10 Bits: The Data News Hotlist

This week’s roundup of data news highlights from March 20, 2026, to April 3, 2026, featuring AI models that predict cherry blossom bloom timing in Japan and autonomous delivery vans that use real-time mapping and routing to navigate city streets and coordinate food drop-offs with couriers.

1. Tracking Cherry Blossom Blooms

Data scientists at the weather forecasting company Japan Meteorological Corporation have created AI models that analyze decades of climate records, temperature shifts, and regional weather anomalies to predict peak cherry blossom bloom dates. The system learns from cues such as soil warming, early signs of buds opening, and short-term temperature changes, and continuously updates forecasts by comparing new data with past bloom patterns.

2. Reducing Motion Sickness

Samsung has created a new app that uses a precise low, steady sound frequency (100 Hz) to ease motion‑sickness symptoms by stimulating the part of the ear that senses motion and helps the body stay oriented. The tool works with earbuds and lets users adjust how long the sound plays. Its audio engine stabilizes conflicting sensory signals by delivering a steady vibration pattern to the inner ear, helping the brain recalibrate and reducing nausea for extended periods.

3. Guiding Runners with Smart Glasses

Visually impaired activist Clack Reynolds has partnered with U.K.-based company Be My Eyes, a service that connects blind users with sighted volunteers through live video, to run the Brighton Marathon using smart glasses that stream his surroundings to remote helpers. The system links him instantly to volunteers who describe obstacles and guide his route. By turning live video into real‑time spoken instructions, the technology provides continuous navigation support.

4. Improving Heart Failure Treatment

Researchers at Cincinnati Christ Hospital in Ohio have created an AI assistant that helps doctors quickly select the right heart-failure medications by analyzing patient records and treatment histories. The tool gives primary-care physicians faster access to specialist-level guidance by scanning medical data for patterns linked to successful drug combinations and generating tailored recommendations.

5. Ordering Food by Voice

Amazon’s AI assistant Alexa has launched a new feature that lets users order food from Uber Eats and Grubhub through natural, conversational requests. The system syncs past orders and menus so users can reorder or explore options seamlessly. Its AI system processes each spoken request in context, updating choices and cart details in real time to create a waiter-like ordering experience.

6. Recording Daily Nutrition

Meta has created new AI‑powered Ray‑Ban smart glasses with built‑in nutrition tracking. The glasses let wearers log meals by speaking or snapping a quick photo, using the onboard AI system to identify foods and extract nutritional details. The system then updates a personalized log in real time, turning everyday eyewear into a convenient, hands‑free tool for monitoring eating habits and supporting healthier routines.

7. Lowering Quantum Qubit Needs

Researchers at the University of Sydney in Australia have created a system that lets quantum computers operate with far fewer qubits, the basic units of information in quantum computing. Instead of checking each qubit individually for errors, the system analyzes collective signals, such as shifts in energy levels and correlated noise, to spot when the computer drifts off course. By tracking these patterns, the system corrects mistakes in a way that makes quantum machines easier to operate.

8. Delivering Food Autonomously

U.S.-based autonomous vehicle company ALSO has partnered with DoorDash to build self-driving delivery vans designed for dense urban routes. The vehicles can handle frequent stops, tight turns, and heavy traffic. Their AI system maps streets in real time, identifies safe pull-over spots, and coordinates handoffs with human couriers for final delivery, allowing the vans to navigate complex neighborhoods efficiently.

9. Forecasting Flooding

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have created an AI-enhanced flood-forecasting model to fill gaps in the state’s limited sensor network. The system blends satellite data, river gauges that measure water levels, and historical flood patterns to estimate water levels in unmonitored areas. By learning how rainfall, snowmelt, and terrain interact, the AI model predicts rising waters earlier and gives communities more time to prepare.

10. Tracking Fertility

Garmin has partnered with fertility‑tracking app Natural Cycles to let supported Garmin watches automatically share overnight temperature data for birth‑control and cycle‑prediction insights, removing the need for manual thermometer readings. The system pulls continuous temperature measurements from the watch, analyzes subtle nightly shifts, and feeds them into Natural Cycles’ algorithm, which identifies fertile windows and updates predictions in real time.

David Kertai

David Kertai is a research assistant specializing in cybersecurity at ITIF. He holds a B.A. in European studies and French from the University of Washington and is pursuing a Master's in security policy studies at George Washington University.