OpenAI unveiled new AI models today built to help life sciences researchers work faster, Axios' Megan Morrone reports.

• They're designed to accelerate research, drug discovery and translational medicine, turning scientific discoveries into better health outcomes.

🧬 OpenAI's first such model, GPT-Rosalind, is named after Rosalind Franklin, "whose rigorous research helped reveal the structure of DNA and laid the foundation for modern molecular biology."

The company says the models won't replace scientists, but rather speed up some of their most time-intensive and analytically demanding work.

• Humans still need to be in the loop for their expert judgment and result validation, the company says.

🦠 Researchers have warned that AI models trained on biological data could be misused to design dangerous pathogens.

• OpenAI is reserving access to its new models for organizations working on improving human health outcomes, conducting legitimate life sciences research, and maintaining strong security and governance controls.

Yunyun Wang, OpenAI's life sciences product lead, says the idea is to maximize use while mitigating potential misuse.

• Among those included: Amgen, Moderna, the Allen Institute and Thermo Fisher Scientific.

💊 Reality check: AI-discovered and AI-designed drugs are promising, but only a few have reached clinical trials so far.

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Early signs are emerging that the energy shock tied to the Iran war could boost the global spread of renewables and other climate-friendly tech, Axios' Ben Geman writes.

🏭 Global power generation from fossil fuels was down in the first month of the conflict, per the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

• Solar and wind power were up. (See the data.)

🪨 The other side: Research and consulting firm Wood Mackenzie says war-related disruptions are "triggering a rebound" in global coal demand as countries scramble to make up for natural gas shortages.

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1. ✈️ Europe has "maybe six weeks or so" of jet fuel left, IEA executive director Fatih Birol said in an AP interview.
2. 🚔 Police in Virginia say Justin Fairfax, the state's former lieutenant governor, shot and killed his wife and then fatally shot himself. The couple, who were going through a divorce, were found at their Northern Virginia home after their teenage son called 911 shortly after midnight. Get the latest.
3. ⛪️ Pope Leo XIV blasted the "handful of tyrants" who are ravaging Earth with war and exploitation while preaching a message of peace today in Cameroon. Go deeper.

University of St. Thomas engineering students spent their spring break designing better hockey pads alongside the NHL's Minnesota Wild, Axios Twin Cities' Kyle Stokes reports.

• 🤕 They're helping with a growing problem for pro hockey: blocked-shot injuries.

🏍️ The winning students reinforced shin guards with the same foam used in motorcycle gear.

🏆 What's next: The 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs start Saturday.

• 🦬 The defending champion Florida Panthers missed the postseason, while the Buffalo Sabres went on a late-season tear to end a 14-year playoff drought.

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