Hard Tech

Collage of a close-up human eye and abstract digital graphics symbolizing artificial vision with lines and light effects on a vibrant orange and black background.

Brain

Brain implant for “artificial vision” is still working after 2 years

A new type of brain implant technology has given a man with total blindness a kind of “artificial vision.”

Kristin Houser

Two men standing near a computer monitor, with one man wearing an EEG cap and pointing at the screen and the other looking at him

Brain

“Universal” BCI lets anyone play games with their minds

A specially trained “decoder” slashes the time it takes a brain-computer interface (BCI) to read a user’s mind.

Kristin Houser

A person holding a complex, 3d-printed metamaterial with a lattice structure

Engineering

3D-printed “metamaterial” is stronger than anything in nature

Australian scientists used an advanced 3D printing technique to create a super strong, super lightweight new “metamaterial.”

Kristin Houser

Series| Uprising

“Collaborative” robots are taking our jobs, but it might be a good thing

6:58

An ever-increasing number of robots in the workplace may force us to change our perception of the sort of work we deem worthy of human minds and hands. Instead of stealing our jobs, think of robots as taking on the duties nobody really wants, anyway.

Robotics

Robots for autism teach human emotion

Meet the classroom assistant of the future, a robot for autism therapy that’s teaching special needs students about empathy and emotions.

Teresa Carey

Series| Uprising

Meet your future caretaker: BUDDY the companion robot

5:46

Meet BUDDY, an advanced robot designed with an expressive face and gentle voice. With human-like emotions and different moods, BUDDY has the ability to care for the elderly and his human companions.

Series| Uprising

These search and rescue robots could save your life

7:56

These robots can lift heavy objects, crawl through rugged terrain, and climb challenging structures to save lives. But search and rescue robots won’t be rendering human first responders obsolete anytime soon. They’re designed to assist and protect them from unnecessary harm.

Series| Uprising

Fear not, the robots are already here

1:50

From the "cobots" that could steal your job to the cuter, emotional robots already living in our homes, this series provides an in-depth look at what’s to come in the not-too-distant future of robotic technology.

An octocopter drone can be equiped with tools such as a nail gun.

Drones

This nail gun wielding drone looks terrifying, but could save lives

According to OSHA, one in five workplace deaths in 2017 were in construction. Can nail gun drones help save lives?

B. David Zarley

Robotics

Robotic birth simulator saves lives in the delivery room

3:17

Meet the group of medical professionals that’s delivering babies from robots to prepare for real-life emergencies in the hospital room.

Jess Dais

Sustainability

These scientists extract plastic from bacteria

By 2050, there may be more plastic by weight in the ocean than there are fish. Canadian innovator Luna Yu hopes to change this by turning waste into biodegradable plastics.

Teresa Carey

Transportation

Getting aerial ridesharing off the ground

It’s been the ultimate futuristic dream for decades: flying cars! But now, the future finally has a deadline. At least to start, it will land in the form of a small air taxi operated by Uber, not something you’ll park in your garage.

B. David Zarley

In the midst of a crisis, Venezuelans are training self-driving cars

Hundreds of thousands of formerly middle class Venezuelans, thrown into poverty by economic collapse, are now sitting at computers as they help train self-driving cars to identify and avoid obstacles.

B. David Zarley

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