
Today on R&D World
TUM researchers report record-setting battery electrolyte, topping prior speed by 30%
8 reasons all is not well in GenAI land
Efficiency first: Sandia’s new director balances AI drive with deterrent work
GreyB’s AI-driven Slate offers single search across 160 million patents, 264 million papers
Webinar offers guide to R&D data clarity with perspectives from a Big Pharma, global CRO, space‑station lab, and immune-system-in-a-dish startup
9 R&D developments this week: Lilly builds major R&D center, Stratolaunch tests hypersonic craft, IBM chief urges AI R&D funding
Leica debuts Visoria upright microscopes aimed at taming long-haul lab work
ZEISS and Alpenglow ink light-sheet microscopy platform deal
Chromatography data wants to tell you something, but it needs a common language
Five cases where shaky science snowballed into public confusion
How cold can a planet get? Webb’s new data set the bar at 186K for exoplanet WD 1856b
KIST carbon nanotube supercapacitor holds capacity after 100,000 cycles
A new wave of metalworking lets semiconductor crystals bend and stretch
SLAC–Stanford team captures protein‑free RNA megastructures in bacteria
Physics See More >

LLNL deposits quantum dots on corrugated IR chips in a single step
Quantum dots hold significant promise for next-generation sensors and displays, but manufacturing hurdles often stand in the way of widespread use. Traditional methods struggle to evenly coat the complex, textured surfaces ideal for advanced devices, especially over large areas or in precise patterns. To tackle such hurdles, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory researchers have conformally coated…

Aardvark AI forecasts rival supercomputer simulations while using over 99.9% less compute

Physicists create supersolid state of light, blending properties of liquids and solids

Samson Shatashvili awarded 2025 Heineman Prize for Mathematical Physics for quantum field theory advances

Universe’s unexpected twist: JWST data hints at black hole universe theory
Sponsored Content See More >

The power of saliva in multi-omics biomarker discovery
What is the significance of the multi-omics biomarker discovery paradigm and the role of the Hurdle.bio platform? The Hurdle.bio platform enables the transition from a single omics to a multi-omics framework for biomarker discovery, allowing the integration of different molecular layers to improve our ability to quantify human health and disease. This approach has facilitated…
Life Science See More >

9 R&D developments this week: Lilly builds major R&D center, Stratolaunch tests hypersonic craft, IBM chief urges AI R&D funding
The R&D World Index (RDWI) slid this week even as several companies rolled out big new R&D projects. For the week ending May 9, 2025, the index closed at 3,773.11, down 3.85% (–151.24 points). Sixteen of the 25 members fell. Eli Lilly & Co. was the biggest laggard (–10.81%) despite breaking ground on a huge…

Why science ethicists are sounding skepticism and alarm on ‘de-extinction’

ALAFIA system speeds complex molecular simulations for University of Miami drug research

Funding flows to obesity, oncology and immunology: 2024 sales data show where science is paying off

Health-related innovation in Morocco highlighted by resident inventor patenting activity
Nanotechnology See More >

Floating solar mats clean polluted water — and generate power
Most people bring a blanket to the beach to soak up the sun — this “blanket” soaks up pollution instead. Researchers at Ohio State University have created a solar-activated “nanomat” that floats on water like a beach mat, but instead of providing comfort, it goes to work cleaning up harmful contaminants. The lightweight, reusable material…

Nanodots enable fine-tuned light emission for sharper displays and faster quantum devices

New photon-avalanching nanoparticles could enable next-generation optical computers

New “nose-computer interface” aims to upgrade Rover’s nose for better drug detection methods

A smart ring with a tiny camera lets users point and click to control home devices
Energy See More >

Efficiency first: Sandia’s new director balances AI drive with deterrent work
Laura McGill, two weeks into her tenure as Sandia National Laboratories director, addressed the organization’s New Mexico staff on May 14. She stated that the lab would double down on its core role as the nation’s nuclear-weapons system integrator while also scaling up digital-engineering and AI projects. She announced a projection of up to $5…
Chemistry See More >

A new wave of metalworking lets semiconductor crystals bend and stretch
A recent paper published in Nature Materials notes that warm rolling, the same core process that turns aluminum ingots into beverage-can stock, can strengthen silver and copper chalcogenides. It notes, for instance, that “narrow-gap semiconductor Ag2Se can be plastically manufactured by warm metalworking.” Yield and tensile strengths climb significantly in Ag₂Se, Cu₂Se, AgCuSe and AgCuS…

SLAC–Stanford team captures protein‑free RNA megastructures in bacteria

Visible‑light photoenzymes craft drug‑relevant β‑lactams and cyclobutanes in ordinary air

SOCMA poll: 59% of specialty chemical firms skip stockpiling despite tariff threat, leaving R&D supply questions

ARPA-H funds $29M Ginkgo-led project to reshore pharma supply chains using wheat germ tech
Material Science See More >

KIST carbon nanotube supercapacitor holds capacity after 100,000 cycles
Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) researchers, working with Seoul National University, say they have designed a fiber‑based supercapacitor that endures more than 100,000 charge‑discharge cycles without performance loss and stays stable in high‑voltage settings. “This technology overcomes the shortcomings of supercapacitors by using single‑walled carbon nanotubes and conductive polymers,” said Bon‑Cheol Ku, Ph.D.,…
Semiconductors See More >

TSMC’s N3P hits mass production, with N3X customer sampling slated for Q3–Q4 2025a
TSMC has flipped the switch on its performance-tuned N3P process, bringing the 3-nm node into volume production after Q4 2024 pilot runs. Next up is the higher-voltage, speed-focused N3X variant, now slated to sample by Q3–Q4 2025. “N3P started production late last year, in 2024,” Kevin Zhang, TSMC’s deputy COO, told Tom’s Hardware at the…

7 major R&D developments this week: Tariff uncertainty persists, Pfizer sells campus, Scania acquires Northvolt unit

While Trump tariffs spare phones/PCs, R&D could faces GPU cost pressures

Why IBM predicts quantum advantage within two years

How OMRON integrates virtual humans and factory expertise into NVIDIA Omniverse digital twins
Aerospace See More >

2025 R&D layoffs tracker: 83,543 and counting
[Last updated on April 28, 2025] Intel’s decision to chop roughly 22,000 positions has blown a hole in 2025’s R&D workforce. Add in fresh cuts at Northvolt, Automattic and several smaller tech firms, and the year’s running total now tops 83,500 tracked layoffs. Intel’s 22,000-head purge means hardware now accounts for a third of all…

U.S. Space Force invests $13.7 billion in next-gen launch vehicles from SpaceX, ULA, and Blue Origin

8 major R&D moves this week: HHS cuts 10,000 jobs while Anthropic & DataBricks form $100M pact

Breathing easier on the moon: NASA and Corscience team up to monitor spacesuit safety
