The 35th International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence and the 29th European Conference on Artificial Intelligence (IJACI-ECAI 2026) distinguished paper awards recognise some of the best papers presented at the conference each year. This year, three articles were named as distinguished papers . In approval-based budget division, the task is to allocate a divisible resource to the candidates based on the voters' approval preferences over the candidates. For this setting, Brandl et al. [2021] have shown that no distribution rule can be strategyproof, efficient, and fair at the same time. In this paper, we aim to circumvent this impossibility theorem by focusing on approximate strategyproofness.

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When the biotech company Insilico Medicine used its computer models to propose a promising drug for pulmonary fibrosis, it enthusiastically claimed in a press release that the molecule had been "discovered by" its generative AI platform. Insilico leads a pack of companies using AI to rapidly come up with drug ideas humans might never think of, potentially speeding the race to new cures. AI models are now able to generate atomic designs for drugs almost as easily as ChatGPT can write a thank-you note. However, when it came time to file for an all-important patent to protect that new chemical structure, the company made no mention of AI. Instead the patent names five humans, including CEO Alex Zhavoronkov, as the drug's "inventors."

What with a 250th birthday, Taylor Swift's wedding and the football World Cup, Americans could be forgiven for taking their eye off the ball this summer. But signs of economic trouble have been building. This week they hit the headlines when US national debt passed the $40tn (£29.4tn) How did we get here? It took almost 200 years for US national debt to reach $1tn for the first time, says Maya MacGuineas, president of the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.

The UK government is facing calls to cancel a sprawling health care contract with Palantir. The region of Greater Manchester insists it can do a better job itself. The UK government has six months to decide whether to terminate a deal worth more than $400 million between the country's National Health Service and American software company Palantir . If one part of the NHS is already doing without Palantir, politicians are asking, why can't the rest of the country? In 2023, the UK commissioned Palantir to develop a " federated data platform " (FDP) that could ingest and organize the tangle of health data produced across the country.

A government advisory panel is planning to discuss how best to use AI in education amid growing concerns the technology could be reducing the ability of students to think for themselves. A Japanese government advisory panel is set to start considering ways to appropriately and effectively utilize artificial intelligence in school education amid the continuing evolution of the new cutting-edge technology. At a general meeting of the Central Council for Education on Friday, education minister Yohei Matsumoto asked the panel for discussions on the government's next five-year basic education promotion program from fiscal 2028. The council plans to compile its recommendations in fiscal 2027, which begins next April. There are growing concerns that excessive reliance on AI may reduce opportunities for students to think and make decisions on their own.

Brazil will invest about 2.3bn reais ($444.2m) to bolster its artificial intelligence ecosystem, splitting projects between United States and Chinese tech firms in a strategic move that underscores its efforts to balance ties with both superpowers. Just more than half the total, 1.3bn reais ($251m), will fund a supercomputing infrastructure project in Rio de Janeiro developed in partnership with China's Huawei Technologies and iFlytek, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's government said on Thursday. The machine will be installed in the northeastern state of Rio Grande do Norte, chosen for its energy potential. Lula attended an announcement ceremony in the state on Thursday. The Reuters news agency quoted unnamed government officials as saying they expect US chipmaker Nvidia to win the tender.

Government forces have carried out dozens of attacks on Houthi positions across Yemen in the past 24 hours, the latest sign that a return to full-scale war in Yemen may be approaching. In the past day, government forces have carried out 81 attacks on Houthi positions that led to the "neutralisation" of a number of Houthi fighters and field commanders, government spokesperson Majed Abdullah al-Nuzaili said Thursday. They "successfully" hit a target at Najran airport and an Aramco facility in the province, Saree said. There was no immediate confirmation of the attacks from Saudi Arabia. Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which supports the Houthis, warned on Thursday that Saudi Arabia would be "unable to contain" the Houthis as the rebels ramp up attacks on the kingdom.

Moderna and Merck's personalized mRNA cancer vaccine reduced melanoma recurrence and metastasis in a Phase 3 trial. The companies plan to seek FDA approval.

China Is Strapping'Digital Bombs' to Civilian Infrastructure--Is the US Ready? Earlier this year, insurance executives gathered in a Times Square conference room to play out a scenario: a Chinese cyberattack knocks out 5,000 US water utilities at once. If you think that's a far-fetched scenario, think again. WIRED's Andy Greenberg got rare access to the closed-door war game and walked away with some disturbing conclusions. This week, Brian Barrett sits down to talk with Andy about Volt Typhoon, the Chinese state-sponsored hacking group that's spent the past three years pre-positioning itself inside American infrastructure. You can follow Brian Barrett on Bluesky at @brbarrett and Andy Greenberg on Bluesky at @agreenberg . Write to us at [email protected] . 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 .