Google I/O showed how the path for AI-driven science is shifting

After a busy Google I/O, the company’s chief executive sits down with the hosts of “Hard Fork” to discuss the future of Google Search, how he’s using A.I. agents and his advice for college graduates.

“This is the only recent gathering of a large number of people where mentions of A.I. did not produce a large chorus of boos.”

At this year’s Google I/O developer conference, Kevin Roose and Casey Newton, hosts of the “Hard Fork” podcast, sat down with Sundar Pichai, chief executive of Google, and talked about where he feels it is succeeding in the A.I. race, and where he thinks the company can do better.

In this episode of Uncanny Valley, we unpack the mass layoffs at Meta, big announcements at Google I/O, and the latest backlash against AI.

Let’s unpack what Demis Hassabis said at the end of yesterday’s Google I/O keynote. This is Optimizer, a weekly newsletter sent from Verge senior reviewer Victoria Song that dissects and discusses the latest gizmos and potions that swear they're going to change your life. This week's issue is a special early edition tied to The Verge's Google I/O coverage. You can expect our next issue at its usual time next Friday. Opt in for Optimizer here. Toward the end of this year's Google I/O keynote, Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis declared, with a completely deadpan face, that the company hopes to "reimagine the drug discovery process with the goal of one day solving all disease." This is the sort of statement that the phras … Read the full story at The Verge.

Bank of America analysts believe Alphabet is still a buy, seeing potential 10% upside in stock price following Google I/O 2026.

Exclusive: Workers sign petitions over applications of AI by governments for defence and intelligence, and vote to unionise Google DeepMind has agreed to enter formal talks with UK tech workers that could lead to trade union representation, in a groundbreaking move that comes amid growing staff concerns about the use of its AI by the US and Israeli governments’ defence and intelligence. The artificial intelligence arm of the multi-trillion dollar Google empire, led by the Nobel prize winner Demis Hassabis, has agreed to meet the Communications Workers Union and Unite at the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (Acas) after several hundred workers based at its London headquarters earlier this month voted to unionise. Continue reading...

Google is recasting its enterprise AI roadmap around autonomous systems and AGI, with DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis telling I/O attendees the industry now sits at the “foothills of the singularity.” “When we look back at this time, I think we all realise that we were standing in the foothills of the singularity,” Hassabis said in his speech at Google I/O. “It will be a profound moment for humanity.” The remarks capped a keynote spanning AI agents, cybersecurity systems, scientific research tools, coding platforms, and simulations — suggesting Google increasingly views AI not as standalone enterprise features, but as a broader operational platform capable of executing complex tasks across environments. “AGI is now on the horizon, and it will be the most profound and impactful technology ever invented,” Hassabis said. “If built right, it could propel human progress and flourishing beyond our imaginations.” While terms such as AGI and singularity have historically remained largely confined