UN General Assembly enters fourth day
World leaders return to the United Nations headquarters in New York on Friday...
A Chinese-made robot dog named Black Panther has reached a top speed of 10.3 metres per second (34 feet per second), setting a new world record for robotic dogs and approaching the speed of elite human sprinters, according to state media Xinhua News.
The four-legged robot, weighing 38 kilograms (84 pounds) and standing 0.63 metres (2.1 feet) tall, broke the previous record held by Boston Dynamics’ WildCat during a live televised demonstration.
Black Panther hit more than 10 metres per second on a treadmill within 10 seconds, nearing the pace of Usain Bolt’s 2009 100-metre world record of 9.58 seconds, which translates to 10.44 metres per second.
The robot dog is the result of a joint project between Zhejiang University’s humanoid innovation institute and Hangzhou-based startup Mirror Me.
Recent upgrades have boosted its strength and speed, enabling it to outpace most humans, though it remains slower than fast animals such as cheetahs and ostriches.
Developers say the robot dog could be adapted for disaster relief and logistics tasks in the future, including navigating rubble after earthquakes.
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained low on Thursday, as Iran reiterated that it will neither enter into new negotiations with the United States nor re-open the Strait as long as its conditions are not met, despite recent indirect talks in New York mediated by Qatar.
As the Ukraine war is highlighted by some leaders during the United Nations' 81st General Assembly meeting in New York, Russian forces attacked the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early on Thursday with ballistic missiles, killing two people and injuring six, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said.
The 81st UN General Assembly continues in New York on Wednesday, with another day of high-level speeches and diplomatic meetings. The wars in the Middle East and Ukraine, global security and international cooperation remain at the centre of discussions.
The 81st UN General Assembly has wrapped up its third day in New York on Thursday, with world leaders delivering high-level speeches and holding diplomatic meetings.
Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and Pakistan will hold an urgent high-level meeting under a joint defence pact to discuss ways to support the kingdom amid attacks by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis. The meeting comes as Tehran seeks to distance itself from the rapid advance of its Houthi allies.
Meta has unveiled a new generation of wearables, including lightweight virtual reality glasses and camera-free smart spectacles, as it pushes AI-powered devices further into the mainstream while seeking to address privacy concerns.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Saturday (19 September) the creation of an “AI Force” and plans to appoint an artificial intelligence (AI) czar, while rejecting calls to slow the development of increasingly powerful AI systems.
Google’s Gemini AI model accessed the internet and hacked three companies during a cybersecurity test, in what is believed to be the first known case of the company’s AI systems autonomously carrying out such activity.
Here's your AnewZ Daily Brief for 18 September 2026. These are the top five stories making headlines in the field of science.
French prosecutors have launched a criminal investigation into suspected sexual harassment involving smart glasses, amid mounting global concern over the privacy risks posed by the devices.
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