TikTok has made a final appeal to the US Supreme Court in an attempt to delay a law that could force its Chinese parent company, ByteDance, to either sell the platform or face a nationwide ban. The companies filed an emergency injunction request on Monday, seeking to prevent the law from taking effect on January 19. Without this delay, they warn that TikTok’s US operations may be shut down, affecting approximately 170 million American users.

The law, passed by Congress in April, cites national security concerns over TikTok’s Chinese ownership. US officials argue that the platform’s access to vast amounts of American user data, including location and private messages, along with its influence over content recommendations, could be exploited by foreign adversaries. The law requires ByteDance to divest TikTok or face severe operational restrictions in the US.

In response, TikTok and ByteDance have denied these allegations, insisting that no imminent threat exists. They argue that the law infringes on free speech, as it singles out TikTok and violates the First Amendment. Earlier this month, a Washington DC court rejected these claims, prompting the companies to file their appeal with the Supreme Court.

The companies also warn that even a temporary shutdown of TikTok in the US would have serious consequences, potentially causing a loss of one-third of its US user base. They say such an abrupt closure would significantly undermine TikTok’s value to advertisers, content creators, and employees.

President-elect Donald Trump, who once attempted to ban TikTok during his first term, has now reversed his stance. Trump, who is set to take office on January 20—just one day after the law’s deadline—has pledged to preserve the platform. His position could potentially lead to policy changes or new negotiations surrounding TikTok’s future in the US.

The law’s potential impact comes amid broader US-China trade tensions. TikTok and ByteDance argue that a ban could set a precedent for further crackdowns on other foreign-owned apps. A similar attempt by Trump to ban Tencent’s WeChat in 2020 was blocked by US courts.

In addition to TikTok’s appeal, a group of US users has filed their own emergency plea with the Supreme Court, emphasizing the platform’s importance as a speech forum and calling for strict legal scrutiny of any action that restricts access to it.

Michael Hughes, a TikTok spokesperson, stressed the importance of First Amendment protections, asserting that a hasty ban would harm Americans’ freedom of expression. The US Department of Justice, however, maintains that the law is crucial for safeguarding national security and protecting personal data from foreign influence.

As the January deadline approaches, TikTok and ByteDance are hoping for a Supreme Court decision by January 6 to allow time for a potential shutdown and coordination with service providers. The outcome now rests in the hands of the justices.

Researchers at Sakana.AI have introduced a groundbreaking artificial intelligence (AI) model that could revolutionize the scientific research process by automating tasks typically handled by human researchers. Dubbed the “AI Scientist,” the model can independently identify research problems, develop hypotheses, execute experiments, analyze data, and generate reports. Additionally, a secondary AI model has been designed to peer-review these reports, ensuring the quality and accuracy of the findings.

Robert Lange, a research scientist and founding member at Sakana.AI, compared this development to the early stages of AI in other fields, such as generative models like GPT. Speaking to Euronews Next, Lange described the project as a potential turning point for AI’s integration into scientific discovery. “We think of this as a type of GPT-1 moment for generative scientific discovery,” he said, noting that its full potential is still being realized.

Expanding AI’s Role in Scientific Research
While AI has already made inroads into scientific research, its integration has been limited by the field’s complexity and challenges related to AI tools, such as inaccuracies, or “hallucinations,” and issues concerning intellectual property. However, AI’s use may be more common than realized, with an estimated 60,000 academic papers potentially enhanced by AI tools like ChatGPT since its release.

The European Commission has recognized AI’s potential to drive scientific breakthroughs, but its use also raises ethical concerns. If implemented carefully, AI could become a powerful tool in advancing science. Sakana.AI’s “AI Scientist” is still in its early stages, with researchers acknowledging some limitations in the system. These include incorrect implementation of ideas, errors in evaluation, and unfair comparisons to standard research practices. However, Lange views these challenges as natural growing pains in the development of AI models.

“When you look at the evolution of machine learning models, from early image generation to chatbots, they often start with flaws but become more powerful as resources and community efforts grow,” Lange explained. He expects the AI Scientist to follow a similar trajectory.

AI as a Collaborative Tool for Researchers
Despite its autonomy, the AI Scientist is not intended to replace human researchers but to complement them. During tests, the model displayed behaviors mimicking human researchers, such as adjusting its settings to extend time for experiments rather than just optimizing performance. Still, human oversight remains crucial for tasks like peer review and research direction, ensuring the reliability of AI-generated findings.

Lange emphasized the need for ethical guidelines in using AI for scientific research, advocating for transparency through measures like watermarks on AI-generated papers. “We believe in developing these tools collectively and iteratively to ensure they are safely deployed,” he said, adding that open-source AI models could democratize scientific research and foster collaboration.

Sakana.AI hopes the AI Scientist project will ignite a larger conversation about the future of scientific research and how AI can reshape it. “We want this project to spark a dialogue about the future of science and what a true scientific contribution looks like,” Lange concluded.