Australia's marine science agency is testing an AI‑guided "Deployment Guidance System" to help restore the Great Barrier Reef by precisely dropping "baby corals." It uses autonomous boats, real‑time seafloor imaging, and onboard AI to cue a dispenser that releases ceramic carriers with juvenile corals.

Queensland

Australia's Marine Science Agency is trialing a new AI system designed to restore the Great Barrier Reef by planting baby corals in optimal locations. The system uses small boats equipped with real-time cameras and AI to identify suitable micro-habitats and accurately deploy coral-laden ceramic devices onto the seafloor.

Currently, the boats are manually operated, but there are plans to transition to fully autonomous vessels to increase efficiency. This initiative follows significant coral losses in recent years, with hopes that targeted coral planting will improve the reef's chances of recovery.

AI robot boats plants 'baby corals' across the Great Barrier Reef

Australia's Marine Science Agency is testing a new AI system. It aims to help restore the Great Barrier Reef by planting baby corals in exactly the right spots. The system uses small boats fitted with cameras that look at the seafloor in real time. And it's all part of broader efforts to speed the reef's recovery after recent mass bleaching. Mark Gibbs is from the Australian Institute of Marine Science. The system's called the DGS or Deployment Guidance System and what it does is it allows us to deploy corals or place corals exactly where we want them to go on the reef because we deploy the corals from boats on the surface rather than scuba divers and so we need to make sure that they go exactly where we want them to go. Right now, people are driving the boats. But AIMS says the goal is to fully use autonomous vessels in the future so they can plant many more corals. Onboard AI looks for micro-habitats that young corals need and triggers timely drops to cut guesswork and improve accuracy. When we deploy these devices, we deploy this ceramic device with the corals on board that gets deployed from the boat. It kind of falls down, it's quite heavy, so it falls down and generally lands very close within a metre or so where we want it to land. So the placement is very accurate and it's underpinned by the work that the AI system does to understand what's beneath the boat at the time and whether or not it's a good place to plant a coral. The efforts follow major losses of hard coral on the Great Barrier Reef, which has suffered severe bleaching in recent years. In 2025, AIMS said the reef's northern and southern parts had suffered their worst annual loss of coral in nearly 40 years. Now it's hoped that planting new corals in the best places will give the reef a better chance to recover.

A suspect is in custody and the scene is secured after a shooting mere blocks from the White House in Washington, D.C., police said Wednesday. DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said two National Guardsmen had been shot.

Washington

Suspect in custody after National Guardsmen shot in Washington, D.C.

Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro to begin serving a 27-year sentence for plotting a failed coup, after he exhausted all appeals.

Rio de Janeiro

Brazil's Bolsonaro begins 27-year jail term for coup bid

A fire in a Hong Kong residential complex killed 13 people and injured 15 others. The blaze rapidly spread through bamboo scaffolding, leading to the evacuation of 700 residents.

Tsim Sha Tsui

Thirteen dead as blaze engulfs Hong Kong residential complex

Brazil's Supreme Court on Tuesday (November 25) ordered former President Jair Bolsonaro to begin a prison sentence of more than 27 years for plotting a coup in 2022, according to a court document.

Brasília

Brazil's Bolsonaro to start 27-year prison sentence for coup plot

President Trump says only a few "points of disagreement" remain on a possible deal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine. The president says he will meet with the leaders of both countries only when the deal is in its final stages.

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The FBI has launched an inquiry into six Democratic lawmakers after President Trump accused them of “seditious behavior” for appearing in a video encouraging U.S. service members to refuse unlawful orders.

FBI probes Democrats over video urging troops to refuse illegal orders

President Donald Trump's administration has ramped up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro by designating the Cartel de los Soles as a foreign terrorist organization. But the entity that the U.S. government alleges is led by Maduro is not a cartel per se.

Caracas

U.S. labels Maduro-tied Cartel de los Soles as terror organization

The head of Sudan's Rapid Support Forces (RSF), General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, said late on Monday (November 24) that his paramilitaries would immediately enter into a three-month humanitarian truce in its conflict with the country's armed forces.

Khartoum

Sudan's RSF paramilitary says it will enter into ceasefire

A U.S. official tells CBS News that Ukraine has agreed to a peace proposal brokered by the Trump administration, but some details still need to be sorted out. CBS News' Holly Williams reports.

Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine agrees to peace proposal with Russia, U.S. official says

The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, the U.S.- and Israeli-backed organization to distribute aid in Gaza, said on Monday (November 24) it was ending its operations after months of criticism over the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians trying to reach GHF hubs.

Tel Aviv-Yafo

Divisive U.S.- and Israeli-backed Gaza aid group ends operations

Darfur

Sudan's RSF paramilitary says it will enter into a ceasefire

Chauncey Billups, who was serving as head coach of the Portland Trail Blazers until his suspension, pleaded not guilty on Monday to charges related to alleged rigged high-stakes poker games.

Chauncey Billups pleads not guilty to charges

The Kremlin on Monday (November 24) said that a European counter-proposal to a U.S. 28-point peace plan for Ukraine was not constructive and that it simply did not work for Moscow.

Moscow

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A federal judge has dismissed the criminal cases against former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James on the grounds that Lindsey Halligan, the interim U.S. attorney who secured their indictments, was unlawfully appointed to the role.

Cases against James Comey, Letitia James dismissed

At least 90 people have died in a week of torrential rain, flooding and landslides in south-central Vietnam, authorities said. Popular tourist areas have been heavily hit, with parts of Nha Trang submerged and deadly landslides cutting off roads near Da Lat.

Nha Trang

Vietnam flooding kills at least 90

The Trump Administration is ramping up pressure on Venezuela as the Air Force conducted a simulated nighttime attack along the country's coast. Charlie D'Agata has the latest.

Trump ramps up pressure on Venezuela with nighttime Air Force attack

Israel killed Ali Tabtabai, the acting chief of staff of militant group Hezbollah, in an airstrike on a southern suburb of Beirut on Sunday, the Israeli military said.

Beirut

Middle East Conflict

Israel kills Hezbollah military leader in Beirut strike

While Russia and Ukraine continue to exchange daily drone fire, an updated peace framework is being worked out in Geneva between Ukraine, the US and European partners.

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Álvaro García Ortiz's decision came less than a week after he received a two-year suspension and a fine for disclosing private information about the partner of an opposition politician.

Madrid

Spain's attorney general resigns after conviction over data leak

U.S. President Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency has been disbanded with eight months remaining in its mandate, and Office of Personnel Management Director Scott Kupor has told Reuters that the cost-cutting body now "doesn't exist".

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Al-Burhan rejected a new truce proposal from US envoy as the “worst yet”, accusing the Quad mediators of bias due to the UAE’s involvement.

Al Fashir

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Three suicide bombers and three security personnel killed in attack on the Federal Constabulary headquarters in Peshawar, media reports say.

Peshawar

Six killed in suicide attack on security complex in Pakistan

The attack which Israel says to have killed chief of staff Haytham Tabtabai in the southern suburbs of Beirut also killed four other people and injured 25.

Israel says to have killed top Hezbollah official in strike on Beirut

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer suggested that former Prince Andrew should testify before the U.S. Congress as part of its ongoing investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. Starmer did not discuss Andrew’s case directly but said, as a matter of principle, everyone involved should cooperate with the inquiry.

London

Starmer says former Prince Andrew should testify in Epstein probe

About 50 schoolchildren aged 10–18 who were abducted in Niger state, Nigeria, have escaped, authorities confirmed. They fled individually between Friday and Saturday, according to the Christian Association of Nigeria, which runs the school. Officials continue to track those still missing.

Niger

50 abducted Nigerian schoolchildren escape, authorities say

The first G20 summit to be held in Africa has been labelled a "triumph of multilateralism," as leaders from the world's more powerful economies came together in Johannesburg. South African leader Cyril Ramaphosa used his presidency to highlight the priorities of Africa and the global south.

Johannesburg

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After running a day overtime, delegates at COP30, the United Nations climate summit in Belém, Brazil, finally reached a deal on a final agreement, but one that falls well short of the high expectations held by many delegates, environmental groups and NGOs.

Belém

COP30 climate deal falls short of expectations

Washington signaled room for negotiation on a 28-point plan to end the Ukraine war, denying claims by some U.S. senators that it is a Russian "wish list," as Kyiv and European allies criticized the proposal ahead of Sunday talks in Geneva.

Geneva

Europeans push for stronger deal for Ukraine as Geneva talks continue

The United States is set to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations in the coming days, four U.S. officials told Reuters, as the Trump administration steps up pressure on President Nicolas Maduro's government.

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Premier Li Qiang said Beijing wants to work with Pretoria to safeguard the multilateral trading system.

Breakdown