Finally, he gave the summaries to his fine-tuned model, and he asked it to compose passages "in the style of Vauhini Vara." Going into all this, I was self-assured, even smug. I'd always felt that my style was original and, more important, that my books were totally distinct from one another. I figured that, even if the A.I. model could imitate my past books, it couldn't predict the style of the novel in progress. So, when Chakrabarty sent me the A.I.-generated imitations, I was genuinely confused.

In today's episode of, we dive into five stories--from AI to DOGE--that encapsulate the year and give us clues as to what might unfold in 2026. For better or for worse, this year had it all--from the AI industry shaping the global economy and our lives, to the so-called Department of Government Efficiency taking over US federal agencies under Elon Musk's leadership. In today's episode, host Zoë Schiffer and executive editor Brian Barrett get together to reflect on some of this year's key moments--and how they give us important clues as to what we can expect this upcoming year. The FBI's Jeffrey Epstein Prison Video Had Nearly 3 Minutes Cut Out Write to us at uncannyvalley@wired.com . You can always listen to this week's podcast through the audio player on this page, but if you want to subscribe for free to get every episode, here's how: If you're on an iPhone or iPad, open the app called Podcasts, or just tap this link . Today on the show, we're wrapping up our news episode series by reflecting on the trends and stories that shaped 2025. And who better to do that with than Brian Barrett, our executive editor who works tirelessly in the shadows? Thank you for having me. Happy to emerge from my shadowy lair. What a year it's been, and I'm so excited for it to be almost over. Because it's been quite a year news-wise, safe to say, especially in tech and politics. Honestly, it was a little bit tricky to pick which trends we should discuss today, but we settled on five stories that kind of encapsulate this year pretty well, and I think give us clues as to what is going to be unfolding in 2026. The first one that I want to talk about is dear to my heart, and it's about AI data centers. So we all know that the investment, the amount of money being spent on data centers is absolutely staggering, with companies like Meta, Google, and Microsoft tripling down on AI infrastructure spending this year. But it's not just about the money that's being spent.

Welcome back to In the Loop, new twice-weekly newsletter about AI. If you're reading this in your browser, why not subscribe to have the next one delivered straight to your inbox? Last month, I interviewed Trump's Energy Secretary Chris Wright for TIME's Person of the Year feature: The Architects of AI . Wright, who came from the private sector, has now staked much of his legacy on AI acceleration. In our interview, he highlighted AI's role in advancing crucial scientific research and downplayed climate risks.

Revealed: Chilling text NASCAR star Greg Biffle's wife sent to her mom just minutes before tragic plane crash'Old age' doesn't kill us... scientists reveal true causes of death Immutable: I can't get enough of Melania, the Real Housewife of Washington, says JAN MOIR The tiny diet change that brought down my sky-high cholesterol WITHOUT statins or drugs. Mike was told he risked a heart attack or stroke. CNBC anchor who slammed Trump's tariffs as'insane' stunned live on air as inflation figures send shockwaves through Wall Street Dramatic bodycam video shows moment suspected kidnapper is arrested after 40 years on the run... as her neighbor thinks arrest is a joke Rob Reiner's'petrified' parting words about son Nick at Conan O'Brien party... and why his haunted A-list friends can't stop talking about it Reiner family bombshell as insiders reveal who is paying for Nick's celebrity lawyer... their secret motive... and who will REALLY inherit $200m fortune Doctors said my hip pain was just tendinitis from sitting all day at work. The real cause may kill me... they had left it far too late Bondi hero is handed $2.5million cheque in his hospital bed - then asks unbelievable question Pete Davidson is a dad! Kim Kardashian's ex welcomes first child with model girlfriend Elsie Hewitt Mica Miller's pastor husband is indicted for shocking acts before his wife was killed days after filing for divorce Trump suspends diversity visa lottery after Kristi Noem says'heinous' Brown University shooter entered US through program Jeffrey Epstein attended dinner with tech billionaires three years after he was convicted of sex crimes - as new photos of the event are released from pedophile's estate The sex trends set to define 2026 - including'digital threesomes' and the return of the office romance You probably won't discuss it around the Christmas dinner table - but experts have revealed the sex trends set to define 2026. Similar to how fashion, tech and lifestyle trends change over time, sexual behaviour also experiences cultural shifts.

"I didn't expect this book to be analyzed like," hockey smut author Rachel Reid tells WIRED. Rachel Reid didn't intend for anyone to write a dissertation about her horny little gay hockey series. Then again, the Nova Scotia author behind the series could never have anticipated the level of fanfare that's accompanied the television adaptation of her books: . The show, commissioned by Canada's Crave and distributed by HBO Max in the US, debuted in late November and quickly became a massive hit. It's the number one Crave original series of all time, and it also climbed to number 1 on HBO Max.

Revealed: Chilling text NASCAR star Greg Biffle's wife sent to her mom just minutes before tragic plane crash'Old age' doesn't kill us... scientists reveal true causes of death Immutable: I can't get enough of Melania, the Real Housewife of Washington, says JAN MOIR The tiny diet change that brought down my sky-high cholesterol WITHOUT statins or drugs. Mike was told he risked a heart attack or stroke. CNBC anchor who slammed Trump's tariffs as'insane' stunned live on air as inflation figures send shockwaves through Wall Street Dramatic bodycam video shows moment suspected kidnapper is arrested after 40 years on the run... as her neighbor thinks arrest is a joke Rob Reiner's'petrified' parting words about son Nick at Conan O'Brien party... and why his haunted A-list friends can't stop talking about it Reiner family bombshell as insiders reveal who is paying for Nick's celebrity lawyer... their secret motive... and who will REALLY inherit $200m fortune Doctors said my hip pain was just tendinitis from sitting all day at work. The real cause may kill me... they had left it far too late Bondi hero is handed $2.5million cheque in his hospital bed - then asks unbelievable question Pete Davidson is a dad! Kim Kardashian's ex welcomes first child with model girlfriend Elsie Hewitt Mica Miller's pastor husband is indicted for shocking acts before his wife was killed days after filing for divorce Trump suspends diversity visa lottery after Kristi Noem says'heinous' Brown University shooter entered US through program Jeffrey Epstein attended dinner with tech billionaires three years after he was convicted of sex crimes - as new photos of the event are released from pedophile's estate Terrifying maps break down exactly who is at risk of new'super flu' exploding across America... as doctors reveal symptoms to really worry about Revealed: The UK's most misspelled words - so, have you been writing them correctly? READ MORE: How to speak Gen Z, as'vibe-coding' is named word of the year Do you have impeccable spelling, or do you always end up turning to spell check?

Revealed: Chilling text NASCAR star Greg Biffle's wife sent to her mom just minutes before tragic plane crash'Old age' doesn't kill us... scientists reveal true causes of death Immutable: I can't get enough of Melania, the Real Housewife of Washington, says JAN MOIR The tiny diet change that brought down my sky-high cholesterol WITHOUT statins or drugs. Mike was told he risked a heart attack or stroke. CNBC anchor who slammed Trump's tariffs as'insane' stunned live on air as inflation figures send shockwaves through Wall Street Dramatic bodycam video shows moment suspected kidnapper is arrested after 40 years on the run... as her neighbor thinks arrest is a joke Rob Reiner's'petrified' parting words about son Nick at Conan O'Brien party... and why his haunted A-list friends can't stop talking about it Reiner family bombshell as insiders reveal who is paying for Nick's celebrity lawyer... their secret motive... and who will REALLY inherit $200m fortune Doctors said my hip pain was just tendinitis from sitting all day at work. The real cause may kill me... they had left it far too late Bondi hero is handed $2.5million cheque in his hospital bed - as hero asks unbelievable question Pete Davidson is a dad! Kim Kardashian's ex welcomes first child with model girlfriend Elsie Hewitt Mica Miller's pastor husband is indicted for shocking acts before his wife was killed days after filing for divorce Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy's daughter slams TSA as'unconstitutional' after she was subjected to a pat down for refusing to go through the body scanner Jeffrey Epstein attended dinner with tech billionaires three years after he was convicted of sex crimes - as new photos of the event are released from pedophile's estate Terrifying maps break down exactly who is at risk of new'super flu' exploding across America... as doctors reveal symptoms to really worry about READ MORE: Blind psychic Baba Vanga's world-changing 2025 prophecy feared to occur in just DAYS A blind psychic, who allegedly foretold 9/11 and the Covid pandemic, shared several world-changing prophecies for 2026 before her death nearly 30 years ago. Baba Vanga was a Bulgarian mystic and clairvoyant who became a cult figure among conspiracy theorists after several of her eerie pronouncements were proved true.

Though the two countries are now in a race to develop atomic technology, China's most advanced reactor was the result of collaboration with American scientists. This April, in a speech given at the Shanghai branch of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the physicist Xu Hongjie announced a breakthrough. For over a decade, his team had been working on an experimental nuclear reactor that runs on a lava-hot solution of fissile material and molten salt, rather than on solid fuel. The reactor, which went online two years ago, was a feat in itself. It is still the only one of its kind in operation in the world, and has the potential to be both safer and more efficient than the water-cooled nuclear plants that dominate the industry. Now, Xu explained, his team had been able to refuel the reactor without shutting it down, demonstrating a level of mastery over their new system. As dazzling as that was, the timing of Xu's speech also freighted the topic with geopolitical import. Only a few months earlier, DeepSeek, the Chinese artificial-intelligence company, had set alarms ringing through the U.S. tech world when it became clear that the relatively small Chinese startup, operating under U.S. export controls, had created a large language model that rivalled anything devised by the behemoths of Silicon Valley.

MAGA diehard who was pardoned by Trump offers scathing assessment after his speech: 'He's stuttering... we can't lie anymore' Chilling new video of Nick Reiner making disturbing comments about murder... as friend reveals dad Rob's tragic failed attempt to save him: 'I'm going to kill that f***ing dog' The tiny diet change that brought down my sky-high cholesterol WITHOUT statins or drugs. Mike was told he risked a heart attack or stroke. Reiner family bombshell as insiders reveal who is paying for Nick's celebrity lawyer... their secret motive... and who will REALLY inherit $200m fortune Corey Feldman claims he was molested by the late Corey Haim while making 1987's The Lost Boys Knives out for Susie Wiles after Vanity Fair calamity... as insiders reveal full-blown MAGA meltdown: 'She might have lost one of her nine lives' I sneakily looked at my perfect son's phone... What a terrible mistake! HGTV star David Bromstad shares devastating substance abuse journey: 'I've had really hard times' Tara Reid speaks out for the first time since THAT video emerged... and tells KATIE HIND why she is convinced she was spiked after watching CCTV Brown's $3m-a-year president faces ire for'shifting blame' after shooter unleashed havoc on campus Cruel rosacea blighted Rebecca's life and made her nose swell. Her doctor said she just'had to just put up with it'.

The director of created a "Sam Bot" when he couldn't get an interview with the OpenAI CEO. Watch an exclusive trailer for the documentary, which comes out in January. Director Adam Bhala Lough didn't set out to make a documentary about a digital simulacrum of Sam Altman . But after about 100 days of texting and emailing the OpenAI CEO for an interview--with no response, he claims, and with financiers hounding him to make good on his original pitch--Lough was at his wit's end. He'd exhausted just about every angle.