United News of Bangladesh

Chinese and British researchers have developed a wireless charging system for new energy vehicles (NEVs) that achieves a power conversion efficiency of more than 98 percent. The system could help support the wider use of autonomous vehicles and may also be used in areas including rail transport, industrial robots and low-altitude aircraft. A fully automated charging system that does not require human intervention is considered important for the commercial development of autonomous vehicles. Inductive power transfer, which uses magnetic fields to transfer electricity, is widely seen as a suitable technology for such charging. However, conventional systems using ferrite cores face challenges in achieving high efficiency and power density while maintaining thermal stability. Improving these factors has remained a major challenge for wireless charging technology. Researchers from the Dongguan Institute of Materials Science and Technology in Guangdong Province, under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), worked with the City University of Hong Kong, the University of Cambridge and the CAS Institute of Physics to develop a 20-kW-class wireless charging system. Using nanocrystalline alloys, the system achieved a conversion efficiency of 98.51 percent, according to the researchers. Their findings, recently published in Nature Communications, describe a magnetic core structure designed in a shape similar to an overpass. The structure can withstand the high temperatures associated with long-term wireless charging. The magnetic core strip developed by the team is 440 mm long, 330 mm wide and 4 mm thick. It is about half as thick as conventional ferrite-based solutions while supporting a higher power density. Researchers said the system could be further improved to increase charging efficiency. The Dongguan institute is also working to advance its industrial application. The technology could be used not only for autonomous vehicles but also in rail transit, automated guided vehicles used in factories and low-altitude aircraft, according to the institute. In September, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology and eight other government departments issued a five-year plan for the intelligent connected NEV industry covering 2026 to 2030. The plan aims for autonomous-driving vehicles to achieve large-scale application in China by 2030, including highly automated driving on highways, urban expressways and some urban roads.

Researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) have developed a light-powered artificial intelligence system that can detect deepfake videos with nearly 98 percent accuracy while screening 15 videos simultaneously. Unlike conventional digital detectors that process videos sequentially, the new optical-neural processor uses the physical propagation of light to analyse multiple video streams in parallel, potentially reducing processing time and energy use. The technology is detailed in a study published in eLight. Led by Professor Aydogan Ozcan, the UCLA team designed the system as a high-throughput first line of defence against manipulated and AI-generated video. In tests using 15 Celeb-DF videos, the processor achieved 97.79 percent overall accuracy, with 99.86 percent sensitivity and 95.72 percent specificity. When the system was expanded to process 18 videos at once, accuracy remained at 96.13 percent. The researchers also improved performance by adding two passive diffractive optical layers. When tested against more challenging manipulations, the additional layers increased detection accuracy by about 6.8 percent without substantially increasing energy consumption or processing time. The system was further tested on videos generated by Google's VEO-3 model, which can produce increasingly realistic synthetic footage. With minimal fine-tuning, it recorded 94.80 percent accuracy and 97.61 percent sensitivity on previously unseen VEO-3 videos. Researchers said the optical design also offers greater resistance to certain adversarial attacks because key computational parameters are physically embedded in the optical hardware, making them harder to reproduce or reverse engineer. The processor remained functional despite image noise, blur, JPEG compression and minor optical misalignments. The team does not intend the technology to replace conventional digital detectors. Instead, it could serve as a rapid screening layer, filtering large volumes of video and sending suspicious content to more sophisticated digital systems for detailed analysis. The researchers said the hybrid approach could eventually support large-scale content moderation, media authentication, surveillance and other security-related applications. The study was co-authored by Parnian Ghapandar Kashani, Dr. Shiqi Chen and Professor Aydogan Ozcan of UCLA's departments of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Bioengineering, and the California NanoSystems Institute. Source: Science Daily

Beijing is using research, investment, industrial infrastructure and policy support to speed up the transition of scientific discoveries from laboratories to mass production. In Yizhuang, a high-tech industrial zone in southeastern Beijing, Guoke Superconductor is building what it describes as the world's first mass-production line for iron-based superconducting wire and tape. The facility is expected to be completed by the end of 2026, with an annual capacity of about 100 km. “Fusion devices need 5,000 to 20,000 km of superconducting tape,” said Zhang Xiaohu, chairman of the company. He said global production in 2025 was insufficient to supply even one such device. Superconductors, which can carry electricity without resistance under certain conditions, are used in areas including nuclear fusion, medical equipment and quantum information. Yizhuang has also helped turn medical research into commercial production. Platinumlife Biotechnology developed automated production technology for amimestrocel injection, China's first approved stem cell drug. The treatment was approved in 2025 for steroid-refractory acute graft-versus-host disease. The company replaced manual cell culture with automated, closed production lines and three-dimensional bioreactors, reducing production costs to one-seventieth of a comparable treatment approved in the United States. The district has similarly supported the development of intelligent manufacturing. Xiaomi's electric vehicle factory was completed in 14 months and can produce a vehicle every 76 seconds at full capacity, using more than 1,000 robots. Yizhuang has also established a pilot platform for humanoid robot production, offering companies, universities and research institutions services ranging from prototyping to testing. Policy support has been central to the area's growth. Over the past five years, Yizhuang has introduced nearly 70 policies supporting emerging industries and allocated more than 10 billion yuan annually in industrial development funds. By 2030, the district aims to establish eight industrial clusters worth more than 100 billion yuan each and achieve total industrial output of 1 trillion yuan.

As the United States prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of its independence, the Smithsonian Institution is using artificial intelligence to uncover connections among artifacts and records from the American Revolution. The initiative, known as Revolution Crossroads, aims to help researchers and the public search Smithsonian collections and connect them with records from institutions such as the Library of Congress. Researchers began using AI models on the project this spring and have already found connections that would have required extensive manual searches across different catalogs. In one case, they identified a silversmith who advertised a creamer around 1774 that was similar to an item in the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History. The project team has identified about 10,000 objects linked to people who lived between 1770 and 1810. Some items have been digitized or redigitized to make them easier for AI systems to analyze. The broader goal is to uncover stories of people whose lives have largely disappeared from historical records. “Maybe they're not Thomas Jefferson or George Washington, but they did live in a community and build that community,” said Becky Kobberod, the Smithsonian's chief digital and innovation officer. Natalie Buda Smith, digital strategy director at the Library of Congress, said the project could help researchers find information across institutions rather than limiting their searches to one collection. The Smithsonian is undertaking the project amid growing debate over AI's risks and the need for stronger oversight. Kobberod said the institution is not using the frontier AI models that have recently faced increased scrutiny. She also stressed that historians remain involved in reviewing the AI-generated connections. Human experts can identify historical nuances, such as nicknames or terms with meanings that an AI system may misunderstand. Despite concerns about the technology, Kobberod said the Smithsonian believes it must explore AI's potential. “It's not going away,” she said. “We do believe we need to lean in and figure out the part that this technology plays in our work.”

The National Productivity Day 2026 was observed in the country on Friday with a focus on enhancing productivity through innovation, technology and skills. Marking the day, the National Productivity Organisation (NPO), an organisation under the Ministry of Industries, arranged a rally and an ‘Innovation Fair’ in the capital. A total of 50 stalls showcasing various innovative projects by students were set up at the fair on the BCIC College campus in Mirpur. The theme of this year’s day is “Enhancing Productivity through Innovation, Technology and Skills”. The rally began from the BCIC College Gate in Mirpur, passed through Sony Cinema Hall in Mirpur-1 and ended at the college premises. Industries Secretary Abdun Naser Khan, Additional Secretary Md Nuruzzaman, NPO Director General Mohd. Nayeb Ali, officials of different government and private organisations, industrialists, workers and employees took part in the rally. Speaking at the inauguration of the Innovation Fair, Industries Secretary Abdun Naser Khan said innovation, knowledge and skills must be combined to increase production in less time and at lower cost by ensuring the optimum use of the country’s limited resources. “New opportunities for increasing productivity must be created by utilising the intelligence and creativity of the future generation,” he said. The secretary said productivity means increasing production and achieving desired benefits at lower cost and in less time through the optimum use of available resources. He said various innovative projects displayed by students at the fair reflect the potential of future Bangladesh and demonstrate how different problems facing the country can be addressed through innovative thinking. Abdun Naser Khan also said the use of artificial intelligence, reduction of waste, generating electricity from waste and using waste as fertiliser are directly linked to productivity. “The efforts of the new generation to solve the country’s problems through innovative thinking are highly encouraging,” he said. Calling for creating a supportive environment for the future generation, the industries secretary said the responsibility of one generation is to build a ladder for the next generation so that they can reach a more advanced level. He said acquiring institutional knowledge alone is not enough to increase productivity; practical skills are also essential. Referring to the concept of “Skillage” — a combination of skill and knowledge — he said young people need to be equipped with skills alongside knowledge. “Human resources developed through a combination of knowledge and skills can play an important role in increasing the country’s overall productivity,” he said. Industries Ministry Additional Secretary Md Nuruzzaman, BSCIC Chairman Benazir Ahmed, Chairman of Bangladesh Chemical Industries Corporation (BCIC), Chairman of Bangladesh Sugar and Food Industries Corporation, Principal of BCIC College, teachers and students were present at the programme. Earlier, the secretary inaugurated the fair and visited different stalls.

Four astronauts pulled up at the International Space Station on Thursday after launching on an eight-hour express that set a U.S. speed record. The fresh arrivals include a Canadian whose wife will give birth while he’s away. SpaceX launched commander Jessica Watkins and her crew for NASA after a three-week delay to fix their Dragon capsule’s leaking fuel system. Thick clouds threatened all morning to halt the countdown but in the end, the skies cleared enough to allow for a safe liftoff. Although their stay at the International Space Station will last a long six months, the flight there was the quickest yet not only for Elon Musk’s company, but any American entity, including NASA. The space station's convenient location when the astronauts launched enabled the fast transit. With the late morning liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Watkins became the first Black woman to lead a crew to orbit. A geologist who worked with NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity a decade ago, Watkins is making her second trip to the space station following a lengthy stay in 2022. “Thanks for an amazing ride,” Watkins radioed following liftoff. The others are newcomers to space: NASA’s Luke Delaney, a retired Marine; Canada’s Joshua Kutryk, a colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force; and Russia’s Sergey Teteryatnikov, a former submariner. They will replace four astronauts who have been living at the orbiting laboratory since February. This was the 13th crew launched by SpaceX for NASA, not counting 2020's test flight. All four embrace their Crew-13 designation that pays homage in their mission patch to Apollo 13. The harrowing 1970 moonshot ended with the astronauts’ safe return. References to the number 13 abounded Thursday. Watkins and her crew rode to the launch pad in black Teslas bearing plates that read “Lucky 13.” What's more, they carried up a small crocheted golden dragon named Lucky with a four-leaf clover around its neck. “We figured it wouldn't hurt to bring a little of our own luck just in case, but clearly we don't need it,” Watkins said from orbit, noting they were “four of the luckiest humans on or off planet Earth.” Kutryk will become the fourth man to become a father while orbiting Earth. Wife Heather is due to give birth to their third child in late November. The Canadian Space Agency promises plenty of support for the entire family when the big day comes. “A lot of life-changing things can happen over six months,” NASA manager Dana Weigel said on the eve of liftoff, noting that the space agency will do its best to keep Kutryk looped in to his family. In 2004, NASA provided a radio link between space station astronaut Mike Fincke and his wife’s delivery room during the birth of their daughter. Five years later, Randy Bresnik, commander of next year’s Artemis III mission, dialed in to his wife’s hospital from orbit. The happy news traveled more slowly for Austrian astronaut Franz Viehbock. His daughter was born a few hours after he launched to the Soviet Union’s Mir space station in 1991. He was not informed until the next day. SpaceX, meanwhile, is on a roll. Three hours after Crew-13 blasted off, SpaceX launched a Falcon rocket from California with more than 100 mini satellites. Another Falcon was set to soar late Thursday night from Florida, with a classified satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office. All this comes the same week that the company's massive Starship reached orbit for the first time.  

A Tokyo court has recognized legal protection for a person's voice in a landmark case involving the unauthorized use of an artificial intelligence-generated voice resembling that of a popular Japanese anime voice actor. The Tokyo District Court on Wednesday ruled in favor of actor Kenjiro Tsuda, who had asked TikTok to remove an account that used an AI-generated voice similar to his distinctive deep voice. The decision marked the first time a Japanese court has recognized a legal right to one's voice. The ruling could be significant for anime voice actors, who have become increasingly concerned about the use of AI to imitate their voices on social media. Tsuda is best known for voicing characters such as Kento Nanami in the popular anime series "Jujutsu Kaisen." In his lawsuit, Tsuda said the anonymous operator of the TikTok account "Nanami" had improperly benefited from his voice. The account used an AI-generated voice to narrate more than 180 videos about urban legends and paranormal topics. Presiding Judge Aya Takahashi said in the court ruling that a person's voice, like their portrait, can represent their individual personality. She said the unauthorized use of Tsuda's voice with the clear intention of benefiting from its commercial appeal amounted to an infringement of his publicity rights. The account had more than 200,000 subscribers as of November 2025, and viewers frequently pointed out the similarity between the narrator's voice and Tsuda's. The defendant argued that the videos used an AI-generated voice that merely sounded like Tsuda's and was not his actual voice. The defendant also said the videos had not harmed Tsuda's reputation as a voice actor. The court, however, did not order the removal of all the videos using the voice because the TikTok account had already been shut down. The ruling comes amid growing concern among Japanese voice actors over AI technology being used to replicate their distinctive voices. In 2024, OpenAI said it would stop using one of its ChatGPT voices after actor Scarlett Johansson said it sounded strikingly similar to her voice. Last year, Oscar-winning actors Michael Caine and Matthew McConaughey reached agreements with voice-cloning company ElevenLabs allowing its AI technology to replicate their voices.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed several laws Wednesday aimed at protecting workers from potential risks associated with artificial intelligence, including job losses and workplace surveillance. The new laws prohibit employers from using AI and biometric data to predict workers' emotional states. They also require employers to provide written notices when AI is involved in mass layoffs and prevent companies from relying on AI to make decisions about firing employees. Newsom also signed an executive order directing state agencies to continue using the term “artificial intelligence” rather than “super intelligence,” a term President Donald Trump recently instructed US diplomats to use. “AI should expand opportunity — not come at the expense of workers and families,” Newsom said in a statement. “As this technology reshapes the workplace, California is putting people at the center.” At a news conference Wednesday, Newsom criticized the Trump administration for not adopting comprehensive federal rules on AI. Trump said Tuesday that major technology companies had agreed to voluntarily regulate AI development. California earlier this month approved a law requiring AI chatbot operators to conduct risk assessments before launching their products. Newsom also issued an executive order directing the state to consult experts on stronger oversight of the technology. “We have to do a lot more in the absence of federal leadership,” Newsom said, leaving open the possibility of calling lawmakers into a special session to consider additional AI measures. Wednesday was Newsom's final day to sign or veto legislation before leaving office in January. He also signed a law creating tax credits to help local news organizations, including newspapers, digital outlets and television stations, hire and retain journalists. Newsom criticized what he described as Trump's actions against the press, citing restrictions placed on news organizations at the White House. He also discussed the November midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress. Newsom has been involved in Democratic efforts over congressional redistricting and said the election would have implications for the 2028 presidential race. “There will not be a free and fair election in 2028 unless we take back the House of Representatives,” he said. Asked whether he had set a deadline to decide if he would run for president in 2028, Newsom said, “That moment will arrive when it arrives.” Former Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris has also said she is considering a 2028 presidential campaign. Newsom recently told CNN that he would not run if Harris entered the race. He said Wednesday that they had not spoken since that interview. Newsom also discussed a November ballot proposal to temporarily increase taxes on billionaires, which he has opposed. He said he respected supporters of the measure, including Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, who want to address income inequality. “He's spot on about the balance between the rich and the poor,” Newsom said of Sanders. “On this issue, we fundamentally disagree.” Newsom's remarks came hours before a gubernatorial debate between Democrat Xavier Becerra and Republican Steve Hilton. Asked whether he planned to watch the debate, Newsom replied, “No.”

The Right Livelihood Award on Wednesday honored two women and two women-led organisations for challenging authoritarian rule, violence and discrimination against women, and the harmful effects of artificial intelligence, the Stockholm-based foundation said. The recipients are Pakistani human rights lawyer Jalila Haider, Ethiopian-born AI researcher Timnit Gebru, the Georgian Young Lawyers' Association and the Rural Women's Assembly, a network of women farmers across Southern Africa. The annual award was established in 1980 by Swedish-German philanthropist Jakob von Uexkull to recognise work aimed at creating a more just and peaceful world. It is traditionally announced shortly before the Nobel Prizes, which are due to be announced from next Monday. Right Livelihood said the recipients were selected for their “resistance to systems that push people to the margins” and their efforts to put people at the centre. They were chosen from 200 nominations from 72 countries. “Ole von Uexkull, the founder's nephew and the organisation's executive director, said the award recognises women who challenged systems controlled by autocrats, patriarchal structures and powerful technology companies. Jalila HaiderHaider, a human rights lawyer, was recognised for defending vulnerable communities in Pakistan against state repression, discrimination and ethnic violence. She is the first female lawyer from Pakistan's Hazara community. Through legal work and community advocacy, she has helped thousands of ethnic, gender and religious minorities and refugees seek justice, the foundation said. Her law firm has also helped more than 600 political activists and human rights defenders regain their right to travel freely. Rural Women's AssemblyThe Rural Women's Assembly was honoured for organising rural women across Southern Africa to defend land, seeds and bodily autonomy against corporate and patriarchal control. The self-organised movement represents more than 178,000 small-scale farmers in 11 Southern African countries. It has established 24 sites where farmers preserve and reproduce seeds for future planting and has documented hundreds of local seed varieties, helping protect traditional seed-saving and exchange practices. Georgian Young Lawyers' AssociationThe Georgian Young Lawyers' Association received the award for its work to protect democracy and civic participation amid what Right Livelihood described as an authoritarian crackdown. Founded in 1994 by volunteer lawyers, the organisation helped draft Georgia's first post-independence constitution. According to the foundation, it has secured major legal victories, including protections for people with disabilities, free education for all children and compensation for victims of Soviet-era repression. Timnit GebruAI researcher Timnit Gebru was recognised for challenging concentrated corporate power in artificial intelligence and promoting technology based on justice, human experience and individual agency. Born in Ethiopia to a family of Eritrean origin, Gebru is the founder of the Distributed AI Research Institute. Right Livelihood said her work examines the control of AI by a small number of powerful companies and highlights harms already caused by AI systems, particularly to communities facing discrimination and exclusion.

Commerce Minister Khandakar Abdul Muktadir on Tuesday said the government will set up several artificial intelligence (AI) training centres in Sylhet – first of its kind – to equip young people with skills for AI and IT-related work. “We will start this initiative in Sylhet and gradually expand it to other districts of the division. This will prepare the new generation for freelancing and the international IT sector, while also creating more opportunities to earn foreign currency for the country,” he said. The minister was speaking at a freshers’ reception and farewell programme organised by the Dhaka University unit of the Jalalabad Chhatra Kalyan Samity at the TSC auditorium of Dhaka University. Muktadir said there is vast potential for freelancing in Bangladesh, particularly in Sylhet, with many young people currently earning between $500 and $5,000 a month, while some top-tier freelancers earn much more. The proposed training programme aims to help more young people tap into this potential and become self-reliant earners, he said. Through freelancing and IT-based work, young people can earn foreign currency and help attract IT-related work from overseas firms to Bangladesh, the minister added. Stressing the need for investment in education, health and research, he said development is an integrated process. Muktadir said countries that have achieved sustainable development made key investments in health, education, research and innovation. Bangladesh must address fundamental challenges in education and health before it can make adequate investments in research, he said. Without long-term and consistent investment in these two sectors, the minister said, skilled human resources and sustainable economic progress are not possible. Speaking about the government's target of raising investment in the areas, he said the Prime Minister identified education and health as two priority areas after the present government took office. Muktadir said the government aims to gradually increase budgetary allocations so that each sector receives an amount equivalent to 5 percent of GDP. However, describing it as a long-term goal, he said reaching that level is not easy and a long way remains to be covered. The minister also expressed concern over the state of education in the Sylhet region, saying the division lags behind in divisional literacy rates and various education indicators. He said the region's position is below expectations compared to the national average in both urban and rural areas, and it also trails in the number of schools, pass rates, quality of primary education, and students' reading and numeracy skills. Muktadir, however, said this is not due to any lack of talent or capability among the people of Sylhet. A large number of people from the region have established notable positions in education, politics, business and various other professions in the UK, North America and other countries, he said. Causes of the region's educational shortcomings, therefore, must be sought in infrastructure, institutional capacity, leadership and other structural limitations, the minister added. Underscoring the vital role of higher education in building a knowledge-based society and a prosperous future, he said students should not confine university life to earning degrees, but prepare themselves as skilled human resources capable of leadership, research, innovation and nation-building. Addressing the freshers, Muktadir urged them to make the most of university opportunities and acquire skills that will enable them to contribute effectively to society and the country as well as themselves. He also called on outgoing students to work with integrity, responsibility and a spirit of service to the nation in their professional life. Praising the activities of the Jalalabad Chhatra Kalyan Samity, the minister said the organisation can serve as a "beacon of light" in keeping the people of the Sylhet division living in Dhaka united and in advancing Sylhet.  He urged current and former students to strengthen mutual communication and cooperation to that end. At the programme, newly admitted students from Sylhet division at Dhaka University were welcomed with flowers, while high-achieving students who successfully completed their university studies were given farewell receptions.