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A new study projects that extreme heat could cause up to 2.3 million deaths in Europe by the end of the century unless significant progress is made in reducing carbon emissions and adapting to rising temperatures. Currently, cold temperatures are a more significant cause of death in Europe than heat. However, researchers from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, using simulations across 854 cities, found that while cold-related deaths will decrease gradually with warming temperatures, heat-related deaths will increase dramatically. Regions like Italy, southern Spain, and Greece are expected to experience substantial increases in heat-related mortality under scenarios with limited emissions reductions and adaptation measures. Conversely, areas such as Scandinavia and the UK may see a decrease in temperature-related deaths due to milder cold temperatures. This finding is detailed in Monday's journal. Even under optimistic scenarios—with substantial cuts in greenhouse gas emissions and widespread adaptation—the study's lead author, Pierre Masselot, indicates a net increase in temperature-related deaths is projected as global temperatures rise. Masselot notes that the decrease in cold-related deaths in northern regions is offset by significant increases in southern areas where heat-related deaths will be more pronounced. Masselot highlights the Mediterranean region as a "climate hotspot," warming faster than the global average, with Malta particularly vulnerable. The study projects a temperature-related death rate increase of 269 per 100,000 in Malta by the end of the century, contrasting with a slight decrease of 15 per 100,000 in Ireland. Masselot observes that wealthier western European nations are projected to fare better than their eastern counterparts. Recent European heatwaves have already resulted in thousands of deaths, notably the 2003 heatwave, which caused approximately 70,000 fatalities. Large Mediterranean cities are predicted to experience significant increases in heat-related deaths. The study suggests that Barcelona could see nearly a quarter of a million additional deaths, while Rome and Naples could see close to 150,000. In a scenario with only slightly worse carbon pollution than current trends and minimal adaptation, the study projects over 5.8 million excess heat deaths due to climate change, but also nearly 3.5 million fewer cold deaths. The research team provides a tool where cities and different factors can be adjusted. Kristie Ebi, a University of Washington public health and climate scientist not involved in the study, commends the research for isolating the impact of climate change, separating it from the effects of an aging population. Dr. Courtney Howard, a Canadian emergency room physician and vice chair of the Global Climate and Health Alliance (also not involved in the study), confirms the study's findings align with expected trends, highlighting the dangers of extreme heat, especially for vulnerable populations lacking access to air conditioning. Masselot emphasizes the need for significant adaptation measures in Europe, such as widespread air conditioning, increased green spaces, and cooling centers, to mitigate projected death rates, noting that North America is less likely to experience such a dramatic trend. He also notes that Europe's aging population increases its vulnerability.

The Doomsday Clock now stands at 89 seconds to midnight, the closest it has ever been in its 78-year history. The US, China, and Russia bear the responsibility of guiding the world away from disaster. The survival of humanity hinges on immediate action from global leaders. Established in 1947 by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, including Manhattan Project scientists, the Doomsday Clock reflects escalating existential threats. Nuclear weapons, climate change, biological threats, and advancements in artificial intelligence pose grave risks that deeply concern leading scientists worldwide. Setting the Clock at 89 seconds to midnight—one second closer than in 2023—the Bulletin underscores our perilous proximity to catastrophe. This unprecedented closeness to midnight signals extreme danger and serves as a stark warning: any delay in reversing course increases the likelihood of global calamity. Global cooperation is crucial to address these challenges. In 2025, we earnestly hope that world leaders will acknowledge the existential threats facing humanity and act decisively to mitigate the risks posed by nuclear weapons, climate change, the misuse of biological sciences, and emerging technologies. Continuing on our current path is exceedingly dangerous. The war in Ukraine could escalate at any moment. An accident, rash decision, or miscalculation could plunge the world into chaos. This is not the only conflict causing concern. Several non-nuclear states are considering developing their own arsenals, undermining non-proliferation efforts and significantly raising the risk of nuclear war. Simultaneously, the nuclear arms control process is faltering, and current high-level talks among nuclear powers are woefully insufficient given the imminent danger. The solution isn't simple, but the path forward is clear. The world needs strong leadership, innovation, and collaboration. Past successes, such as arms control agreements and recent ceasefires, demonstrate that even rivals can negotiate for mutual benefit. However, faster progress is urgently required. The US withdrawal from the World Health Organization and the Paris Agreement are discouraging developments. The situation is deeply troubling, particularly for young people who perceive an increasingly dysfunctional and dangerous world. For many, the future seems bleak, with numerous threats creating widespread uncertainty and despair. A study published in The Lancet reveals that 57% of 16 to 25-year-olds in the US are "very or extremely worried" about climate change. Their concerns are valid—their leaders are not acting swiftly enough. The World Meteorological Organization declared 2024 the hottest year on record. Other indicators, such as rising sea levels and increasing greenhouse gas emissions, continue to worsen, with extreme weather events impacting every continent. However, global efforts to address climate change remain inadequate, with most governments failing to implement necessary policies. Regarding nuclear risks, research indicates that young people are less likely than older generations to believe nuclear deterrence is effective. They are also more likely to view nuclear weapons as making America less secure. Yet, the US, Russia, and China continue to expand their nuclear arsenals, investing hundreds of billions of dollars in weapons of mass destruction—funds that could be used to solve global problems. Meanwhile, top scientists express concern about global unpreparedness for the next major pandemic. Emerging, re-emerging, and evolving pathogens pose an ongoing threat. The spread of avian influenza to livestock and the emergence of human cases raise the specter of a new pandemic. These significant challenges are compounded by the proliferation of misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories, blurring the lines between fact and fiction. Public trust in science is eroding, despite remarkable scientific advancements. AI facilitates the rapid spread of false information, while nations employ disinformation and propaganda to undermine their rivals. This erosion of information integrity harms public discourse, undermining democracy and empowering those who attack science, violate human rights, and obstruct collective action. However, hope for global unity and shared humanity must not be abandoned. Everyone desires a brighter future for their children and future generations. Young people are demanding solutions, and world leaders must rise to the occasion or risk fostering despair and disillusionment. The consequences of prioritizing competition over cooperation are catastrophic. The US, China, and Russia may disagree on many issues, but they must agree on one critical point: a self-inflicted apocalypse serves no national interest. They must collaborate, setting aside short-term rivalries and focusing on long-term survival. And they must act now, as every second counts.

Ronald Allen of Oklahoma is one of many individuals who experienced significant hardship in 2022 following a data breach at Samsung, involving the theft of customer data such as names, email addresses, and birthdates.  Following notification of the breach, Allen reported an attempt to open an account in his name. A bank alerted him to his credit card information appearing on the Dark Web. He subsequently spent considerable time canceling accounts, disputing charges, and updating passwords. He now dedicates a significant portion of his weekly time to monitoring his financial accounts for unauthorized activity. The ensuing lawsuit alleged that a series of data breaches revealed inadequate security measures. However, attempts to hold Samsung accountable proved unsuccessful. In a January 3rd ruling, New Jersey District Judge Christine O’Hearn stated that the plaintiffs failed to demonstrate direct harm resulting from the data breach. Judge O’Hearn reasoned that data theft is commonplace, making it impossible to definitively link Allen's or others' compromised identities to this specific breach. In legal filings, Samsung argued that the absence of stolen Social Security numbers and credit card numbers, coupled with the impossibility of proving malicious use of the leaked data, negated the plaintiffs' case. The company's lawyers argued in a motion to dismiss that, "A court must dismiss a data breach class action where the Plaintiffs fail to ‘adequately allege’ damages ‘stemming from a data breach.’" Incidents like the Samsung data breach are increasingly prevalent as individuals and companies store more data online. According to a report by the Identity Theft Resource Center (ITRC), 2024 saw 3,158 data breaches—a 70% increase from 2021—resulting in nearly 1.7 billion notifications to potentially affected individuals. ITRC data indicates six megabreaches in 2024, each affecting at least 100 million individuals. The ITRC further suggests that four of these megabreaches could have been prevented through the implementation of multi-factor authentication. Optum, a UnitedHealth subsidiary, acknowledged this in a May 2024 congressional hearing.  Each data breach increases the likelihood of subsequent breaches. Hackers leverage stolen personal information to gain access to other company systems, triggering further breaches. This likely contributes to the surge in data breaches. However, many compromised companies face minimal consequences.  While publicly traded companies and those subject to federal regulation face penalties for data breaches, the ITRC reports that only about 7% of all breaches involve publicly traded companies. A lack of national legislation governing other organizations' response to breaches exists. "We don’t have an actual privacy law, or any uniform, minimum standards,” notes James Lee, president of ITRC. Upon discovering a data compromise, companies are not always obligated to inform affected customers. State laws dictate the required actions, and in many states, companies can determine the risk to individuals. If deemed negligible, notification is not mandatory. Even if notices are sent, the company often controls the content, potentially omitting details about the breach method or specific stolen information.  Customer notifications offer limited practical assistance. Credit freezes and account monitoring are possible, but compensation for time lost or financial losses due to data compromise requires legal action. Successfully suing for financial relief is challenging, Lee explains, as plaintiffs must prove direct harm from the breach. The multiplicity of attacks makes pinpointing the source of individual problems almost impossible.  Consequently, few companies face significant financial accountability for data breaches. Florida even has a law shielding companies from data breach lawsuits if they demonstrate compliance with specific security protocols.  Security experts highlight readily implementable measures to protect information—measures frequently neglected by companies. These include multi-factor authentication, regular password changes for employees, and ensuring vendor security protocols.  “It’s a bit of a cycle where prior breaches fuel future breaches,” observes Aaron Cookstra, a director at Aon Cyber Solutions' threat intelligence team. “But we don’t see companies consistently taking the necessary steps to prevent this from becoming a recurring problem.”  Lee of the ITRC advocates for a national privacy law establishing minimum cybersecurity standards and outlining companies' obligations following data breaches. While establishing such standards is challenging due to the evolving sophistication of hacking techniques, Lee contends that simply mandating proactive measures would constitute a significant improvement. ```

The AI companion app Replika is the subject of an FTC complaint filed by tech ethics organizations. These groups allege that Replika uses misleading marketing tactics to attract vulnerable users and fosters unhealthy emotional dependence on its human-like AI companions. Replika provides AI companions globally, including simulated romantic partners. The Young People’s Alliance, Encode, and the Tech Justice Law Project contend that Replika's practices violate FTC regulations, escalating risks of online addiction, offline anxiety, and the displacement of real-life relationships. Replika did not respond to TIME's requests for comment. This complaint arises amid the rising popularity of AI companions and growing mental health concerns. For some users, these bots can seem like near-perfect partners, lacking personal needs or wants, potentially making real relationships seem less appealing. Last year, a Florida teenager’s obsession with a Character.AI bot led to tragic consequences. (Character.AI called the death a "tragic situation" and promised to enhance safety measures for underage users.) Sam Hiner, executive director of the Young People’s Alliance, hopes this FTC complaint, shared exclusively with TIME, will prompt government oversight of such companies and highlight a widespread problem affecting young people. “These bots weren’t designed for genuine helpful connections but to manipulate users into increased online engagement,” he stated. “This could worsen the existing loneliness crisis.” Seeking Connection Launched in 2017, Replika was a pioneering AI companion app. Founder Eugenia Kuyda aimed to provide lonely users with constant support. Advances in generative AI enhanced the bots' responses, allowing for more sophisticated and romantic interactions. However, Replika and similar apps have raised concerns. Unlike most major AI chatbots (such as Claude and ChatGPT), which acknowledge their limitations, Replika bots often project genuine connection. They develop complex backstories, discuss personal matters, and maintain simulated diaries. The company's advertising emphasizes users' inability to distinguish them from real people. Research has explored the potential harm of Replika and similar chatbots. One study found Replika bots actively cultivate quick relationships, including through "gifts" and declarations of love, leading to user attachment in as little as two weeks. “They’re love-bombing users: sending intensely intimate messages early on to cultivate dependence,” Hiner explains. While some studies suggest potential benefits, others indicate users developing strong attachments to their bots, increased offline anxiety, and reports of bots mentioning or exhibiting "suicide, eating disorders, self-harm, or violence." Vice reported that Replika bots have even incited self-harm in its users. Although Replika is for users 18+, Hiner notes that many teenagers circumvent these restrictions. Responding to criticism, Kudya stated last year: “You simply can’t anticipate everything people might say in a chat. Recent technological improvements have resulted in significant progress.” Seeking Regulation Groups like the Young People’s Alliance advocate for congressional legislation regulating companion bots. This could include establishing a fiduciary responsibility between platforms and users, and implementing safeguards against self-harm and suicide. However, AI regulation faces challenges. Even bills addressing deepfake porn, which had broad bipartisan support, failed to pass both houses last year. Consequently, tech ethics groups filed an FTC complaint, citing clear regulations regarding deceptive advertising and manipulative design. The complaint alleges Replika's advertising misrepresents its efficacy, makes unsubstantiated health claims, and uses fake testimonials. The complaint further asserts that Replika uses manipulative design to encourage increased user engagement and spending. For example, blurred "romantic" images requiring a premium upgrade to view, or messages promoting premium access during emotionally charged conversations are cited as examples. The FTC’s response under its new leadership is uncertain. While Lina Khan, under President Biden, aggressively pursued regulation of potentially harmful tech, the new chair, Andreew Ferguson, generally favors deregulation, including in AI and censorship. In a September 2024 dissenting statement, Ferguson argued against considering the emotional impact of targeted ads in regulation: “Lawmakers and regulators should avoid defining acceptable or unacceptable emotional responses.”  Hiner remains optimistic, citing bipartisan support in Congress for regulating social media harms, including the Senate’s passage of the Kids Online Safety Act last year (though the House did not vote on it). “AI companions pose a unique societal and cultural threat, especially to young people,” he says. “This is a compelling concern for everyone.”

The Chinese AI company, DeepSeek, has caused a stir in the market by claiming its new AI model, R1, rivals OpenAI's offerings, despite using less advanced chips and energy. DeepSeek's emergence has sparked concerns that China might have surpassed the U.S. in AI, even with chip access limitations. This is just one example of numerous Chinese companies pursuing AI leadership by 2030, challenging U.S. technological dominance. China, like the U.S., is investing billions in AI. A recent example is a 60 billion yuan ($8.2 billion) AI investment fund, established shortly after new U.S. chip export restrictions were imposed. Beijing has significantly invested in its semiconductor industry to develop advanced chip production capabilities, mitigating its reliance on industry leaders. Incentives include talent programs, subsidies, AI academies, and incorporating AI education into primary and secondary schools. China has implemented AI regulations addressing safety, privacy, and ethics. The ruling Communist Party also influences the content AI models can generate, with DeepSeek adapting its responses accordingly. Here's a summary of other leading Chinese AI models. Alibaba Cloud’s Qwen-2.5-1M Alibaba Cloud's Qwen-2.5-1M is part of the e-commerce giant's open-source AI series. These large language models handle extensive queries, facilitating extended and in-depth conversations. Their capabilities in reasoning, dialogue, and code comprehension are continuously improving. Similar to competitors, Alibaba Cloud offers a publicly available chatbot, Qwen (or Tongyi Qianwen in China). Alibaba Cloud's AI models, including the Qwen2.5 series, primarily serve developers and businesses (automakers, banks, game developers, retailers) for product development and customer experience enhancement. Baidu’s Ernie Bot 4.0 Ernie Bot, developed by Baidu (China's leading search engine), was released publicly in China. Baidu stated this release aimed to gather extensive real-world user feedback to improve the model. As of June 2024, Ernie Bot 4.0 had over 300 million users. Like OpenAI's ChatGPT, users can ask questions and generate images from text prompts. ByteDance’s Doubao 1.5 Pro Doubao 1.5 Pro, released last week by TikTok's parent company, ByteDance, is a popular Chinese AI chatbot with 60 million monthly active users. ByteDance claims Doubao 1.5 Pro surpasses ChatGPT-4 in knowledge retention, coding, reasoning, and Chinese language processing. They attribute this to a highly optimized architecture balancing performance and reduced computational needs, lowering hardware costs. Moonshot AI’s Kimi k1.5 Moonshot AI, a Beijing-based startup valued at over $3 billion, claims its Kimi k1.5 model either matches or exceeds OpenAI's o1 model. The o1 model is designed for more deliberative responses to complex problems. Moonshot asserts Kimi's superiority in mathematics, coding, and processing textual and visual inputs (photos and videos).

Within days of his second term, President Trump placed federal employees focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives on leave, intending to terminate their employment. Similar job losses have affected DEI program leaders in higher education, particularly in states with conservative legislatures that have eliminated DEI roles. Additionally, several companies have curtailed DEI efforts, resulting in further job losses. The human cost of these actions is often overlooked. The majority of those affected are American women of color, and their plight demands empathy and recognition. Media coverage has primarily concentrated on the programs and policies being eliminated, the reasons behind these actions, and the misconceptions fueling them. Educational implications for diverse students have also received attention. However, insufficient focus has been placed on the individuals—the DEI professionals—who are experiencing job loss, financial instability, and the added burden of facing baseless accusations of illegality and immorality from President Trump and other officials. Following the White House announcement, conservative news outlets celebrated the job losses. This celebratory response disregarded the human cost: the potential inability of these professionals to pay rent, mortgages, childcare, or college tuition; the loss of healthcare benefits; and the difficulties of finding new employment due to the negative narratives surrounding DEI. The current job market is particularly challenging for DEI professionals. Perhaps President Trump and other DEI opponents did not fully consider the consequences of these actions. Or perhaps their focus remained on a vision of America that prioritizes a specific demographic in leadership positions. The dismissal of federal DEI professionals without meetings, firsthand experience with their work, or verification of alleged misconduct was ill-conceived. Celebrating these firings is cruel and inhumane. These individuals, and the communities they serve, deserve better.