Hacker News with Generative AI: Innovation

“Moonshots” Initiative to Secure the Future of RISC OS (riscosopen.org)
Cambridge, UK – 28-Mar-2025 – RISC OS Open Limited (ROOL) is calling on the global technology community to support a bold new initiative to secure the long-term future of RISC OS. The company today announced the launch of its Moonshots programme – a strategic shift away from incremental development, towards large-scale engineering efforts aimed at modernising the operating system for next-generation Arm architectures.

Operating Systems, RISC OS, Technology, Open Source, Innovation

51 points by kaycebasques 4 days ago | 16 comments

Renegade Colorado Farmer Pushes Deeper into Unconventional Agriculture (agweb.com)
Who plants at least 12 different crops a season, slashes nitrogen applications by over half, aims to seed 3”-row grain in 2025, grows rice in bone-dry conditions, and steadily uncovers unique market demand? Roy the renegade.

Agriculture, Innovation, Sustainability

5 points by rmason 7 days ago | 1 comments

Project Europe aims to drive European innovation (projecteurope.co)

Innovation, Europe, Technology, Business

27 points by doener 10 days ago | 9 comments

A New Form Factor for Drones: Vertical and Coaxial (core77.com)
Since its invention, the form factor of the airplane has been bird-based; both airplanes and birds remain aloft by having appreciable wingspans. And in broad strokes, the overall form of the airplane hasn't changed much in the past 100 years.

Drones, Aerospace Engineering, Design, Innovation

39 points by surprisetalk 13 days ago | 28 comments

King of Fruits (worksinprogress.co)
Ordinary yellow pineapples were once so precious they were rented for display at dinner parties, but centuries of innovation made them commonplace.

History, Food, Innovation

13 points by kamaraju 14 days ago | 0 comments

EU guidance under DMA to facilitate development of innovative products on Apple (europa.eu)

EU Regulations, Apple, Competition, Innovation, Technology

13 points by Tomte 15 days ago | 3 comments

Learning about Innovation from Half a Century of Conway's Game of Life (stephenwolfram.com)
Things are invented. Things are discovered. And somehow there’s an arc of progress that’s formed. But are there what amount to “laws of innovation” that govern that arc of progress?

Science, Innovation, Artificial Intelligence, Computer Science, Game Theory

111 points by feelthepain 15 days ago | 55 comments

E-Identity (e-estonia.com)
All Estonians, no matter where they happen to live, have a state-issued digital identity. This electronic identity system, called e-ID, has existed over 20 years and is the cornerstone of the country’s e-state. e-ID and the ecosystem around it is part of any citizen’s daily transactions in the public and private sectors. This electronic identity, or e-ID, represents a significant technological advancement, placing Estonia years ahead of other nations still grappling with the concept of authentication without physical presence.

Digital Identity, Estonia, Technology, Government, Innovation

8 points by Tomte 15 days ago | 0 comments

What Can We Learn about Engineering and Innovation from Game of Life? (stephenwolfram.com)
Things are invented. Things are discovered. And somehow there’s an arc of progress that’s formed. But are there what amount to “laws of innovation” that govern that arc of progress?

Engineering, Innovation, Progress

4 points by Anon84 16 days ago | 0 comments

McLaren invented new carbon fiber tape to build even more complex parts (thedrive.com)
It's not cheap, but this process offers better strength-to-weight properties than what you'll find in more "pedestrian" performance cars.

Materials Science, Automotive, Engineering, Innovation, Technology

140 points by PaulHoule 17 days ago | 90 comments

China unveils revolutionary chip without silicon – 40% faster than Intel / TSMC (twitter.com)
Something went wrong, but don’t fret — let’s give it another shot.

China, Semiconductors, Technology, Hardware, Innovation

10 points by NicoJuicy 21 days ago | 1 comments

20 Plagues Y Combinator Unleashed on the World over the Last 20 Years (gizmodo.com)
Today marks the 20th anniversary of Y Combinator, a startup accelerator that has fostered companies that have changed the world. YC has brought us innovations like “making everything an app” and horrifying founders we all have to live with, like “Sam Altman.”

Startups, Y Combinator, Technology, Innovation

24 points by DanAtC 22 days ago | 1 comments

Can a Geothermal Startup Vaporize Rock to Drill the Deepest Holes? (msn.com)
A beam of electromagnetic energy traveling at the speed of light strikes a thick slab of basalt, one of the hardest rocks on Earth. It heats the stone to around 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit, vaporizing it in minutes.

Geothermal Energy, Engineering, Startups, Technology, Innovation

59 points by wallflower 23 days ago | 98 comments

5% in EU innovation funding yields a 4,300% ROI (karlsnotes.com)
While only 5% of the EU innovation funding (about €12B) goes directly to startups, these same startups have raised an additional €70B in private capital and created €520B in combined enterprise value, representing a 4,300% return on investment.

Startups, Venture Capital, European Union, Innovation, ROI

6 points by valkrieco 23 days ago | 0 comments

Unregulated tech tests: Thiel, Altman and co want Freedom Cities (heise.de)
The White House is to hold talks on how to establish Freedom Cities in the USA – Cities without regulation.

Technology, Regulation, USA, Innovation

3 points by doener 24 days ago | 3 comments

The world’s first electric seaglider just hit a major milestone (electrek.co)
The world’s first full-scale electric seaglider officially hit the seas for testing this week with passengers onboard. It can fly and glide on water. Watch it in action below.

Transportation, Innovation, Electric Vehicles

6 points by zfg 26 days ago | 1 comments

How did places like Bell Labs know how to ask the right questions? (2023) (freaktakes.com)
Many new science orgs are looking to pursue research that has the positive aspects of both “applied” research and “basic” research. To me, this is a very reasonable approach. After all, the “applied vs. basic research” distinction has always been a rather arbitrary one.

Research, Science, History, Innovation

183 points by sebg 26 days ago | 107 comments

Mimicking shark skin to create clean cutting boards (morningagclips.com)
Instead of constantly battling to prevent bacteria buildup, researchers created surfaces that stop bacteria from attaching in the first place.

Science, Innovation, Materials Science, Biology

11 points by HR01 27 days ago | 1 comments

Centennial Light (wikipedia.org)
The Centennial Light is an incandescent light bulb recognized as the oldest known continuously operating light bulb.

Technology, History, Innovation

4 points by talonx 28 days ago | 0 comments

Fish-gathering plate proves a big hit with anglers (japantimes.co.jp)
Showa Kogyo, a metal processing firm in Kasugai, Aichi Prefecture, has developed a fish-gathering plate to attract thread-sail filefish as its first attempt in its 76-year history to create its own product.

Fishing, Japan, Product Development, Innovation, Manufacturing

3 points by PaulHoule 30 days ago | 0 comments

Musk Fires The People Actually Doing What DOGE Pretends To Do (techdirt.com)
Elon Musk has launched a systematic purge of the government’s most effective technical innovators.

Elon Musk, Cryptocurrency, Government, Technology, Innovation

34 points by hn_acker 31 days ago | 2 comments

A humble attempt to save Europe (ycombinator.com)
A friend and I have been working on an idea to create a little bit of European dynamism—because to be honest Europe is cooked and I feel like I have to try do something

Europe, Social Change, Innovation

19 points by solettyy 32 days ago | 18 comments

Donut Lab and the electric motors everyone has been talking about (arstechnica.com)
This startup says it has solved the problem with hub motors.

Electric Vehicles, Startups, Engineering, Innovation

12 points by nobody9999 36 days ago | 1 comments

A Defense of Weird Research (asteriskmag.com)
Government-funded scientific research may appear strange or impractical, but it has repeatedly yielded scientific breakthroughs — and continues to pay for itself many times over.

Science, Research, Government Funding, Innovation

152 points by surprisetalk 37 days ago | 48 comments

'The flying bum': can a UK firm making airships get off the ground? (theguardian.com)
Airlander maker HAV scales up to build world’s biggest aircraft, which it says will have 90% lower emissions than a conventional plane

Airships, Transportation, Sustainability, Innovation, UK

9 points by n1b0m 38 days ago | 0 comments

EV could reboot medium-duty trucking by not reinventing the wheel (arstechnica.com)
GARDEN GROVE, Calif.—There's no shortage of companies looking to reinvent the delivery experience using everything from sidewalk drones to electric vans. Some are succeeding, but many more have failed by trying to radically rethink the simple, age-old task of getting stuff from one place to another.

Electric Vehicles, Trucking, Transportation, Innovation

7 points by rbanffy 39 days ago | 0 comments

California Nominates Steve Jobs for Its American Innovation $1 Coin (gov.ca.gov)
Sacramento, California – For California’s American Innovation Coin, Governor Gavin Newsom has recommended world-renowned innovator Steve Jobs. The coin, which will be minted by the U.S. Mint, highlights California’s legacy as a global hub of innovation.

California, Coins, Steve Jobs, Innovation

45 points by gnabgib 40 days ago | 93 comments

China's leap in pharma: slow and fast trends behind its rise (alexkesin.com)
In 2024, China’s pharmaceutical industry made headlines. To some extent – it was one of the biggest shocks of last year. Once known primarily for generic drugs and contract manufacturing, China is now producing innovative therapies, attracting major investments, and striking high-profile deals with Western pharma – something few expected only a decade ago would happen.

Pharmaceuticals, China, Healthcare, Business, Innovation

5 points by quadrin 41 days ago | 0 comments

AI is stifling new tech adoption? (vale.rocks)
I propose that the advent and integration of AI models into the workflows of developers has stifled the adoption of new and potentially superior technologies due to training data cutoffs and system prompt influence.

Artificial Intelligence, Technology, Adoption, Innovation, Software Development

508 points by kiyanwang 48 days ago | 426 comments

Rebooting The Pentagon (nybooks.com)
Bringing Silicon Valley’s drive for innovation to defense contracting has been a slow process, but the war in Ukraine has led tech firms to plunge into the war business.

Defense, Innovation, War, Technology, Ukraine

13 points by whoisstan 53 days ago | 2 comments