What My Two 98-Year-Old Patients Taught Me About Longevity

Meet my patient Mrs. L. R. She’s 98 years young and has never suffered a day of serious illness in her long life. She was referred to me by her primary care physician to assess her heart condition because she had developed swelling in her legs, known as edema. When we first met in the clinic, I noted there was no accompanying family member, so I asked how she got to the medical center. She’d driven herself. I soon learned much more about this exceptionally vibrant, healthy lady who lives alone, has an extensive social network, and enjoys her solitude.

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Her remarkable health span isn’t shared by her family members. Her mother died at 59; her father at 64. Her two brothers died at 43 and 75. Three years prior to our meeting, her husband had died at 97. He had also been quite healthy, with a similar health span profile in contrast to his parents and siblings, who all had chronic diseases and died decades younger. Following her husband’s death, Mrs. L. R. got depressed and dropped 30 pounds. She lost her interest in her hobbies of painting and doing 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzles. She did continue to play cards and Rummikub every week with a circle of eight women. One of these friends suggested she move from the house she’d lived in for decades to a senior residence apartment. The move led her to artists, new friends, and an extended social network. This all brought her back to her “old” self, fully restoring her life’s passions and getting back to a healthy weight.

The consultation needed to determine why she had some leg edema. Although she had no history of high blood pressure, her heart was thickened on my echocardiogram and her heart muscle function was well beyond the normal range. Her ejection fraction, the proportion of blood squeezed out of the main pumping chamber with each beat, was abnormally high. I diagnosed hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. Her heart had become stiffened and had difficulty relaxing. This accounted for the leg edema, the treating of which was straightforward and was cleared within a few days. Mrs. L. R. exemplifies healthy aging. She is the unusual individual who has escaped all the common age-related diseases, defying what most of us expect from the human aging process. Her extreme health span and longevity, as well as her husband’s, do not appear to be related to genetic makeup. Medical scientists don’t understand it, but they would conclude, from all we know about the biology of aging and process of elimination, that it’s stochastic, a random stroke of good fortune.

In marked contrast, let me briefly introduce Mr. R. P., another patient whom I have followed for over 30 years, who is now also 98 and led a relatively healthy lifestyle. At 75, following coronary artery bypass surgery at 62, Mr. R. P. presented with chest pain with exertion. At the time, I placed two stents in one of his bypass grafts that had developed blockages, which stem from buildup of atherosclerosis that limits blood flow. He later developed rapid atrial fibrillation resistant to medications and underwent two ablation procedures to maintain a normal heart rhythm.

Years later, he had a shoulder replacement and sustained a small heart attack post-operatively. At 96, he was hospitalized with COVID-19 pneumonia and, despite a prolonged hospitalization, did not develop respiratory failure and fully recovered. Mr. R. P. represents the triumphs of modern medicine. He had severe atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, but with repeated restoration of blood supply to his heart and aggressive secondary prevention treatment, all was well. He embodies the medical progress we’ve made with age-related diseases.

What’s exciting now is that we can accurately forecast heart disease as well as the other major diseases of aging in high-risk individuals many decades earlier and achieve primary prevention, or, at the very least, a marked delay in their appearance. Doctors can’t promise to reverse or halt aging itself, but we can promise that the second half of our lives can be much healthier than that of our forebears. This is the type of health span extension that we will be seeing far more commonly in the future owing to the phenomenal advances in lifestyle, cells, genomics, artificial intelligence, drugs, and vaccines. These dimensions all interact with one another: Our lifestyle factors influence our microbiome and cells. Our response to drugs and vaccines is modulated by our genomics and cells, and discovery of new drugs has been enhanced by gene variants and by AI.

There are still formidable obstacles—including profound health inequity across the U.S.—but as we move forward, we will inevitably see suppression of age-related diseases that for many is unimaginable right now. It will take years to accomplish the far bolder objective of slowing the aging process itself. But when we do, super agers like Mrs. L. R. and Mr. R. P. will seem like an ordinarily vibrant group of people making valuable contributions to society. I recently turned 70, and I am hopeful that you and I will be among them.

From SUPER AGERS: An Evidence-Based Approach to Longevity by Eric Topol, MD. Copyright © 2025 by Eric Topol, MD. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster, LLC.

source https://time.com/7283740/health-aging-eric-topol/

Watch: Catholic Cardinals Sequester Themselves in the Vatican For The Start of The Conclave

Catholic cardinals gather and sequester themselves behind the Vatican walls for the start of a conclave to elect the 267th pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church, a successor to Pope Francis who died in April at the age of 88.

source https://time.com/7283434/watch-catholic-sequester-conclave/

What is the National Endowment for the Arts and How Is It Funded?

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the largest funder of the arts in the United States, is under renewed threat, as President Donald Trump moves to target cultural institutions in a sweeping bid to shrink the federal government.

The agency was founded by Congress in 1965 in order to encourage arts participation and practice, but could be shut down after Trump proposed slashing the agency in a budget proposal released Friday. 

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The NEA did not immediately respond to TIME’s request for comment. 

Several arts organizations received notice of NEA grant cancellations last week, where the agency outlined an update to NEA’s grantmaking policy that is “being allocated in furtherance of the Administration’s agenda,” an email sent to the San Francisco Jazz Organization reviewed by TIME, says. The NEA says they would focus on elevating projects for the 250th anniversary of American independence, “making America healthy again,” and elevating historically Black colleges and universities. “Your project, as noted below, unfortunately does not align with these priorities,” the email read. 

The budget cuts are part of a larger Administration policy to reduce the U.S. federal deficit, which stands at $1.3 trillion for fiscal year 2025, according to the Treasury Department. While the future of the agency is unclear, Trump may do good on the undoing of the NEA. In March, the President issued an Executive Order seeking to eliminate as much of the Department of Education as it could, moving some of its functions to other agencies and laying off nearly half of its workforce. 

This marks the second time Trump attempts to eliminate the NEA. Congressional Republicans worked with Democrats to save the agency during the President’s last term. 

The National Endowment for the Humanities and the Institute for Museum and Library Services are also at risk for termination under the 2026 budget proposal. 

Here’s what to know. 

What does NEA actually do? 

The NEA is the federal agency that funds the arts and art education across the country. It provides grants to nonprofit organizations, public agencies, colleges and universities, and individual writers for projects. It also has research grants and funds fellowships for translation and creative writing in prose and poetry. 

What was it funding?

Prior to the start of the new Administration, the NEA allowed organizations to apply for three different types of grants. One program, which provided funding for projects that reach “underserved communities,” was cut earlier this year as part of the agency’s pivot to comply with Executive Orders. The NEA temporarily asked applicants to commit to not promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as “gender ideology.” But the agency changed that request after a lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union, National Queer Theater, and others in response.  

NEA funding spans all 50 states, including rural and urban communities. For fiscal year 2022, the NEA issued more than 2,300 grants totalling at least $117 million, according to the NEA annual performance report issued in February 2023. 

In order to receive a grant, organizations must outline the project they are working on, project budget, and plan to match funding with nonfederal sources. Grants to organizations are matched one-to-one with nonfederal sources.

A panel of experts, who are not NEA staff, review and discuss the artistic merit of the project, including the impact the project has in its respective field, and the communities it will serve. The panel then passes their recommendations to the National Council on the Arts, made up of leading artists, which sends submissions to the NEA chairman. The chairman makes the final decision regarding which entities receive funding. 

The NEA sent at least two different types of emails to grant recipients on Friday, saying that it would be updating its policies to focus on funding projects that “reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President.” 

The agency claimed that it would prioritize projects serving historically Black colleges and universities and Hispanic-serving institutions. Additionally, NEA says it is looking to support arts that “celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster A.I. competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs, make America healthy again, support the military and veterans, support Tribal communities, make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful, and support the economic development of Asian American communities.”

What artists and groups receive these grants?

Several theaters, art groups, individuals, and others receive NEA grants. Some recipients may seem like nontraditional grantees, as NPR reportedly receives two grants from the agency totaling $65,000. 

Numerous groups, including the Berkeley Repertory Theater, American Conservatory Theatre Foundation, and San Francisco Jazz Organization, are now seeing their funding be rescinded. 

New York City’s Central Park Summer Stage, and Open Studio Project, an education nonprofit in Illinois have also seen cuts, NPR reports. 

source https://time.com/7282709/trump-arts-funding/

Why This Artist Isn’t Afraid of AI’s Role in the Future of Art

As AI enters the workforce and seeps into all facets of our lives at unprecedented speed, we’re told by leaders across industries that if you’re not using it, you’re falling behind. Yet when AI’s use in art enters the conversation, some retreat in discomfort, shunning it as an affront to the very essence of art. This ongoing debate continues to create disruptions among artists. AI is fundamentally changing the creative process, and its purpose, significance, and influence are subjective to one’s own values—making its trajectory hard to predict, and even harder to confront.

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Miami-based Panamanian photographer Dahlia Dreszer stands out as an optimist and believer in AI’s powers. She likens AI’s use in art to the act of painting or drawing—simply another medium that can unlock creative potential and an artistic vision that may have never been realized without it. Using generative AI models like Stable Diffusion, 3.5, Midjourney, Adobe, Firefly, and Nova, Dreszer trained an AI image generator on her style for over a year, instructing it to produce artwork with her sensibilities, with one piece in her current exhibition produced entirely by AI.

Entitled “Bringing the Outside In,” Dreszer calls the show a “living organism.” (It is on display until May 17, 2025 at Green Space Miami.) Her vivid, maximalist still lifes depict layered familial heirlooms, Judaica, flowers, and textiles made by Panamanian indigenous women. Attendees can interact with an AI image generator in the exhibition to produce their own artworks in Dreszer’s style, telling the machine in a sentence or two what they want it to produce, and in seconds, an artwork is created. Also as part of the show, Dreszer programmed an AI-generated clone of herself, which looks and speaks like her, to guide visitors via video chat through the space.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

TIME: Take me back to the first moment you realized AI could enhance your art. What about AI drew you in? What did you feel? 

Dreszer: I believe technology is here to supercharge us. When generative AI entered the mainstream, I knew I wanted to get my hands dirty right away. I was already in the world of NFTs, but this was a different conversation. It took over a year of experimentation and dialogue with image generators to feel comfortable finally creating a piece to include in a body of work.

This exhibition includes one piece I made in collaboration with AI. I personalized an AI image model on what the exhibition means, feels like, and looks like, feeding it images embodying my style. I included the Florida Everglades in the foreground, reflecting the landscape where I’m living today. I’m not only interested in AI and art, but also in adding nature to that conversation. I’ve hung flowers on top of this piece that fall onto the frame or the ground when they die, allowing nature to do its thing. I have not intervened physically. I believe nature, art and technology can coexist nicely.

I actually thought that all the pieces in your exhibition were produced by AI.

That’s also the intention, right, because they are not. I’m always trying to play with the viewers, to disorient, because everything is not what you see at first glance. There’s no artificial enhancements in most of these works, but just the fact that you think there are—I find that narrative interesting. 

What inspired you to create a clone for this exhibition? 

My clone is so fun. I’m trying to pose questions to the community as they engage with these works: Moving forward, what does it mean for relationships when we’re speaking to a machine as if it was a human, and we cannot know the difference? What is our role as humans if we have clones that can mimic what we do? I want to see how that dialogue evolves. There’s a practicality as well. The clone guides you through the show, probably better than I can. It’s trained on what I know, but as a machine, it’s supercharged. 

Why did you include your clone?

I wanted to have an AI version of myself to guide viewers and answer questions, to educate others in order to demystify AI. Through the clone, I can humanize the technology, “the art of the possible,” of incorporating technology into artistic workflows. 

Will you keep your clone after the exhibition? Will you educate it about other parts of yourself? 

I’m very interested in continuing the relationship with her. I’m working through ideas and ways to train her. I haven’t shared it yet, but there are different personas of the clone. I’ll be fine tuning and creating different versions based on the relationship I want her to have with the audience she’s engaging with.

Some critics would call the use of AI in art “cheating.” What do you say to those critics?

I’d love to have a conversation to understand how that opinion was formed. I’d encourage them to see it as a collaboration. Many people don’t understand the process and the time it takes. 

I would invite critics to dive deeper, and think about it not just as: “I put in a prompt, it makes art, then I’m done.” It’s a long process.But this relationship between technology and the arts is not new. We’ve had disruptions in art through technology before. This is just more aggressive, intrusive, and rapid in its speed and pace of innovation. 

What specific challenges have you faced so far using AI in your art?

Oftentimes the outputs are not what I wanted. As an artist, I have high expectations. I like to control the visualization so it’s highly stylized, curated, and composed. With AI, that control goes away, because AI has its own intelligence and creativity, no matter how good the prompt is. It’s a hard and frustrating yet also enlightening process; it may not create what you wanted, but it can make something you didn’t know you wanted. Then there’s technical things it doesn’t know how to do, but eventually will. It’s not great with certain renders or visualizations. 

What scares and excites you about where AI is headed for the next generation of artists?

I’m mostly excited because of the rapid pace. Updates to generative AI software happen in a matter of weeks. There’s also a healthy competition in the market, which means that as users, our needs are being satisfied quicker than ever. Our feedback is being incorporated and the tools are changing. 

You asked about fears. AI is entering our workflows and industries in one way or another. Will we accept it? Deny it? Who will fall behind, and who will be at the forefront? I’m more excited than fearful, but I see why others may be fearful. It disrupts our workflows, and if we’re not ready to change or learn new skills, it can be scary. 

Will collaboration with AI replace collaboration between artists?

No, no, no. There are many examples of how me and several artists have collaborated with AI. One artist came to me with her artistic vision and her words, and I used my prompt engineering skills and knowledge of AI systems, and together, we created an AI piece that was her vision come to life—this beautiful red textile tree that had a huge trunk.

As an artist, there is a journey one goes through when creating. When you use AI, does it still allow you to access this other-worldly experience of the creative process?

There’s definitely parts of the creative process that AI is not inclusive of. So for example, when I’m making AI art, I’m not painting, or getting my hands dirty. There’s physicalities that are not included in that journey. But I think that’s similar to any medium. So let’s say I’m choosing to use my camera as my tool and not a paint brush. There’s also experiences that are missed out through my photographic artistic process, that if I were using a paintbrush or another tool, would be a different journey. So that’s why I see generative AI art as its own medium, and each medium comes with its own journeys and processes that are exclusive to that medium, right?

Do you see the term “post-human” as an accurate way to reflect this era we are entering in art?

I would divert a bit from “post-human.” I see AI more as a booster, not a replacer, but an accelerator and an enabler. So, if “post-human” means it’s a replacement, then I would lean in more to the perspective of AI as a turbo supercharger that us humans can carry with us to bolt forward. I think it could replace mundane tasks that we may not want to do. And that’s where the beauty of the collaboration comes in, where we give it these tasks so our human brains reach our fullest potential, because then the low value tasks we can outsource into generative AI.

How do you think historians will look back on this particular era of rapid expansion with AI?

We are in the foundation era. Everyone knows what ChatGPT is. We’ve passed the point of inflection, and now we’re at a point where industries, individuals, businesses, and creatives are finding their place in AI. How are we adapting–or not–to it? Time is of the essence. What we decide to do now, literally today, versus in a week or two, or three, or in a month, will define the next five to 10 years. 

source https://time.com/7282582/ai-art-dahlia-dreszer-interview/

As Jury Selection Begins, Here’s What to Know About Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ Sex Trafficking Case

Jury selection began Monday in the sex trafficking case against Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs, the musician facing charges related to his alleged “freak offs.”

The federal investigation into Combs was spurred in part by a 2023 civil lawsuit filed by Combs’ ex-partner Cassie, born Casandra Ventura, in which she alleged he had engaged in physical abuse and rape. While the case was settled shortly thereafter, numerous victims also filed lawsuits against the 55-year-old for similar sexual assault allegations in the following months. 

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Combs was arrested last September over accusations of racketeering, and drugging and coercing women into sexual relations with him and others. Combs has denied the allegations and refused a plea deal.

If convicted, the music mogul could face life in prison. 

During pre-trial hearing, Combs’ attorneys asked for the trial to be delayed by two months in order to prepare for the court proceedings. But U.S. District Court Judge Arun Subramanian rejected the request. 

Tens of people have accused Combs of sexually abusing them. Some of the victims who have filed civil lawsuits against the rapper say they were as young as 10 when the assault happened. Here’s what to know.

What has happened so far? 

On September 16, Combs was arrested under allegations that he “abused, threatened, and coerced women and others around him to fulfill his sexual desires, protect his reputation, and conceal his conduct,” according to the indictment. 

Prosecutors say that Combs engaged in kidnapping and sex trafficking—using his status as a celebrity to lure women to his side before forcing them to engage in nonconsensual activities. Some of the victims were allegedly drugged with ketamine, ecstasy, or other drugs in order to engage in such activities with Combs. 

Federal agents seized illegal drugs and firearms when they raided his Beverly Hills mansion in March 2024. They also found more than 1,000 bottles of baby oil and lubricant, along with other materials allegedly used for the “freak offs.”

While many of those accusing Combs of such crimes have remained anonymous, others have publicly come forward with their stories. The victims include: former adult film star Adria English, model and actress Crystal McKinney, and music producer Rodney ‘Lil Rod’ Jones Jr. 

Jones accused Combs of attempting to “groom” him into having sex with another man, and forcing him to hire sex workers and engage in sexual activities with them. 

Combs has been at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn since his arrest on Sept. 16. 

This March, a charge of forced labor was added to the case against Combs. A month later, prosecutors also added two new sex trafficking charges, as well as an additional charge for transportation to engage in prostitution. 

What about Cassie’s case against Diddy? 

Combs settled the civil lawsuit filed by Ventura just one day after she filed the case. While Combs denied the allegations, in May 2024, CNN released CCTV footage from a Los Angeles hotel hallway where Combs was seen punching and kicking Ventura in 2016. Combs then released a video statement on Instagram admitting that he was abusive.

Can you watch the trial?

No. Because Combs faces federal criminal charges, the use of electronic media is prohibited. 

The statute, dating back to 1946, bans both photography and broadcasting in federal criminal courtrooms to protect the defendant’s right to a fair trial. R. Kelly’s federal trial on similar charges was also not televised.

source https://time.com/7282580/diddy-trial-jury-selection-charges/

The Quantum Era has Already Begun

By the end of 2024, even casual observers of technology headlines could see the excitement building around quantum computing–a technology that represents a fundamental shift in how we process information, applying quantum physics to solve problems far beyond the reach of even the most powerful classical computers.

Among numerous other developments, in March 2024, Quantinuum announced a breakthrough in the ability to build a large-scale quantum computer. A month later, at the Quantum World Congress, IBM, Microsoft, and Boeing all announced major developments in their quantum research. Capping off the year, in December, Google unveiled its Willow processor, hailed as a significant achievement in the journey toward practical quantum computing. Mainstream enthusiasm was accelerating.

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Then came January, and the annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang said on stage, in a room full of reporters, that he didn’t anticipate “very useful” quantum computing for another 15 to 30 years. Three months later, in front of a gathering of quantum leaders, he issued a course correction, but there was no doubt his commentary continued to spark deliberation across the industry and investors about where we are in the innovation trajectory for quantum computing and where we are going next.

While many people still believe we are three to five years out from true commercial viability for quantum computing, as participants in the process, we respectfully disagree. The quantum era is not 15 to 30 years away. It is not three to five. The truth is the quantum era has already begun. 

There won’t be a light bulb moment

Perhaps this misalignment stems from how we’ve come to expect technology to arrive—with a big product reveal. For personal computing, it was the Apple II in 1977: the first truly consumer-ready PC. For the commercial internet, it was Netscape Navigator in 1994, which brought the web to millions of desktops and lit the fuse for a digital revolution. But quantum computing is not like these previous technological light bulb moments. Quantum computing’s evolution is less visible and more distributed.

You will not see a quantum computer for sale at Best Buy or a revolutionary app. The transformation will happen behind the scenes, embedded in the foundational systems of science, logistics, healthcare, and finance. Instead of a launch moment it will come with performance breakthroughs, solved problems, and enduring value creation.

Unless you are in the trenches working on quantum computers each day, it is hard to realize how far we have come. However, a look behind the scenes reveals this technology is now on the tipping point of delivering widespread industrial usefulness as commercial users have opened their eyes to its true value potential. 

For instance, global pharmaceutical companies are advancing both disease research and the frontier of quantum-enabled drug discovery. And in automotive and aerospace, companies are using quantum computing to improve the performance of hydrogen fuel cell catalysts and electric batteries mobility. Companies like ours are currently using quantum hardware to generate truly random encryption keys—making systems more secure against today’s threats and tomorrow’s quantum-enabled ones.

These use cases are no longer just theoretical, they are real-world, commercially viable, value-creating initiatives. In aerospace, energy, financial services, and national security, quantum use cases are being developed not as moonshots, but as competitive tools. And in some cases, they are already outpacing traditional approaches.

If you define the start of the commercial era for a product as the moment that value creation has begun, that start date is already in the rearview mirror. The three examples above and countless others brought forward by this nascent industry are all creating value for commercial entities.

Both quantum software and hardware have been advancing at breakneck speed over the last 18 months—a pace that mirrors the early days of classical computing. Not long ago, many imagined that 100 qubit quantum computers were achievable within a decade. But earlier this year, Microsoft unveiled the world’s first quantum processor powered by topological qubits. 

Governments around the world are taking notice and funding these efforts. According to the Center for Strategic & International Studies, China, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, and South Korea lead the world in public investments in quantum technology, but numerous other nations are funding initiatives as well, driving innovation and tangible results. Universities are launching quantum engineering programs, venture capital has begun to flow into the sector, workers are shifting toward the quantum space, and the commercial quantum computing ecosystem is rapidly taking shape.

In other words, despite those who say this technology’s time is not yet now, the fact is the quantum train is leaving the station. For developers, investors, and policymakers, hesitation to invest, test and adopt new technologies opens the door for competitors and adversaries to move ahead. Early adopters of quantum computing are already filing patents, building infrastructure, developing software platforms, and shaping standards. Sitting on the sidelines means giving up first-mover advantage in one of the most powerful technological breakthroughs of this century.

Quantum computing is not just a tool—it is a national capability. Countries that lead will attract the talent, secure the data, and define how this new technology is regulated, protected, and deployed. Those that lag in investing in quantum computing may find themselves playing catch-up in cybersecurity, energy modeling, drug development, and defense applications. This is not hypothetical, nor is it about a light bulb moment. It is happening now, and it has been ramping up over the past decade. 

The quantum computing leaders of tomorrow are building, and commercializing, today. Others may continue to debate but the opportunity belongs to those who treat quantum as a strategy versus an eventuality. If you are running a business, building a research agenda, managing a portfolio, or setting national policy, now is the time to engage.

source https://time.com/7282334/the-quantum-era-has-begun/

Elon Musk’s Starbase Is to be Texas’ Newest City. From Where It’s Located to Its Population, Here’s What to Know

A vote in South Texas by those who live on the base of Elon Musk’s SpaceX company has made the workplace Texas’ newest city, Starbase.

Musk, the SpaceX CEO and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) lead, posted late on May 3, after the vote, that Starbase, Texas “is now a real city!” As for next steps, a judge will need to assign an order declaring the results of the election and the official incorporation of the new city.

Musk—who has received intense backlash over the last few months as he leads DOGE to direct massive budget cuts and layoffs in the federal government—had proposed making the city of Starbase in March 2021 on X. A little over four years later, Musk’s dream is now a reality.

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Starbase is the headquarters and launch site for the SpaceX rocket program, which is under contract with the Department of Defense (DoD) and NASA, working as a top launch site provider for the government. Musk’s company initiated the development of the site in 2014.

The city is only around one and a half square miles and a total of 218 people took part in the vote, per data from the Cameron County, Texas, elections department. 212 voted in favor of Starbase becoming a city, while six voted against.

A local Texas Newsroom analysis, published prior to the vote, showed that two-thirds of the eligible voters—of which there were 283—either worked for SpaceX or had already indicated their support. Meanwhile, the three candidates who ran for mayor and two commissioner positions also work for SpaceX, according to the Texas Tribune.

The newly-crowned city is located in Boca Chica, Texas, near Brownsville, on the southern tip of the Gulf Coast of Texas in the Rio Grande Valley. Its population currently stands at a little over 500 people—largely SpaceX employees and their family members—according to Bloomberg.

“Becoming a city will help us continue building the best community possible for the men and women building the future of humanity’s place in space,” read a post on the “StarbaseTX” social media account, which was created on Musk’s X platform, soon after the vote took place.

source https://time.com/7282440/elon-musk-spacex-starbase-city-texas-location-population/