Welcome to the March 7, 2025 edition of ACM TechNews, providing timely information for computer professionals three times a week.

HEADLINES AT A GLANCE

• U.S. Government Cuts Key Software Division Without Warning
• Commerce to Overhaul 'Internet for All' Plan
• Drones Change the War in Ukraine
• U.S. Charges Chinese Hackers, Government Officials in Broad Cybercrime Campaign
• U.S. Chips Act Office Loses Two-Fifths of Staff
• NASA Uses GPS on the Moon for the First Time
• AI Finds 5,000-Year-Old Civilization Beneath Dubai Desert
• Melbourne Startup Launches 'Biological Computer' Made of Human Brain Cells
• Apple Takes Legal Action in U.K. Data Privacy Row
• Finland Launches Europe's First 50-Qubit Quantum Computer
• Amazon Loses Fight to Exempt Datacenter from Energy Regulation
• Chip Uses Light Beams to Provide High-Speed Internet
• AI Reshapes the Coding Workforce

U.S. Government Cuts Key Software Division Without Warning

The budget for the U.S. General Services Administration's Unit 18F has been virtually eliminated. The unit, which developed Login.gov and other public-facing IT services, was tasked with helping government agencies acquire and build technology, enhance user experience, and ensure services are accessible. Halting the unit's work has impacted about 70 software engineers and strategists, along with researchers, service designers, and procurements specialists.
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Commerce to Overhaul 'Internet for All' Plan

The U.S. Department of Commerce could revamp the Biden-era Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program, which was intended to increase Internet access nationwide. Sources say Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick wants the grant program to become "technology-neutral," allowing states to offer more funding to satellite Internet providers instead of focusing primarily on fiber-optic services. This would make it easier for Elon Musk's Starlink to access rural broadband funding.
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Drones Change the War in Ukraine

The war in Ukraine was deadlier in its third year than the first two years combined due to the use of weaponized drones. According to Roman Kostenko, chair of the defense and intelligence committee in Ukraine's Parliament, around 70% of Russian and Ukrainian casualties can be attributed to drones. Both Ukrainian and Russian officials estimate that 3 million to 4 million drones will be made in each country this year. Ukrainian Colonel Vadym Sukharevsky said the country has adopted a "robots first" military strategy.
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U.S. Charges Chinese Hackers, Government Officials in Broad Cybercrime Campaign

The U.S. Department of Justice has charged 12 Chinese nationals in connection with global cybercrime campaigns. In one indictment, eight leaders and employees of alleged private hacking company I-Soon were charged for computer breaches targeting U.S.-based Chinese dissidents, religious organizations, media outlets, a research university, and the Defense Intelligence Agency. In a separate indictment, two Chinese hackers were charged for a purported for-profit hacking campaign targeting U.S. technology companies, think tanks, defense contractors, and healthcare systems.
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U.S. Chips Act Office Loses Two-Fifths of Staff

The U.S. government office responsible for the implementation of the Chips and Science Act will lose about two-fifths as part of efforts of the Trump administration to cut the federal workforce, according to insiders. About 20 employees accepted voluntary deferred resignations, the insiders said, while 40 others considered probationary will be terminated on Monday. The previous administration built an office of about 140 people to oversee the Chips Act manufacturing spending, on top of staff responsible for R&D funding.
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NASA Uses GPS on the Moon for the First Time

Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost, the first commercial lunar lander to land successfully on the moon's surface, has shown that Earth-based GPS signals can be used on the moon, according to the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). The Lunar Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) Receiver Experiment (LuGRE) aboard the Blue Ghost involves transmitting data from the GNSS to the lunar surface, allowing time, velocity, and position to be measured autonomously.
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AI Finds 5,000-Year-Old Civilization Beneath Dubai Desert

Researchers have located a 5,000-year-old city and roads under the sand in Dubai's Rub' al Khali desert with the help of AI and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) technology. According to one of the researchers, "The application of [AI] in archaeology is like having a time machine, and now we can look at history from completely new angles."
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Melbourne Startup Launches 'Biological Computer' Made of Human Brain Cells

Australian startup Cortical Labs has rolled out a biological computer, featuring a small silicon chip containing hundreds of thousands of lab-grown human neurons. The neurons in the CL1 system, which uses only a few watts of power, are grown from induced stems cells produced using volunteers' blood samples. The neurons learn from the random or patterned information provided by the chip.
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Apple Takes Legal Action in U.K. Data Privacy Row

Apple is trying to overturn a demand by the U.K. government to provide its customers' private data if requested. The tech giant has appealed to the Investigatory Powers Tribunal, an independent court with the power to investigate claims against the Security Service. In January, Apple was issued with a secret order by the Home Office to share encrypted data belonging to Apple users around the world with U.K. law enforcement in the event of a potential national security threat.
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Finland Launches Europe's First 50-Qubit Quantum Computer

Finland's VTT Technical Research Centre and IQM Quantum Computers have built the first 50-qubit superconducting quantum computer in Europe. Researchers and businesses can access the system through the VTT QX quantum computing service. The system, which features new chip technology to increase qubit stability and minimize noise, was designed for research applications including material modeling, optimization, AI, and quantum simulation.
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Amazon Loses Fight to Exempt Datacenter from Energy Regulation

Amazon was unsuccessful in its effort to avoid regulatory oversight for a proposed datacenter in Minnesota. The online retail giant sought to avoid the permitting process for 250 diesel backup generators at a datacenter proposed in the small city of Becker, arguing that because it is not a utility and the generators will not be connected to the grid, the project should be exempt from required additional local oversight. The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission unanimously voted against Amazon’s petition.
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Chip Uses Light Beams to Provide High-Speed Internet

Alphabet unit Taara has announced new chip technology that uses light to transmit high-speed data through the air. The latest iteration of the chip is the size of a fingernail and uses software to guide light where it needs to go. The chip, also named Taara, was first developed for Alphabet moonshot factory X’s Project Loon Internet broadcasting balloons.
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AI Reshapes the Coding Workforce

The increased adoption of AI coding tools is changing the size and scope of software development teams, often allowing for leaner teams that complete the same amount of work or more. These tools, which automate a substantial amount of code development, are intended to supplement human coders. Companies have found such tools can permit developers to concentrate on complex problem-solving when boilerplate coding is automated.
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