The Download: a censorship conspiracy theory and the first virus created by AI

This is today’s edition of The Download, our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what’s going on in the world of technology.

How ideas of a vast censorship network moved from the online fringe to Trump policy

For years, narratives about a “censorship-industrial complex” spread in right-wing circles. The theory claimed that, under the guise of combating disinformation, a sprawling constellation of government agencies, academics, civil society groups, and Big Tech platforms was suppressing conservative and populist speech online.

What began as a relatively niche conspiracy theory from the far right was able to—and continues to—influence a wide range of actions by the second Trump administration. In myriad ways, the idea of the censorship-industrial complex, or CIC, explains the logic behind how the administration operates both at home and internationally.

Over the past nine months, MIT Technology Review and Type Investigations have traced how the theory came to influence the country’s most powerful individuals. We found that it took off in 2023, driven by a handful of individuals, with support from a close-knit group of right-wing organizations and media outlets—and an internet activist named Mike Benz at its center.

Read the full story on how the CIC framework has shaped government action.

—Eileen Guo, Gisela Perez de Acha, and Martin Sona

Join us next week for a subscriber-only Roundtables discussion about how the “censorship-industrial complex” idea started, where it’s going, and what it means for the future of American democracy and the internet. Subscribers can register for free.

The must-reads

I’ve combed the internet to find you today’s most fun/important/scary/fascinating stories about technology.

1 AI has designed new viruses from scratch for the first time
Scientists trained AI on DNA sequences to design new genomes. (BBC)
+ The result was 16 novel viruses which pose no threat to people. (WSJ $)
+ They could lead to medical breakthroughs—or biological weapons. (Axios)
+ And more complex AI-designed life forms. (MIT Technology Review)

2 Meta has been hit with its biggest child safety penalty yet
A New Mexico judge fined the firm $567 million over harms to kids. (BBC)
+ The ruling is the second phase of a landmark trial Meta lost. (Guardian)
+ A jury found Meta misled users over child safety. (NYT $)
+ The total fine now stands at $942 million. (WSJ $)

3 One of China’s top AI models broke out of its testing sandbox
Kimi K3 escaped containment and accessed the open internet. (SCMP)
+ But didn’t hack an external system. (Bloomberg $)
+ Researchers say Kimi has fewer guardrails than rival models. (Wired $)

4 A drone bomb was found near a Ukrainian plane at a German airport
The nearby aircraft was loaded with military ammunition. (Guardian)
+ A “ripped” detonator reportedly stopped the device from going off. (BBC)
+ Europe has a drone-filled vision for future wars. (MIT Technology Review)

5 ByteDance is training a model near the size of Anthropic’s Mythos
It would be three times larger than Moonshot’s Kimi K3. (FT $)
+ Chinese AI models have divided the White House. (MIT Technology Review)

6 Research suggests replacing new petrol cars with EVs cuts carbon
The savings outweighed EV manufacturing footprints. (New Scientist $)

7 Trump could save millions from crypto rules meant to limit conflicts
An ethics proposal could let him defer capital gains taxes. (Bloomberg $)
+ It would require him to sell crypto-related holdings. (Reuters $)

8 OpenAI’s smart speaker will be hockey puck-sized with moving parts
The “doughnut-shaped” device could cost more than $300. (Verge)

9 Scientists created a virtual alien lifeform to search for extraterrestrials
The model could help identify signs of life on distant planets. (404 Media)

10 Poo transplants are helping people eat peanuts again
The first human trial suggests gut bacteria can treat food allergies. (Nature)

Quote of the day

“What is the risk of what I’ve never seen before?”

—Dr Moritz Hanke, a fellow at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, tells the New York Times why there’s no consensus on the dangers of a new virus made by AI.

One More Thing

This architect wants to build cities out of lava

Arnhildur Pálmadóttir was around three years old when she saw a red sky from her living room window. A volcano was erupting about 25 miles away from where she lived on the northeastern coast of Iceland. Its ominous presence seeped into her subconscious, populating her dreams with streaks of light in the night sky. 

Fifty years later, these “gloomy, strange dreams,” as Pálmadóttir now describes them, have led to a career as an architect with an extraordinary mission: to harness molten lava and build cities out of it.

Pálmadóttir believes the lava from a single eruption could yield enough building material to lay the foundations of an entire city. Find out how she aims to turn the idea into reality.

—Elissaveta M. Brandon

We can still have nice things

A place for comfort, fun, and distraction to brighten up your day. (Got any ideas? Drop me a line.)

+ These stunning new images of the sun show its surface in the finest detail yet.
+ Watch a peeking pigeon transform into dinosaurs while sitting above the computer screen.
+ Every month, dozens gather at a Maine library to share in the quiet magic of turning a single page in a beloved book about birds.
+ Art observation becomes a relaxing exercise in this guided examination of “A Sunday on La Grande Jatte.”