Get the latest tech news

AI cracks superbug problem in two days that took scientists years

The lead researcher has told the BBC he was so astounded he assumed his computer had been hacked.

Professor José R Penadés and his team at Imperial College London had spent years working out and proving why some superbugs are immune to antibiotics. He gave "co-scientist" - a tool made by Google - a short prompt asking it about the core problem he had been investigating and it reached the same conclusion in 48 hours. Just two days later, the AI returned a few hypotheses - and its first thought, the top answer provided, suggested superbugs may take tails in exactly the way his research described.

Get the Android app