DTN 006: Operation Choke Point 2.0

The Big Picture

Operation Choke Point 2.0 Is Underway, And Crypto Is In Its Crosshairs

“The US government is using the banking sector to organize a sophisticated, widespread crackdown against the crypto industry. And the administration’s efforts are no secret: they’re expressed plainly in memos, regulatory guidance, and blog posts. However, the breadth of this plan — spanning virtually every financial regulator — as well as its highly coordinated nature, has even the most steely-eyed crypto veterans nervous that crypto businesses might end up completely unbanked, stablecoins may be stranded and unable to manage flows in and out of crypto, and exchanges might be shut off from the banking system entirely. ” (Pirate Wires)

Redwood Materials lands $2B conditional loan from DOE

“Battery materials and recycling startup Redwood Materials has secured a conditional commitment for a $2 billion loan from the Department of Energy as part of the Biden Administration’s bid to build up a supply chain for EVs in the United States.Today, cathode and anode components are manufactured overseas, predominantly in Asia. The U.S. government wants to build up a domestic supply chain, a change spurred on by new laws like the Inflation Reduction Act and support from the loan program.” (TechCrunch)

Electric Vehicle Battery Investments Ballooned In 2022

“New research from think tank Atlas Public Policy shows over $128 billion in announced US investments in EVs, battery plants, and battery recycling projects in recent years, as detailed in a report from NPR. In 2022 alone, the data shows over $73 billion in planned projects, representing three times as much funding as in 2021.” (CleanTechnica)

What Are AI Tokens?

“AI tokens are cryptocurrencies that utilize AI in some way to improve security, user experience, scalability, or a variety of other factors. In theory, AI can be trained to further automate and build trust or efficiency in many crypto systems. AI tokens can also be digital currencies designed to power AI-based apps or projects, including decentralized marketplaces or exchanges, image or text generation services, AI-based investment protocols, and more.” (Decrypt)

Lab-Grown Meat Has a Bigger Problem Than the Lab

“Prominent cancer researchers say that because the cells aren’t human, it’s essentially impossible for people who eat them to get cancer from them, or for the precancerous or cancerous cells to replicate inside people at all. You’d be better off worrying about the nitrates (linked with cancer) or fecal matter (a source of deadly infections) found in farm-raised meat.” (Bloomberg Businessweek)

Rainmaking Experiments Boom Amid Worsening Drought

“Cloud seeding can be relatively cheap compared with other water management strategies, like desalination, a chemical process that removes salts and other minerals from water to make it safe for drinking. But there’s a catch. It’s notoriously difficult to design experiments that demonstrate how well the technology actually works…” (Bloomberg Businessweek)

‍

‍

Deep Tech News

• New neural network architecture inspired by the neural system of a worm
• DOE Dedicates Funding for Up to Seven EGS Geothermal Pilot Demonstrations
• SpaceX Awarded Shared NASA Contract Worth Up to $100 Million
• Voyager Space raises $80M as it continues development on private space station, Starlab
• Plant-based Rebellyous raises at least $20M to ‘rethink the nugget’
• Latent Technology raises $2.1M to blend AI and game animations
• Drone imagery firm DroneBase rebrands to Zeitview, lands $55M investment
• Jülich quantum computer solves protein puzzle
• A Bold Plan to Beam Solar Energy Down From Space
• How Scientists Are Using AI to Talk to Animals
• Berkeley National Lab Reveals New Battery Recycling Technique
• Dutch startup unveils controller to store excess PV power in hot water
• Universal Hydrogen receives FAA certification to fly 40+ passenger hydrogen electric plane

‍

Crypto News

• LocalBitcoins shuts down after a decade in operation
• Rihanna Producer Sells Royalties to ‘Bitch Better Have My Money’ as NFTs
• NFT market shows signs of recovery as January trading volumes hit 7-month high
• Mastercard’s NFT product lead leaves role, mints resignation letter as NFT
• UK’s Bank of England launches digital pound project as ‘new form’ of money
• Millions in Crypto Donations Pour Into Turkey Following Devastating Earthquakes
• Metaphysic partners with CAA to develop generative AI for creative artists
• BNB Chain developers introduce whitepaper for new Web3 storage network

‍

Peer Review

• Quantum data conversion offers a path to scale up quantum technology architectures
• AI-based method to predict RNA modifications
• Seawater split to produce green hydrogen with nearly 100% efficiency
• Robots and AI team up to discover highly selective catalysts
• A new way to remove carbon dioxide from air
• Using muon detectors to remotely create a 3D image of the inside of a nuclear reactor
• Tailor-made metal complexes for medical diagnostics and therapy
• New info on how waste-eating bacteria digest complex carbons could lead to recycling plastic, plant waste
• Peptide 3D-printing inks could advance regenerative medicine
• Biosensor could lead to new drugs, sensory organs on a chip
• Deep learning for quantum sensing
• A Solid-State Lithium-Air Battery With High Energy Density

‍

Funding x M&A

DEEP TECH

• Planet A Ventures comes out of the door with a €160M European, science-backed climate fund
• Fable Foods lands Series A for its mushroom-based meat alternatives
• Rebar robotics firm Toggle adds another $3M to its fundraising tally
• Google invests $300M in Anthropic as race to compete with ChatGPT heats up
• ADS-B Exchange, the Flight Tracker That Powered @ElonJet, Sold to Jetnet

CRYPTO

• Mawari raises $6.5M to speed 3D content delivery for the metaverse
• Sesame Labs raises $4.5M to help improve web3 marketing tools
• Tron Launches $100M AI Development Fund
• Web3 music platform Vault raises $4M Series A led by Placeholder VC
• Bitkraft, Fabric Ventures lead $6.5 million round into web3 loyalty platform
• Bitcoin Miners Hut 8, US Bitcoin to Combine in Stock Merger
• KuCoin Ventures backs web3 social data portal Port3 Network’s $3 million round

‍

Miscellanea.

Mushrooms Aren’t Here to Destroy Us / The Artist Who Collaborates with Ants / DARPA, lasers and an internet in orbit / Scientists Decipher 57 Letters That Mary, Queen of Scots Wrote before Her Beheading / Why don’t identical twins have the same fingerprints? / Solar Panels Are the Midwest’s New Cash Crop / AI model on a $3 chip / The search for extraterrestrial life as we don’t know it / Death cap mushroom’s unusual sex life may be key to its rapid spread / John Carmack’s ‘Different Path’ to Artificial General Intelligence / Everything you can’t have / Unbuilt Frank Lloyd Wright Designs Brought to Life in 3-D Renderings / Hardware Trojans Under a Microscope / US Dept. Of Defense Inches Closer To Tactical Electric Vehicles

‍

‍

a digital agency built for the future.

‍

Haus Biographics is a digital agency in NYC that specializes in marketing and communications for web3 and deep tech organizations. Check out our website, follow us on Twitter, or say hello@hausb.io

‍