Can AI really help us discover new materials?

Can AI really help us discover new materials? Judging from headlines and social media posts in recent years, one might reasonably assume that AI is going to fix the power grid, cure the world's diseases, and finish my holiday shopping for me. This week, we published a new package called Hype Correction . The collection of stories takes a look at how the world is starting to reckon with the reality of what AI can do, and what's just fluff. One of my favorite stories in that package comes from my colleague David Rotman, who took a hard look at AI for materials research . AI could transform the process of discovering new materials--innovation that could be especially useful in the world of climate tech, which needs new batteries, semiconductors, magnets, and more.