSF National Quantum Virtual Laboratory speeds into the design phase

Published: 4 September 2025
Categories: National Science Foundation

RSS Feed Source: MIT Technology Review

The U.S. National Science Foundation National Quantum Virtual Laboratory (NSF NQVL) is coming into sharper focus with the selection of the first four teams that will design high-tech infrastructure to be broadly used across the country. NSF is investing $16 million in the four teams, with each receiving $4 million over two years. The NSF NQVL initiative is an ambitious effort to accelerate the development of useful quantum technologies by providing researchers anywhere in the U.S. with access to specialized resources.

The teams selected by NSF will design practical ways to expand access to the hardware and software needed for quantum science, engineering and technology development, which are currently highly bespoke and concentrated in relatively few labs. Among the design projects are plans to create shareable, networked quantum computers that can be used for experimentation from any location and a “digital twin” (a dynamic simulation that changes and responds to inputs) of a quantum computer that can be used by any U.S. researcher to test and refine new quantum algorithms.

“The National Quantum Virtual Laboratory is a critical bridge between basic discovery and deployment, specifically focused on turning America’s leadership in fundamental quantum science into practical technologies, products, and systems that will strengthen our nation’s competitiveness and ensure U.S. dominance in this field for decades to come,” said Brian Stone, performing the duties of

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