You might not guess it from a trip to the aquarium, but the natural glow of certain jellyfish and other sea life has become key to biology’s understanding of ourselves, from the spread of cancer cells to the inner workings of the brain. Biologists use the green fluorescent protein (GFP) derived from these creatures as a visual marker to get a better look at all sorts of biological phenomena.

A new startup from a group of ex-Meta scientists claims it can use generative AI to replace the role of the jellyfish in this scenario. EvolutionaryScale says it has used generative AI to create a bespoke GFP that departs from existing luminescent proteins made in previous lab processes.

EvolutionaryScale Chief Scientist Alex Rives said the discovery is an example of how the company’s latest biological foundational model family, ESM3, can synthesize novel proteins based on a prompt. That ability could eventually have implications for drug discovery, sustainability fixes, and beyond, Rives said.

“Most of the diversity in those proteins has come from discovering new ones in the natural world. So a new fluorescent protein in a different species of coral or a jellyfish or some other animal,” Rives told Tech Brew. “Known fluorescent proteins have taken 500 million years to diverge. So you can think about the model as simulating 500 million years of evolution to create a new protein.”

Keep reading here.—PK

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A certain level of FOMO seems to be driving businesses to spend big on generative AI, but scaling the tech up can be tricky.

That’s one takeaway from a new survey released by IT consultancy Cognizant and Oxford Economics. It found that around 70% of companies report they are not moving fast enough to implement AI, with 82% worrying a delay in implementation could lead to a competitive disadvantage. Only about 26% of respondents reported having implemented cross-enterprise use cases.

The survey is a companion to a larger report that the tech firm released earlier this year that aimed to map out a timeline for the rise of generative AI and its effects on jobs. That report predicted that up to 13% of businesses will have adopted the tech in the next three to four years, with that number rising to 46% over the course of the next decade.

Keep reading here.—PK

Combustion-engine vehicles fueled profits for GM and Ford in Q2 even as financial reports reflected ongoing challenges in the EV market.

First, let’s dig into Tesla’s latest earnings. The EV maker’s net income fell 45% YoY to $1.5 billion while total revenue grew 2% to $25.5 billion. It marked Tesla’s second straight quarter of falling profits, per the Wall Street Journal.

“There have been quite a few competing electric vehicles that have entered the market and mostly they have not done well, but they have discounted their EVs quite substantially, which has made it a bit difficult for Tesla,” CEO Elon Musk said on the company’s earnings call.

The results come amid a challenging period for the automaker, which is facing slowing demand, growing competition, and falling prices. Still, Musk reiterated plans to deliver a more affordable electric model in the first half of 2025 and his view that Tesla’s value lies in its AI and robotics plays. Tesla is slated to unveil a robotaxi in the fall.

Keep reading here.—JG

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