The Download: Trump’s golden dome, and fueling AI with nuclear power

Within a week of his inauguration, President Trump issued an executive order to develop “The Iron Dome for America” (rebranded the “Golden Dome” a month later.) The eruption of a revived conflict between Israel and Iran in June has only strengthened the case for an American version of the Iron Dome in the eyes of the administration.

Trump has often expressed admiration for Israel’s Iron Dome, an air defense system that can intercept short-range rockets and artillery over the small nation and that is funded in part by the United States.

But in the complicated security landscape confronting the world today, is spectacle the same as safety?Read the full story.

—Becky Ferreira

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MIT Technology Review Narrated: Can nuclear power really fuel the rise of AI?

In the AI arms race, all the major players say they want to go nuclear.

Over the past year, the likes of Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google have sent out a flurry of announcements related to nuclear energy. Some are about agreements to purchase power from existing plants, while others are about investments looking to boost unproven advanced technologies.