Bot Swarms · February 2026Gaffe level: Typo
Swarms of AI bots can sway people's beliefs, threatening democracy
Researchers simulated coordinated AI bot swarms and found that simple infiltration, blending into a community and faking consensus, was the most effective tactic for shifting human beliefs, with even debunked claims sticking once a synthetic chorus made them sound mainstream. Democracy's new nemesis isn't a single supercomputer; it's a thousand polite accounts agreeing with each other in your mentions.
Source: Phys.org
A Thought-Controlled Bionic Arm Moved Into Its First Home Trial
Avi Davidson, who lost his left arm 17 years ago, is the first person to take the University of Utah's thought-controlled LUKE Arm home for a full year. The direct nerve interface lets him move the arm with his thoughts and feel pressure and texture through it, so within days he was making a sandwich and holding his wife's hand.
Source: University of Utah