Glossary
Plain definitions of the technical words in our editions, A to Z. In an edition, the first use of each word has a dotted underline: hover over it, tap it or move to it with the keyboard to see its definition.
A
- accelerated approval
- A faster FDA path that lets a drug for a serious illness reach patients based on early signs that it works, as long as later studies confirm the benefit.
- Further reading
- AI model
- A computer program trained on large amounts of data to recognize patterns and produce answers, text, images or actions. Chatbots such as ChatGPT and Claude run on AI models.
- air taxi
- A small aircraft, usually an eVTOL, meant to carry a few passengers on short trips across or between cities, booked much like a ride-hailing car.
- antisense drug
- A medicine made of a short strand of genetic material that sticks to one specific set of instructions inside cells and blocks it, so a harmful protein, or part of a virus, is not made.
- Also: antisense medicine, antisense
- Artemis
- NASA's program to send astronauts back to the Moon, using the Orion capsule and landers built by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
- Further reading
- Artificial Analysis Intelligence Index
- A combined score from Artificial Analysis, an independent testing company, that ranks AI models across many reasoning, knowledge, math and coding tests. Higher is better.
- Further reading
B
- benchmark
- A standard test used to compare how well different products, such as AI models or computer chips, do the same tasks.
- booster
- The first and largest stage of a rocket, which gives the push for liftoff. SpaceX and others now land their boosters and fly them again.
D
- data center
- A building full of computers that store data and run online services. Data centers for AI use large amounts of electricity.
- Also: data centre
E
- eVTOL
- Short for electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft: a battery-powered aircraft that rises and lands straight up and down like a helicopter, but more quietly.
- Also: electric vertical takeoff aircraft, electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft
F
- Federal Register
- The U.S. government's daily official publication of proposed and final rules, public notices and presidential orders.
- Further reading
- fusion power
- Electricity from fusion, the reaction that powers the Sun, in which light atoms join and release energy. No fusion plant supplies power to the grid yet.
- Also: fusion energy
G
- GENIUS Act
- The 2025 U.S. law that sets federal rules for stablecoins, including that every coin be backed one for one by cash or similar safe reserves.
- GPU
- Short for graphics processing unit, a chip that does many calculations at the same time. GPUs were made for video games and now do most of the work of training and running AI.
- Also: graphics processing unit
H
- humanoid robot
- A robot built in roughly human shape, with arms, hands and often legs, so it can work in places and with tools designed for people.
- Also: humanoid
- hypersonic
- Faster than five times the speed of sound, roughly 6,100 kilometers (3,800 miles) an hour, the speed of a new class of missiles and test aircraft.
I
- immunotherapy
- A treatment that helps the body's own immune system find and fight disease, most often cancer.
L
- large language model
- An AI model trained on huge amounts of written text so it can read and write language. It is the kind of model behind chatbots and writing assistants.
- Also: LLM
- low Earth orbit
- The region of space from about 160 to 2,000 kilometers (100 to 1,200 miles) above Earth, where the International Space Station and most satellites fly.
M
- mRNA
- Short for messenger RNA, the molecule cells use to carry instructions for making proteins. An mRNA vaccine delivers instructions that teach the immune system what to attack.
- Also: messenger RNA
O
- open weights
- An AI model whose trained settings, called weights, are published so anyone can download it and run it on their own computers. It is like publishing the recipe, not just selling the dish.
- Also: open-weights, open-weight
P
- Phase 3 trial
- The last and largest stage of testing a new treatment in people before a company asks regulators to approve it. It usually involves hundreds or thousands of patients.
- Also: Phase III trial, Phase 3, Phase III
Q
- quantum computer
- A computer that uses the rules of quantum physics to solve certain problems, such as breaking some codes or simulating molecules, far faster than ordinary computers. Today's machines are still small and make many errors.
- Also: quantum computing
R
- real-world asset
- In blockchain finance, a traditional asset that exists outside the blockchain, such as a Treasury bill, a loan or a building, represented by a token on one. Often shortened to RWA.
- Also: RWA
S
- small modular reactor
- A nuclear power plant much smaller than a traditional one, designed to be built mostly in a factory and put together on site.
- Also: SMR, small nuclear plant
- stablecoin
- A digital token designed to stay worth a fixed amount, usually one U.S. dollar, backed by cash and safe assets such as Treasury bills.
- Starlink
- SpaceX's satellite internet service, delivered by thousands of satellites in low Earth orbit to small dishes on homes, ships and planes.
- Further reading
T
- tokenized asset
- Something of value, such as a bond, a fund share or a building, whose ownership is recorded as a digital token on a blockchain so it can be traded and settled at any hour.
- Also: tokenization
- Treasury bill
- A short-term loan to the U.S. government, repaid in a year or less; together with longer Treasury notes and bonds, they are called Treasuries. They are seen as one of the safest places to keep money.
- Also: T-bill, Treasuries
The glossary is also at /api/v1/glossary.json, CC BY 4.0.