Contributor

Kristin Houser

Staff Writer

Contact

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Kristin Houser is a staff writer at Freethink, where she covers science and tech. Her written work has appeared in Business Insider, NBC News, and the World Economic Forum’s Agenda, among other publications, and Stephen Colbert once talked about a piece on The Late Show, to her delight.

Prior to joining Freethink, Kristin was a staff writer for Futurism and wrote several animated and live action web series.

Three workers in orange vests and hard hats climb a ladder on the side of a massive concrete cooling tower of a nuclear power plant, against a clear blue sky.

Clean Energy

America’s plan to resurrect nuclear power

To increase its supply of clean nuclear power, the US government is cutting licensing fees, rewarding reactor innovation, and more.

Kristin Houser

In a bustling data center, a person works with a laptop on a cart, surrounded by racks of illuminated servers and cables.

Clean Energy

The future of data centers — on land, at sea, and in space

As our digital world grows, demand for data centers is also increasing. To meet that demand sustainably, developers are getting creative.

Kristin Houser

ARC PRIZE written in pixelated letters, with a pink square above 'PRIZE' and a yellow square next to it, set against a black background, reminiscent of classic AGI digital aesthetics.

LLMs are a dead end to AGI, says François Chollet

AI researcher François Chollet thought we needed a better way to measure progress on the path to AGI — so he made one.

Kristin Houser

A gloved hand holds a pair of tweezers gripping a small black square object against a background with concentric circles.

Batteries

Solid-state batteries are finally making their way out of the lab

Solid-state batteries could soon challenge lithium-ion as the dominant tech for powering smartphones, EVs, and more.

Kristin Houser

Two astronauts wearing orange spacesuits and helmets are preparing for a mission, geared up to explore the lunar surface. The text "T-MINUS" is overlaid on the image.

Aerospace

T-Minus: Counting down 10 upcoming moon missions

A countdown of 10 upcoming moon missions, all leading up to the one expected to return NASA astronauts to the lunar surface.

Kristin Houser

Three people in traditional attire look at a smartphone together outdoors, holding long sticks decorated with colorful patterns.

Global Development

2.6 billion people don’t use the internet. What’s stopping them?

One-third of the world still isn't online. Here's how the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is working to close the digital divide.

Kristin Houser

A person holds a tin can with a red string connected to it up to their ear.

Engineering

9 dumbphones to help curb your screen addiction

While smartphones keep getting more powerful, the growing dumbphone phenomenon is subverting expectations.

Kristin Houser

A search bar appears in the center of a dark background, with the text "the future" typed in it. A cursor hovers over the "Search" button below the bar, which is highlighted in blue, reminiscent of advanced answer engines.

Perplexity, Google, and the battle for AI search supremacy

AIs that generate answers to user queries could transform search, but only if someone can get the tech and the business model right.

Kristin Houser

Military

How AI is rewriting Silicon Valley’s relationship with the Pentagon

Silicon Valley is warming to the Department of Defense as it works to get new AI systems developed and deployed en masse.

Kristin Houser

A rocket launches from a coastal launch pad, with "T-Minus" displayed prominently in front. The sky is clear with visible ocean in the background.

Aerospace

T-Minus: SpaceX’s Starship vs. Boeing’s Starliner

A breakdown of SpaceX's Starship, Boeing's Starliner, and what they mean for the future of space exploration at NASA.

Kristin Houser