The Download: AI puzzles and a path to our nearest star system
MIT Technology Review discusses the rapid improvement of AI in solving logic puzzles and highlights a new mission to send a spacecraft to Alpha Centauri using AI-discovered trajectories. Additionally, it notes OpenAI's decision to restrict a new model due to cybersecurity risks.
Why it matters
The intersection of AI's growing cognitive capabilities and its application in deep-space exploration represents a significant milestone in scientific research.
Plus: OpenAI is restricting its next model after rating it a “critical” cyber risk.
This is today's edition of The Download , our weekday newsletter that provides a daily dose of what's going on in the world of technology.
Puzzles and games have always been central to AI development. The term “machine learning” was popularized in a 1959 article about an algorithm that learned to play checkers. Chess and Go are famous AI test beds too.
Judged purely on its puzzling skills, AI is improving a lot—and quickly. In late 2024, even the best models could figure out only 18% of the infamous New York Times Connections puzzles; by early 2025, some could solve them nearly perfectly every time.
But puzzles do more than highlight AI’s progress. Seeing where models succeed and fail, and where humans still beat them, offers a window into the technology’s strengths and weaknesses.
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