US farm agency to close damaged research building after worker complaint

By Leah Douglas WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Department of Agriculture will temporarily close a damaged laboratory building at its flagship Maryland research site, a spokesperson told Reuters, shortly after employees filed a federal complaint alleging unsafe work conditions there. Reuters exclusively reported on May 19 that employees at the Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC),…

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China industry minister, Siemens CEO discuss digital manufacturing, development

BEIJING (Reuters) – China’s industry minister met Siemens’ chief executive on Wednesday and discussed intelligent manufacturing, digital economy development and the digital transformation of small and medium-sized enterprises, the ministry said. The minister, Jin Zhuanglong, said the Chinese government attaches great importance to promoting the deep integration of the digital economy, according to a statement…

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Meta releases ‘human-like’ AI image creation model

By Katie Paul NEW YORK (Reuters) – Meta Platforms said on Tuesday that it would provide researchers with access to components of a new “human-like” artificial intelligence model that it said can analyze and complete unfinished images more accurately than existing models. The model, I-JEPA, uses background knowledge about the world to fill in missing…

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IKEA bets on remote interior design as AI changes sales strategy

By Helen Reid LONDON (Reuters) – IKEA is training call centre workers to become interior design advisers as the Swedish furniture giant aims to offer more home improvement services and hand run-of-the-mill customer queries to an artificial intelligence bot called Billie. In April, IKEA expanded its interior design services to the UK and United States,…

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Biogen rises as FDA panel backs Alzheimer’s drug, easing safety concerns

(Reuters) – Biogen’s shares rose 2% on Monday as a unanimous backing of its Alzheimer’s drug by the U.S. health regulator’s advisers strengthened the case for a traditional approval with no major new safety warnings. The Food and Drug Administration’s advisory panel unanimously agreed that a late-stage trial of the drug Leqembi, developed with partner…

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Raging Canada wildfires threaten critical infrastructure, force evacuations

By Ismail Shakil and David Ljunggren OTTAWA (Reuters) – Hundreds of uncontrolled forest fires blazed across Canada on Wednesday, threatening critical infrastructure, forcing evacuations and sending a blanket of smoky air wafting over U.S. cities. Wildfires are common in Canada’s western provinces, but this year flames have mushroomed rapidly in the country’s east, making it…

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