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: 12-Dec-2025 15:11 ET (12-Dec-2025 20:11 GMT/UTC)

12-Jun-2025

“If we want truly intelligent robots, improving the design of their bodies is essential.”

University of Freiburg
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Thanks to artificial intelligence, robots can already perform many tasks that would otherwise require humans. In this interview, Edoardo Milana, a junior professor of soft machines, explains how improved design and innovative mechanics are broadening the range of applications for these machines.

12-Jun-2025

The American Society of Echocardiography and Cardiovascular Research Foundation launch new educational collaboration

Cardiovascular Research Foundation
Meeting Announcement

The American Society of Echocardiography (ASE) and Cardiovascular Research Foundation^® (CRF^®) are pleased to announce a new educational collaboration to foster shared learning, drive innovation, and strengthen connections across the cardiovascular community.

Meeting: TCT 2025: Transcatheter Cardiovascular Therapeutics

12-Jun-2025

Q&A: Has nature always been strange? The ‘eco-weird’ unmakes the familiar

Penn State

Tentacles reaching from the deep. Dark mold overtaking walls. A familiar forest suddenly becoming strange and threatening. These elements in literature, film and games define the “eco-weird,” a term coined by Penn State philosopher Brian Onishi to describe an emerging genre focused on the strangeness that can emerge from the ambiguity of the environment and humans’ experience of and relationship to it. Onishi explained in the following Q&A what the eco-weird is and how it may help individuals build resiliency in a changing world.

12-Jun-2025

Playing to learn? It works, but it has its limits

Escuela Superior Politecnica del Litoral

A new ESPOL study reveals that turning learning into a game can improve grades in STEM subjects, but it doesn't necessarily motivate students more. The research was based on the theory of Gamified Learning and was applied to 175 engineering students. One group was implemented with a weekly leaderboard system (like video game rankings), and the other was not

Journal: International Journal of STEM Education

12-Jun-2025

United Nations launches global call-to-action to accelerate social progress through AI-powered virtual worlds

International Telecommunication Union
Business Announcement

UN Virtual Worlds Day urges international cooperation on emerging technologies—from digital twins to AI-enabled virtual environments.

12-Jun-2025

Broad-spectrum coronavirus drug developed through AI-enabled dynamic modeling

Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard
Peer-Reviewed Publication

By creating a cohesive AI-enabled and physics-based molecular modeling and drug discovery pipeline built around film industry animation software, researchers at the Wyss Institute at Harvard University identified the orally available, FDA-approved drug bemcentinib, as a potential antiviral agent. They then used this chemical compound as a launch pad for developing a more specific and effective antiviral drug with efficacy against a broad range of coronaviruses, which has great potential for fighting future respiratory pandemics.

Journal: Frontiers in Molecular Biosciences

12-Jun-2025

UTA student, Army vet begins mission to teach

University of Texas at Arlington

As the Army celebrates its 250th anniversary on Saturday, it's fitting to highlight The University of Texas at Arlington's nationally recognized Military and Veteran Services office that serves more than 5,000 military-connected students. One of those students is Army veteran Rafael Renteria. At age 52, Renteria has found a new mission: teaching the next generation.