Nonrival

May 21, 2026

Human experts + AI summaries - on public policy, economics, and technology.

Stanford Researchers Cut AI Training Costs by 99% Using Techniques Borrowed from the SAT

stanford_hai

• Stanford researchers developed a new method called Item Response Scaling Laws (IRSL) that reduces the computational cost of predicting how large AI models will perform by up to 99%.
• The technique borrows from standardized testing like the SAT, using adaptive questioning that gets harder as models answer correctly, rather than asking every model thousands of questions multiple times.
• This could save millions of dollars in AI training costs and make advanced AI research more accessible to academic institutions that can't afford massive computational expenses.

Trump's $1.8 Billion 'Anti-Weaponization' Fund Has No Real Legal Precedent Despite Administration Claims

politifact

• The Trump administration claims a 2011 settlement with Native American farmers provides legal precedent for its new $1.776 billion fund to compensate alleged victims of judicial 'weaponization,' but legal experts say the cases differ fundamentally
• Unlike the 2011 case, which had specific eligibility criteria and judicial oversight, the new fund uses vague standards like 'lawfare' without definition and operates without court supervision
• The fund could potentially pay January 6 rioters, Trump donors, or Republican lawmakers, leading Democrats to call it 'blatant corruption' and legal scholars to warn it resembles a political slush fund

Why Trump's Trade Wars Could Trigger a 1970s-Style Inflation Crisis

hoover

• Trump's proposed tariffs and immigration restrictions could spark inflation reminiscent of the late 1970s crisis that required painful Federal Reserve intervention to control
• The combination of supply-side disruptions from trade barriers and deportations, plus potential fiscal expansion, creates conditions similar to those that led to double-digit inflation in 1979
• Policymakers should prepare contingency plans now, including potential Fed independence protection and fiscal restraint mechanisms, to avoid repeating the economic trauma of the Carter-Volcker era

In the News

Trump's Summit With Xi Left Critical U.S.-China Tech Competition Issues Largely Unresolved

csis

• Despite high expectations, the Trump-Xi summit made little progress on AI competition and semiconductor export controls, even with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang joining the presidential delegation
• Trump made surprising comments suggesting equivalence between U.S. and Chinese cyber operations, potentially undermining U.S. positions on China's persistent cyber threats to American infrastructure
• Major technology competition issues like surveillance risks from Chinese connected vehicles, AI model protection, and lessons China is learning from the Iran conflict went largely unaddressed

Analysis

How Data Science Can Expose Racial Bias Hidden in America's Justice System

princeton_press

• Mathematician Chad Topaz uses public records and data analysis to reveal racial disparities in policing, sentencing, and incarceration that institutions work hard to keep hidden from view
• His research found that risk-assessment algorithms used in courts actually widened racial sentencing gaps, even as they reduced overall incarceration rates
• Getting access to justice data often required years-long battles with uncooperative institutions, including scraping court websites and hiring people worldwide to solve CAPTCHAs

Also Worth a Look

• College Graduates Are Struggling to Find Jobs Because Companies Have Stopped Hiring (epi)
• Most Companies Are Still Running AI Pilots While Leaders Deploy Autonomous Digital Workers (uva_darden)
• Putin Visits China Seeking Support as Ukraine War Drags On and His Approval Rating Hits New Lows (hoover)
• Countries Are Building Payment Systems to Bypass the Dollar, But It's Not Going Away (atlantic_council)
• Coal Power Is Making an Economic Comeback in the Midwest Thanks to Volatile Natural Gas Prices (eia)
• A Legal Scholar Warned for Years That Trump's $1.8 Billion 'Anti-Weaponization Fund' Was Exactly What Could Happen (the_conversation)
• Why Responsible Mining Is the Key to Avoiding Future Geopolitical Crises (atlantic_council)