Lead story / launch

Block introduces a voice AI it says learned from speech alone

Block has introduced Dessa, a voice AI it says learned to converse entirely from human speech, without text or pretrained models. It takes audio in and produces audio out, and can listen and speak at the same time. Block’s aim is to preserve the emotion, interruptions and timing that speech-to-text conversion can lose.

The public evidence so far consists of Block’s recorded demonstrations, not independent evaluations. Clips show Dessa laughing mid-sentence, speaking louder when asked and responding with a gasp in an anniversary-surprise conversation. Those examples illustrate conversational behavior; they do not establish how efficiently it learns language and facts.

Block says Dessa learned language from hundreds of times fewer words than large language models, but notes that those models also learn material such as programming languages. That is not a like-for-like efficiency comparison. The company also says Dessa runs faster than real time and can operate locally on a MacBook Pro M4 Max or better.

Early access is reserved for a small group of AI safety researchers invited to look for risks the team has not anticipated; other users can join a waitlist. Block presents better recognition of vocal emotion as a step toward safer responses, not a solved problem. Language acquisition, factual learning and learning from examples supplied during conversation remain open research questions.

research

MIT builds a tiny swimmer powered by light-controlled living muscle

MIT engineers built a two-finned robot powered by thin sheets of living muscle cells that contract under light. It reached about four body lengths per minute, using a gelatin-based support with grooves that aligned the muscle fibers. A human moved the light source to steer it through a maze, so the demonstration was not autonomous. The team now aims to make it faster; environmental monitoring remains a proposed application.

launch

Grok releases a seven-minute Odyssey episode ahead of Musk’s film deadline

Grok Imagine released the first episode of its AI-generated Odyssey series, crediting Wonder Studios and director Dev Walker. The seven-minute installment is not the full-length, historically accurate film Elon Musk pledged to deliver by year-end. TechCrunch’s Anthony Ha found some shots convincing but criticized the narration, dialogue and lack of momentum. The deadline is still ahead, and Ha did not assess historical accuracy.

security risk

Voice researcher urges family code words after a $5,400 kidnapping scam

Deborah Del Mastro says callers used threats and a voice she recognized to extract $5,400 while her daughter was safe at work. She believes the voice was AI-generated, but that has not been independently confirmed. University of Cincinnati researcher Kimberly Hyun recommends a private family code word. The FBI and FTC advise independent checks, including calling a loved one on a known number or contacting someone who knows where they are.

Also worth knowing

•  OpenAI blocks live internet access during advanced AI training

•  U.S. warns AI partners against deep ties with rival initiatives

•  Study finds ChatGPT saved or updated 96% of sampled memories without explicit requests

•  Goldman warns a recession could accelerate AI job losses

•  Just Eat pauses AI menu-image rollout after breakfast appears in cola

•  Managers say AI makes employees’ original work harder to judge

•  Altman reportedly warns against one company controlling AI rivals’ resources

•  Outside evaluators found gaps in OpenAI’s safety monitoring

Daily tool drop

6 AI tools worth knowing today

The Internet Had a Point

ChatGPT modernizes a century-old family portrait

Reader check-in

Help shape tomorrow's briefing

One click tells us what to keep, improve, or tighten.