• Amazon reportedly has plans for another smartphone
• The original Fire Phone launched in 2014
• AI and shopping are said to be central to the new device

You’d be forgiven for not remembering the Amazon Fire Phone, as it launched in June 2014 and lasted just a year or so before production ceased and sales were discontinued. Well, it appears that Amazon fancies another crack at the smartphone market.

According to Reuters, a device with the codename ‘Transformer’ is in development at Amazon — although it’s not clear from the inside sources speaking to Reuters when this phone might see the light of day or how much it could cost.

Remember when Japan sent a spacecraft to an asteroid 180 million miles away to scoop some dirt off the surface? Six years on from its arrival to Earth, that sample has yielded some insights about what may have seeded life on our planet. Read on to learn more about the latest findings, and other science news we found interesting this week.

DNA ingredients on Ryugu

In 2020, a capsule from the Japanese space probe Hayabusa2 returned to Earth with samples collected from the surface of asteroid Ryugu, and scientists have spent the subsequent years analyzing those materials for clues about the conditions that existed in the early solar system. This week, researchers from Japan reported an exciting discovery: the Ryugu samples contain the five building blocks of DNA and RNA. The findings, coupled with those from other recent studies, could put us closer to understanding how the ingredients for life first made it to Earth billions of years ago.

The study, published in the journal Nature Astronomy, found the nucleobases adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine and uracil — all of which were also found in samples gathered from a different asteroid, Bennu, last year, and before that in meteorites dubbed Murchison and Orgueil. This suggests these nucleobases were widespread in the early solar system, and supports the hypothesis that carbonaceous asteroids like Ryugu and Bennu transported them to Earth, the authors explain in the paper. Ammonia was discovered in the samples as well, which may play a role in how these nucleobases formed.

The discovery of these building blocks “does not mean that life existed on Ryugu,” Toshiki Koga, the study’s lead author from the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology, told AFP. “Instead, their presence indicates that primitive asteroids could produce and preserve molecules that are important for the chemistry related to the origin of life.”

Bacteria collaborate to eat plastic waste

Researchers in Germany have identified a trio of bacteria that can digest a common plastic additive, but only when working together. The study published in the journal Frontiers in Microbiology found that a “consortium” of bacterial strains (two from species in the genus Pseudomonas and one from Microbacterium) was able to break down several phthalate esters (PAEs), which are often used to make plastic materials more flexible. These chemicals are increasingly finding their way into the environment as plastic pollution grows, and research suggests they can have harmful effects on human health and that of wildlife.

The team focused on microbes that could be found right at home in their own lab, taking a sample of biofilm that had formed on the polyurethane tubing of a bioreactor. This sample was then incubated in a growth medium containing the PAE diethyl phthalate (DEP) as the main source of carbon and energy. They eventually ended up with a stable culture of bacteria that could break down DEP, as long as the DEP concentration didn’t exceed 888 milligrams per liter, according to a press release. The consortium could gobble up all the DEP in 24 hours at 30 degrees C. It was also able to grow on the PAEs dimethyl phthalate, dipropyl phthalate and dibutyl phthalate.

The researchers identified the bacteria in the consortium through DNA sequencing, but found that they were not individually able to tackle the PAEs, suggesting they break down the chemicals through a “cooperative process” known as cross-feeding. The consortium could make for another tool in the pollution-fighting toolbox, with potential to help break down PAEs in contaminated areas or speed up the degradation of plastics that contain PAEs by making them more brittle. “This approach may also be effective in treating industrial plastic waste streams,” they note.

Hubble witnesses a breakup

Newly released images from the Hubble Space Telescope show the unexpected breakup of Comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) — Comet K1, for short — as it made its way out of the solar system back in November. A team of researchers that initially set out to observe a different comet ended up switching targets due to technical issues, only to catch Comet K1 right after it started crumbling. Hubble captured three 20-second images between November 8 and November 10 2025, the first of which the team estimates was about eight days after the fragmenting started. During the observation period, one of the comet’s smaller pieces began to break up too. Talk about being in the right place at the right time.

“Never before has Hubble caught a fragmenting comet this close to when it actually fell apart,” said John Noonan, a research professor in the Department of Physics at Auburn University, in a statement. “Most of the time, it’s a few weeks to a month later. And in this case, we were able to see it just days after.” You can read more about the rare sighting here.

Before you go, be sure to check these stories out too:

• States are suing the EPA for relinquishing its role as a greenhouse gas emissions regulator

• Blue Origin also wants to put AI data centers in space

We’re all used to it by now, but I’d just like to reflect on how insanely power-packed lithium ion batteries are, and everything that’s afforded us. I’m trying to think of a gadget, a hobby, or nearly anything in my house that’s not touched by the battery chemistry.

I’m looking at my portable wireless keyboard in front of me, with a LiPo pack inside. Oddly enough, I’m charging it with a LiPo-based power bank, simply because the cable to the nearest USB-C adapter is too short. A gaming console, cell phone, and a DSLR camera are all within arms reach and powered with lithium.

It’s not just consumer stuff either. I fly FPV quads and airplanes for fun when I can, and of course those are made entirely possible by the combination of smaller brushless DC motors and their drivers, and the high-power-density LiPo packs that power them. For field recharging, I have a huge self-made LiIon pack that can keep them all in the air all day. These days, LiPo and LiIon tech is the heart of hacker projects big and small. Heck, we even powered this year’s Hackaday Supercon badge with a LiPo that allowed it to run all weekend on a charge for many folks, where in the past swapping out AAs during the event was commonplace.

The application that still blows my mind is that we recently got a solar installation on our roof, which means a huge LiFePo battery in the basement. And while it’s one thing to power noisy little quads on the battery tech, it somehow seems another to power our entire house, for multiple hours per day, from a battery. Granted it’s not a couple of AAA cells in a little black plastic box, but it’s simply amazing to run a washing machine, the fridge, the stove, and even the heating off of what amounts to a battery pack.

Of course, I’m aware of the costs of producing the cells, both in terms of money and the environmental damage. It’s not a free lunch, and I’m looking forward to both cleaner and cheaper energy storage chemistries in the future. But for now, I’m still in awe of the many options that lithium-based battery chemistry has brought us. May your pillows remain non-spicy!

The Unitree As2 is not your typical robot dog. Compact enough to squeeze into spaces where larger machines simply cannot follow, it measures 720 by 378 by 457 millimeters standing upright and tips the scales at just 18 kilograms with the battery fitted, yet it is built to handle the kind of heavy duty work you would not normally expect from something this size.

The As2 moves at speeds of over five meters per second (11.1+ mph) and delivers up to 90 Newton meters of joint torque, giving it the muscle to stay stable under a 65 kilogram (143.3 pound) load or push steadily across uneven ground with 15 kilograms of cargo on its back. Battery life is where things get particularly impressive. The higher end variants will run for over four hours unloaded, and even carrying that 15 kilogram payload it keeps going for more than two and a half hours and covers upwards of 13 kilometers before needing a charge.

Unitree G1 Humanoid Robot（No Secondary Development）

• Sleek & Durable Design: Standing at 132cm tall and weighing only approx. 35kg, the G1 is constructed with aerospace-grade aluminum alloy and carbon…
• High Flexibility & Safe Movement: Boasting 23 joint degrees of freedom (6 per leg, 5 per arm), it offers an extensive range of motion. For safety, it…
• Smart Interaction & Connectivity: Powered by an 8-core high-performance CPU and equipped with a depth camera and 3D LiDAR. It supports Wi-Fi 6 and…

The Pro and Edu models carry an IP54 rating, meaning rain, dust, and temperatures anywhere between minus 20 and 50 degrees Celsius are all handled without complaint. Built in lighting and a front facing camera keep things visible in any conditions, and a lidar system clears the path day or night. When person following mode is active it tracks its target with centimeter level accuracy, with side sensors and an onboard eight core CPU working together to keep the movement smooth and consistent. Higher tier models add remote control options and the ability to bolt on additional processing modules as the job demands.

Three variants are on offer, starting with the Air, which handles everyday tasks reliably and serves as the straightforward entry point, while the Pro steps up endurance, speed, as well as weather resistance for more demanding environments. The Edu is aimed squarely at developers who want to build and run their own custom applications on top of the platform. All three share the same core frame, with the hardware scaled to match whatever the job requires.

The As2 is built for a wide range of real world applications, from carrying equipment across difficult terrain and handling delivery routes to conducting industrial inspections and outdoor security patrols. The ability to push through challenging environments without slowing down is one of its strongest selling points. Pricing is handled through direct sales conversations, but early indications suggest it will land well below the six figure territory that most industrial robots occupy. Software updates arrive automatically as well, meaning the machine keeps improving over time without requiring any new hardware.

For decades, humans have sought to harness the power of the stars to generate electricity here on Earth. And for nearly as long, achieving that goal always seemed just a decade away.

Now, a slew of startups are closer than ever before and rushing to build fusion reactors capable of putting power on the grid.

Fusion startups have drawn more than $10 billion in investment, with more than a dozen raising over $100 million. Many large funding rounds have closed in the last year, with investors drawn to the industry as energy demand from data centers ramps up and as fusion startups draw closer to the finish line.

At its core, fusion power seeks to use the energy released from the fusing of atoms to generate electricity. Humans have known how to fuse atoms for decades, from the hydrogen bomb — an example of uncontrolled nuclear fusion — to any of the myriad fusion devices built in labs around the world. Experimental fusion devices have been able to control nuclear fusion, and one has been able to generate more energy than was required to spark the reaction.

But none of them have been able to produce enough of a surplus to make a power plant possible.

To solve that problem, fusion startups are trying a number of different approaches. Experts have varying opinions on which have the best chance of success, though the industry is still in its infancy, so nothing is guaranteed.

Here is a brief overview of the main approaches to fusion power.

Magnetic confinement

Magnetic confinement is one of the most widely used techniques, using strong magnetic fields to confine plasma, the soup of superheated particles that’s at the heart of a fusion device.

The magnets must be tremendously powerful. Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS), for example, is assembling magnets that can generate 20 tesla magnetic fields, which is about 13 times stronger than a typical MRI machine. To handle the amount of electricity required, the magnets are made out of high-temperature superconductors, which still need to be cooled to –253˚ C (–423˚ F) using liquid helium.

CFS is currently building a demonstration device called Sparc on a much more accelerated timeline in Massachusetts. The company anticipates turning it on sometime in late 2026, and if all goes well, it will begin construction on Arc, its commercial-scale power plant, in Virginia in 2027 or 2028. 

There are two main types of fusion devices that use magnetic confinement: tokamaks and stellarators.

Tokamaks were first theorized by Soviet scientists in the 1950s, and since then, they’ve been widely studied. Tokamaks come in two basic shapes — a doughnut with a D-shaped profile and a sphere with a small hole in the middle. The Joint European Torus (JET) and ITER are two notable experimental tokamaks; JET operated in the UK between 1983 and 2023, while ITER is expected to begin operations in France in the late 2030s.

UK-based Tokamak Energy is working on a spherical tokamak design. Its ST40 experimental machine is currently undergoing upgrades.

Stellarators are the other main type of magnetic confinement device. They’re similar to tokamaks in that they keep the plasma contained within a doughnut-like shape. But unlike tokamak’s geometric sides, stellarators twist and turn. The irregular shape is determined by modeling the plasma’s behavior and tailoring the magnetic field to work with its quirks rather than force it into a regular shape.

Wendelstein 7-X, a large stellarator with modular superconducting coils that is operated by the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics. has been operating in Germany since 2015. Several startups are also developing their own stellarators, including Proxima Fusion, Renaissance Fusion, Thea Energy, and Type One Energy. 

Inertial confinement

The other main approach to fusion is known as inertial confinement, which compresses fuel pellets until the atoms within fuse.

Most inertial confinement designs use pulses of laser light to compress fuel pellets. Several laser beams fire at once, and their pulses of light converge on the fuel pellet from all angles simultaneously.

So far, inertial confinement is the only approach that has broken a milestone known as scientific breakeven, which is when the reaction releases more energy than it consumed. Those experiments have occurred at the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California. Notably, measurements to determine scientific breakeven do not include things like the electricity required to power the experimental facility. 

Still, nearly a dozen startups see enough promise in inertial confinement that they’re designing reactors around it. Focused Energy, Inertia Enterprises, Marvel Fusion, and Xcimer are some notable examples using lasers.

There are two companies that aren’t using lasers, though: First Light Fusion, which proposes using pistons, and Pacific Fusion, which plans to use electromagnetic pulses instead of lasers.

More to come

Those are the two main approaches to fusion power, though they aren’t the only ones. Soon, we’ll add more details about alternative designs including magnetized target fusion, magnetic-electrostatic confinement, and muon-catalyzed fusion.

Arguably one of the most feature-packed fitness bands that you can buy right now, the Huawei Band 11 Pro has become a must-have wearable at this price.

Originally set to go for £69.99, the Huawei Band 11 Pro now comes with a £15 price cut, bringing it down to just £54.99.

If you want a set of features that could give the Apple Watch SE a run for its money, but without spending a fortune, this is the one to go for.