The future of addiction treatment could be in treating the brain itself. A new trial at West Virginia University’s Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute is exploring whether using ultrasound waves on parts of the brain associated with addiction could disrupt connections that contribute to cravings. WSJ health reporter Julie Wernau explains how it works and how it could change the science of treating addiction.  

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Further reading:

Can Zapping the Brain Help Treat Addiction? 

Ultrasound Isn’t Just for Pregnancy. How It’s Helping Treat the Brain. 

A Generation of Drug-Addiction Survivors Is Entering Old Age 

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Do you have trouble falling asleep? If meditation apps and sleep trackers aren’t cutting it, now there’s technology designed to help users not only nod off more quickly but improve their slumber. WSJ’s Charlotte Gartenberg speaks with Science Bureau Chief Jo Craven McGinty about the latest wearable sleep tech that targets brain waves with sound and light to help you get a good night’s rest.

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Further reading: 

New Wearable Devices Target the Brain to Bring Better Sleep 

To Get a Better Night’s Sleep, First Fix Your Day 

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Colossal Biosciences wants to create new animals that resemble extinct creatures like the woolly mammoth, thanks to advancements in genetic engineering and synthetic biology. In this conversation from the WSJ’s Future of Everything Festival in May 2024, Colossal Biosciences co-founder and CEO Ben Lamm discusses how the de-extinction of species could help address the loss of biodiversity and benefit ecosystems. He tells Future of Everything editorial director Stefanie Ilgenfritz about his plans for monetizing the technology, and how it could be used for human health.

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Further reading:

Return of the Woolly Mammoth? 

Doctors Can Now Edit the Genes Inside Your Body 

How Ancient Hunters Felled Massive Mammoths and Hungry Predators 

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Electric vehicle sales growthexperienced a slow down in 2 023 that continued into this year. Despite EV makers’ big bets on batteries, buyers seemed more hesitant to take the all-electric route. But EV sales are exp ected to keep growing in 2025, according to Cox Automotive. On the Science of Success, WSJ’s Ben Cohen speaks with Journal reporter Sean McLain about the companies he’s watching and his predictions for the EV race in 2025. 

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Electric motors are silent but electric vehicles are not. They make noise for safety, branding and to enhance the driving experience. And since they are no longer limited by the sound of the motor, these cars provide an acoustic blank slate. Jasper de Kruiff, co-founder and creative director of Impulse Audio Lab, has been working in interactive sound design for over a decade. He explains the tech and creative approaches that go into each vehicle’s sonic picture and why the roads of the future could sound like an electric symphony.

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Further Reading:

Designing the Sensory Experience of an Electric Vehicle 

How New Motors Could Transform the EV Industry 

With an EV, I Had to Learn to Drive All Over Again 

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Waymo, the self-driving car startup owned by Google parent Alphabet, may be the front-runner in the race to lead the driverless car industry, but it’s got competition. Elon Musk’s Tesla and Amazon’s Zoox are also building out robotaxi technology and services to get riders in self-driving cars. On the second episode of our special series on the growing driverless car industry, host Danny Lewis looks at these companies’ efforts to catch up and where Waymo’s success could take it and its tech into the future.

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Further reading:

General Motors Scraps Cruise Robotaxi Program 

Musk Shows Off Driverless Robotaxi to Be Priced Under $30,000 

Waymo, Uber, Lyft Are Biggest Winners From Tesla’s Robotaxi Flop 

Elon Musk Plays a Familiar Song: Robot Cars Are Coming 

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Electric vehicles are a big part of the green energy transition but some of their most critical components are made using rare-earth elements. These can be highly toxic and environmentally destructive to mine and refine, with politically-complicated supply chains to boot. Engineers and automakers like Tesla, GM and Stellantis are now racing to build motors that don’t require magnets made from rare earths, but they must figure out how to match the efficiency. WSJ mining and commodities reporter Rhiannon Hoyle speaks with host Danny Lewis about why countries and companies are finding alternatives to rare earths. Plus, Oak Ridge National Laboratory engineer Burak Ozpineci tells us where new motors could take the EV industry.

What do you think about the show? Let us know on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or email us: [email protected] 

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Further reading:

For EV Startups, Things Are Going From Bad to Worse 

Rare-Earth Prices Are in the Doldrums. China Wants to Keep Them That Way. 

Lynas Bets on New Rare Earths Products, Breaking China Stranglehold 

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Fifteen years ago, Google made a big bet that future cars will drive themselves. Now, billions of dollars later, that bet may finally be paying off. Waymo, Alphabet's driverless car company, has hit the accelerator in recent years as its technology has evolved, and its rivals have stumbled. On episode one of our special series on the growing driverless car industry, host Danny Lewis explores the roots of this technology and how Waymo took the lead in the race to a driverless future.

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Further reading:

How San Francisco Learned to Love Self-Driving Cars 

GM’s Self-Driving Car Unit Skids Off Course 

Self-Driving Cars Enter the Next Frontier: Freeways 

All Hail Phoenix: America’s King of the Robo-Taxi 

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Autonomous aviation is making medical aid more accessible and emergency response time shorter than ever. In this conversation from WSJ’s Future of Everything Festival in May, GoAERO CEO Gwen Lighter and Zipline CEO Keller Rinaudo Cliffton share how their respective companies are looking for ways to revamp medical access in hard to reach places. They tell WSJ’s Alex Ossola about the new industry they are forging without a roadmap. 

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Future of Everything listeners, here's a special presentation of Bold Names, our interview series where you'll hear from the leaders of the bold-named companies featured in the pages of the Wall Street Journal.

Marc Benioff is one of the most outspoken names in tech. The billionaire co-founder of customer relationship software company Salesforce has been pivoting the company’s focus to artificial intelligence agents to help its clients manage customer service and other needs. But he has some strong opinions about how others are promoting AI, from how Microsoft is marketing its Copilot feature to companies like Amazon buying up nuclear power contracts for their data centers. And yet he says he’s as excited about AI as he was the day that Apple’s Steve Jobs sent him one of the first iPhones. So what can AI actually do, and what’s a ‘fantasy’? Benioff speaks to WSJ’s Christopher Mims and Tim Higgins in episode two of our interview series Bold Names.

Check out Episode 1 in the Tech News Briefing Feed: Bold Names: Why This Tesla Pioneer Says the Cheap EV Market 'Sucks' 

Further Reading

A Powerful AI Breakthrough Is About to Transform the World 

With ‘Founder Mode,’ Silicon Valley Makes Micromanaging Cool 

AI Agents Can Do More Than Answer Queries. That Raises a Few Questions.  

At Marc Benioff’s Salesforce, It’s One Big Family—Until Trouble Hits 

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