What if the spark of life and mind boiled down to energy flowing inside tiny cell parts? Martin Picard, a biologist at Columbia University, is pushing this idea to the edge. He’s not just theorizing—he volunteered for a groundbreaking experiment to measure the energy that keeps us alive. Meanwhile, in labs far from biology, physicists and engineers race to harness light particles for quantum computers. And AI researchers build super-hackers to keep AI safe. These breakthroughs are rewriting what we know about life, thought, and technology.
The Powerhouse of You: Mitochondria at the Center of Mind and Health
Martin Picard leads the Mitochondrial Psychobiology Lab at Columbia University Irving Medical Center. In July 2021, he became the first volunteer in a study measuring the energy needed just to exist. For 24 hours, Picard stayed inside one of the world’s 50 metabolic research chambers. These chambers are tiny—less than the width of a shoulder—and include a stainless steel sink and porcelain toilet. Every hour, Picard gave blood samples. The goal? To track how his mitochondria fueled his cells around the clock.
Mitochondria generate ATP by breaking down glucose and fat through chemical reactions. But they do more than just churn out energy. Over the past decade, scientists found mitochondria also process neurotransmitters, hormones, and metabolites. Picard argues that the energetic state of mitochondria shapes health and disease. “If the energy stops flowing, there’s no more you,” he says.
Brain mitochondria do heavy lifting for cognition and behavior. They shape circuit properties, influence neurotransmitter synthesis, regulate calcium dynamics, and keep cells intact. This support isn’t constant—it switches between baseline energy supply and activity-evoked boosts when neurons fire. This dynamic helps circuits adapt, impacting learning, memory, reward, anxiety, and motivation. Picard’s own mitochondria came from his mother, a nurse, underscoring the personal and biological ties mitochondria carry.
Quantum Dreams: Building Computers from Particles of Light
While mitochondria power cells, photons may power the next generation of computers. PsiQuantum, founded in 2016 by four physicists from UK universities, aims to build a massive quantum computer using photons as qubits. These qubits will travel through optical switches and beam splitters, controlled by lasers that create and entangle photons. The quantum computer will fill about 100 cabinets, each packed with thousands of light particles.
PsiQuantum raised $1 billion last year to build sites in Chicago and Australia. The Australian site plans to be operational by 2027. PsiQuantum is one of two companies the US government bets on to crack quantum computing, alongside Microsoft. “Using quantum systems to simulate quantum systems would for the first time allow a simulation of physics and chemistry that directly reflected reality,” says Terry Rudolph, PsiQuantum’s co-founder.
Corrections for quantum errors will keep the system running smoothly. The company’s vice president of quantum applications, Philipp Ernst, and engineers like Mark Thompson push the limits of this new tech. The hope? Quantum computers that solve problems classical computers can’t touch, unlocking new science and materials.
AI’s Own Red Team: GPT-Red Hunts Down Cyberattacks
AI safety just got a new champion. OpenAI created GPT-Red, a large language model designed to hack AI models before hackers do. GPT-Red automates red-teaming, testing AI for vulnerabilities by generating attack strategies in a self-play loop. It recently discovered a new prompt injection attack called a fake chain of thought.
GPT-Red outperformed human red-teamers in tests. It hacked the Vendy agent, changing prices and canceling orders. Over 90% of its strongest attacks worked against GPT-5, but fewer than 23% succeeded against the upgraded GPT-5.6. However, GPT-Red struggles with attacks that require back-and-forth conversations or images.
OpenAI won’t release GPT-Red publicly. “It’s not a trivial thing that someone else could easily do,” says Chris Choquette-Choo, one of its creators. Dylan Hunn calls it “extremely persistent about drilling down into an attack that it has discovered.” GPT-Red stands as a powerful new tool in AI’s defense arsenal.
Energy, Light, and Intelligence: The Future Is Now
From the microscopic world of mitochondria powering our thoughts to photons racing through quantum circuits, energy is the key to unlocking the future. Martin Picard’s experiments reveal how life depends on constant energy flow. PsiQuantum’s photon-based quantum computers promise breakthroughs in science and technology. And AI researchers build digital guardians like GPT-Red to protect powerful models from attack.
These advances reflect a new era where biology, physics, and AI converge. As Terry Rudolph puts it, “Whenever we have more power to calculate and simulate and understand things, we build incredible machines that come from it.” The energy running through cells and photons may soon fuel machines that change everything.
Based on
- Martin Picard’s Mitochondrial Theory of Mind — quantamagazine.org
- Brain mitochondria as key drivers of cognition and behaviour | Nature Reviews Neuroscience — nature.com
- Can consciousness be quantum? We may now have an answer | New Scientist — newscientist.com
- PsiQuantum has a plan to make a massive quantum computer out of light | MIT Technology Review — technologyreview.com
- Meet GPT-Red: an LLM super-hacker OpenAI built to make its models safer | MIT Technology Review — irving-develop.technologyreview.com
