Women looking for help with perimenopause are running into a market that is louder than the evidence behind it, according to Jessica Hamzelou of MIT Technology Review. At the same time, China’s AI industry is making a very public argument that it can compete with the US model labs, with Reuters reporting that startup Moonshot has released what it described as the world’s largest open AI model.
Hamzelou wrote that perimenopause, the years-long transition before menopause for some women, has moved out of taboo territory thanks in part to TV doctors and social media influencers. The trade-off is a messier information market. Marketers may sell certainty, but Hamzelou reported that there is no test for perimenopause.
That does not mean symptoms should be waved away. Hamzelou’s point is narrower and more annoying for the wellness-industrial complex: some treatment claims lack scientific backing, and not every symptom experienced by women in midlife can be blamed on hormones. That distinction matters for patients trying to get useful care rather than a branded explanation for everything.
China’s open-model bet gets harder to ignore
Reuters reported that Moonshot, a Chinese startup, has released the world’s largest open AI model, a launch framed by several outlets as another sign that the gap between Chinese and US AI labs may be shrinking. Gizmodo reported that the model competes with some systems from Anthropic and OpenAI, while Bloomberg reported that the launch pushed AI and semiconductor stocks lower.
The hardware side is also shifting. The South China Morning Post reported that Chinese alternatives to Nvidia are gaining traction as demand for AI chips rises. MIT Technology Review has separately reported that China is making a substantial bet on open-source AI, a strategy that can spread models faster and reduce dependence on closed US systems, even if performance claims still need independent testing.
China’s political leadership is tying that technical push to diplomacy. CNBC reported that Xi Jinping presented China as an AI partner for the developing world. George Chen, chair in digital practice at The Asia Group consultancy, told Reuters that Xi’s message was that China intends to lead on both AI technology and standards.
Other signals worth watching
- Quartz reported that Trump Media has built a way to sell fast access to Donald Trump’s posts, while the BBC reported that Trump could directly profit from access to his statements.
- The New York Times reported that astronomers found an atmosphere on a nearby Earth-like planet, describing it as the first potentially habitable known world with an atmosphere.
- The Guardian reported that a brain implant helped restore feeling in a paralyzed hand, allowing the recipient to feed himself and drink from a cup. New Scientist reported that movement continued after stimulation was switched off.
- Ars Technica reported that the European Union has told Google it must share search data with rival search providers. The Washington Post reported that Android phones must also be opened to competing AI bots.
- The BBC reported new research on period-tracking apps sharing users’ health data, adding another privacy problem to a category that already asks users for intimate information.
- The Verge reported that investigators said a Tesla driver in a fatal Texas crash overrode full self-driving by pressing the accelerator to 100%.
MIT Technology Review also pointed to a suburban Seattle facility that treats fecal waste from people and livestock while recycling nutrients for agriculture. Bryn Nelson reported that companies are working on systems that treat feces, urine, and their ingredients as resources for reuse rather than waste to burn or bury. Glamorous, no. Technically useful, yes.
This story draws on original reporting from MIT Technology Review.