Science and Technology

What trends are emerging in carbon capture for hard-to-abate industries?

How carbon capture is evolving in cement, steel, and chemical sectors

Hard-to-abate industries such as cement, steel, chemicals, refining, and heavy transport account for a large share of global industrial emissions. These sectors rely on high-temperature heat, chemical reactions, or fossil-based feedstocks that are difficult to replace with electrification alone. As net-zero targets tighten, carbon capture has emerged as a central tool to manage emissions that cannot be eliminated through efficiency or fuel switching.Recent years have seen a shift from pilot-scale experimentation toward commercially oriented deployment. The trends below highlight how carbon capture is evolving to meet industrial, economic, and regulatory realities.From Single-Plant Projects to Industrial HubsOne of the strongest trends…
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Why are mRNA platforms expanding into new therapeutic areas?

From vaccines to broad therapeutics: the evolution of mRNA platforms

Messenger RNA platforms have moved far beyond their early identity as vaccine technologies. Their expansion into oncology, rare diseases, cardiovascular medicine, and beyond reflects a convergence of scientific validation, manufacturing advantages, regulatory learning, and unmet clinical need. The same properties that enabled rapid pandemic response are now being leveraged to reshape how medicines are designed and delivered.From Proof of Concept to Broad Clinical ConfidenceThe global deployment of mRNA vaccines provided large-scale human evidence that synthetic mRNA can be effective, scalable, and generally well tolerated. Hundreds of millions of doses demonstrated that transient protein expression can drive robust immune responses without…
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How are electrolyzer costs and efficiency improving with new materials?

How is materials science reshaping electrolyzer economics for clean hydrogen production?

Electrolyzers use electricity to separate water into hydrogen and oxygen, and their overall economics shape whether clean hydrogen can rival fossil-based options in sectors such as industry, transportation, and energy storage. In the past, limited efficiency and high upfront costs restricted widespread use. Over the last decade, materials science has driven major advances, transforming catalysts, membranes, electrodes, and structural elements. These innovations have steadily reduced system costs per kilowatt while boosting efficiency and operational lifespan.Key factors shaping the overall cost of electrolyzersElectrolyzer cost is not dominated by a single part. Improvements therefore come from multiple material upgrades rather than one…
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How are NPUs and AI chips reshaping smartphone and PC roadmaps?

Why NPUs and AI chips are key to modern smartphone and PC roadmaps

Neural Processing Units, commonly called NPUs, are specialized processors designed to accelerate artificial intelligence and machine learning workloads. Unlike CPUs, which handle general-purpose tasks, or GPUs, which excel at parallel graphics and compute operations, NPUs focus on matrix math, inference, and on-device learning with extreme efficiency. Alongside NPUs, the broader category of AI chips includes dedicated accelerators integrated into system-on-a-chip designs or offered as discrete components in PCs and servers.Over the last half decade, AI workloads have steadily moved away from cloud‑first computation and toward on-device intelligence. This transition is fueled by calls for reduced latency, heightened privacy, and improved…
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