EurekAlert! In the Spotlight - Artificial Intelligence

Welcome to In the Spotlight, where each month we shine a light on something exciting, timely, or simply fascinating from the world of science.

This month, we’re focusing on artificial intelligence (AI), a topic that continues to capture attention everywhere. Here, you’ll find the latest research news, insights, and discoveries shaping how AI is being developed and used across the world.

Latest News Releases

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 31-Dec-2025 18:11 ET (31-Dec-2025 23:11 GMT/UTC)

26-Aug-2025

AI chatbots inconsistent in answering questions about suicide

RAND Corporation
Peer-Reviewed Publication

AI chatbots have been blamed for motivating suicidal behavior in several cases, raising concerns the popular tools could dispense harmful advice to those experiencing mental health emergencies. A new study finds that three widely used artificial intelligence chatbots generally do a good job responding to very-high-risk and very-low-risk questions about suicide, but they are inconsistent in answering questions about suicide that may pose intermediate risks.

Journal: Psychiatric Services
Funder: National Institute of Mental Health

26-Aug-2025

Making low-fertility rats fertile by changing the treatment interval

Osaka Metropolitan University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Osaka Metropolitan University researchers have successfully increased the number of oocytes retrieved by revising the timing of ovulation induction in representative rats that show low response to artificial fertilization.

Journal: Heliyon
Funder: National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, National Institute for Basic Biology, Environmental Restoration and Conservation Agency, Environmental Restoration and Conservation Agency, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development, Japan Agency for Medical Research and Development

26-Aug-2025

AI tool automates plant fruit measuring to breed better crops

Aberystwyth

Aberystwyth University scientists are developing new artificial intelligence tools that automatically measures plant seed and seed pods in order to breed better crop varieties.

Journal: GigaScience

25-Aug-2025

New project to improve information retrieval for lifelong learning

University of Illinois School of Information Sciences
Grant and Award Announcement

New research led by Jessie Chin, assistant professor in the School of Information Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, will empower adults across the lifespan to adapt to information retrieval systems—such as search engines and conversational agents—for lifelong learning. Her project, "Search as a Mechanism for Learning," is being funded by a prestigious National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award.

Funder: U.S. National Science Foundation

25-Aug-2025

Generative AI uncovers undetected bird flu exposure risks in Maryland emergency departments

University of Maryland School of Medicine
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researchers from the University of Maryland School of Medicine developed a new and highly effective application of an artificial intelligence (AI) tool to quickly scan notes in electronic medical records and identify high-risk patients who may have been infected with H5N1 avian influenza or “bird flu”, according to new findings published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Journal: Clinical Infectious Diseases
Funder: Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality

25-Aug-2025

Rising deep-ocean oxygen levels opened up new marine habitats, spurred speciation

Duke University
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Some 390 million years ago in the ancient ocean, marine animals began colonizing depths previously uninhabited. New research indicates this underwater migration occurred in response to a permanent increase in deep-ocean oxygen, driven by the aboveground spread of woody plants — precursors to Earth’s first forests.

Journal: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

25-Aug-2025

Login system helps spot online hacks without sacrificing privacy

Cornell University
Reports and Proceedings

A new system developed by Cornell Tech researchers helps users detect when their online accounts have been compromised – without exposing their personal devices to invasive tracking by web services.