Concept / Prototype

Smart rings are one of the fastest-growing wearable segments, partly thanks to increasing innovation. A Detroit-based company aims to develop a device called "Bond Ring", which is the first of its kind to generate energy from body heat and supposedly never needs to be charged. Whether such a ring will ever make it to market is highly doubtful, however.

A team of researchers at the University of Utah has developed a compact hyperspectral camera that captures 25 channels of color in high-definition video. This breakthrough could bring powerful imaging capabilities to smartphones, medicine, and astronomy.

Drawing inspiration from water-strider insects, researchers at the University of Virginia have developed a novel fabrication method that lets tiny robots form directly on water surfaces and move using heat-powered motions.

NASA is supporting the development of an online tool called HydroFlame. The tool is designed to help predict mudslides, flash flooding, and contaminated water supplies — possible effects of wildfires.

Following earlier reports that it was set for testing, China's mammoth airborne wind turbine — S1500 — has successfully completed its test flight in the desert region of Hami, Xinjiang.

A team of researchers at UCLA has developed an on-eyelid sensor that tracks blinking patterns to decode fatigue levels in real-time. The breakthrough was made possible by a waterproof bioelectronic material.

The pricing for the upcoming Keychron Q16 HE has quietly been revealed, and the new TMR-based ceramic gaming keyboard isn't more expensive than its mechanical counterparts, despite the premium materials.

A Monash University research team has developed a new, carbon-based material that enables supercapacitors to store as much energy as lead-acid batteries, while delivering power more quickly. The breakthrough is now being commercialized by a Monash University spinout.

A new “fiber computer” weaves sensors, processing, and wireless communication directly into clothing, hinting at a future of truly wearable tech.

A team of researchers primarily from Shandong University has developed a new nanoengineered electrode that addresses the destructive expansion-contraction problem that plagues lithium-metal batteries. This breakthrough could lead to the development of longer-lasting batteries for EVs, smartphones, and other electronics.

A team of researchers at Zhejiang University has developed record-setting perovskite lasers, solving a major problem in integrated photonics. This development could provide the blueprint for the integration of tiny efficient lasers onto silicon chips for optical computing.

Terra Innovatum, the company behind the Solo micro-modular nuclear reactor, says it has made significant progress in its U.S. licensing process, with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission accepting a key safety report for full technical review.

An enterprising modder has built himself a rather impressive DIY Framework Laptop with an integrated mechanical keyboard with the coveted HHKB layout. The mod makes the repairable thin-and-light laptop significantly thicker, but that extra space also adds room for sleek integrated volume, screen brightness, and keyboard backlight dials.

It looks as though Zowie is planning to reintroduce gloss coatings on its high-performance gaming mice again, with a recent leak revealing what appears to be a white Zowie EC1-DW wireless gaming mouse. This comes after pro players have been spotted at esports tournaments rocking the same design.

Dreame, the brand known for its robot vacuums and lawn mowers, has unveiled first renders of a “world’s fastest” electric car, taking aim at Bugatti. A Chiron-inspired design and minimalist cabin preview a CES debut next year, with production eyed for 2027.

EA will have a Battlefield 6 booth at Tokyo Game Show on September 26 where it will showcase the single-player with hopefully some actual gameplay. The first teaser from the July 24 reveal shared a few details on the storyline but not much of actual gameplay.

A screen-accurate reproduction of the iconic retro mechanical keyboard from Apple TV's hit show Severance is being brought to life through a crowdfunded project, albeit for a hefty price. The Kickstarter campaign recently reached its funding goal, but backers can still avail a significant early-bird discount until 18 September.

Lenovo's new proof‑of‑concept ThinkBook - Project Pivo - makes an appearance at IFA 2025 with a rotatable display and adaptive UI that flips between landscape and portrait without window wrangling.

BMW has unveiled its newest electric two-wheeler concept, the Vision CE. It features an enclosed cage design that eliminates the need for helmet and protective gear while adding plenty of mounting points for accessories. The bike can also supposedly balance itself completely when at a standstill.

Marcin Plaza, known for his recent mechanical keyboard Lenovo Yoga laptop project, has returned, this time to convert a Samsung Galaxy Z Flip smartphone into a deliciously retro slide phone, replete with a hardware keyboard and a tiny display. The project not only salvages a dead Z Flip 5, but it solves one of the phone's biggest durability issues.

A team of scientists at Peking University has developed a new, highly elastic thermoelectric rubber that can convert body heat into electricity. This breakthrough could lead to self-charging smartwatches, smart rings, etc.

A team of Chinese researchers has proposed a solution to dirty laundry in space — a compact washing machine that uses an ultra-fine mist and ozone to clean clothes. This new device could reduce the weight of clothing needed for missions by over 60%.

Researchers from Pennsylvania State University have developed a new system that uses wearable sensors and AI to learn an individual's unique gestures. This new system aims to give people with motor or visual impairments an efficient way to communicate with the world.

Chinese scientists are set to test a megawatt-level airborne wind turbine — an airship-windmill system designed to leverage the powerful, high-altitude winds. The company claims it is capable of operating for 25 years without interruption.

AntGamer has unveiled the 750Hz ANT257PF and teased a 1,000Hz concept monitor planned for 2026. The new lineup emphasizes extreme refresh rates, TN panels, and signal-chain engineering aimed at cutting latency.

While researching a new way to monitor corrosion and cracking in nuclear reactors, an MIT research team discovered something unexpected. They discovered that their technique can also be used to precisely control a material's properties. This finding could have a big impact in next-generation microelectronics.

Engineers at MIT are developing a tiny, bee-like robot that can flip, hover, and one day may carry out artificial pollination in greenhouses or on other planets like Mars, part of a new generation of insect-inspired machines.

In a fresh approach to tackling present and future electronic waste, researchers at MIT have created a self-assembling battery material. This new material allows disassembly of the entire device by simply dissolving its core component.

A team of researchers led by Huanyu Cheng, an associate professor at Pennsylvania State University, has developed a cost-effective sensor that can detect diabetes and prediabetes. The new sensor, which works by measuring acetone levels in a person's breath, could be a replacement for current blood and sweat-based tests.

imec and Ghent University have demonstrated 120 alternating silicon and silicon-germanium layers on 300mm wafers, a key step toward horizontally stacked 3D DRAM.

Realme's upcoming smartphone with "built-in AC" is unlike any other already on the market, according to a post from the company. Its version is backed to cool its internals by up to ~43 degrees Fahrenheit without significant alterations to conventional handset design. That might help the technology make it to the market ahead of other ground-breaking prototypes such as Realme's record-breaking mobile battery.

Abxylute has previewed an upcoming snap-on magnetic game controller for use with smartphones when playing retro games. The controller can also be used wirelessly when detached.

Chevrolet has unveiled two radical Corvette concepts: the road-focused, all-electric CX and the track-only, hybrid CX.R Vision Gran Turismo. Both push beyond production limits with features such as a fighter-jet-style canopy, a fan-driven aero system, and a 2,000-hp hybrid powertrain. Later this month, both will be drivable in Gran Turismo 7.

In the latest brain-computer interface breakthrough, researchers have developed a system that can analyze and output a person's internal thoughts. They didn't do this without raising privacy concerns, even as they say they have put some safeguards in place.

A team of Harvard-led researchers has successfully levitated a tiny device using only light, a breakthrough in photophoretic flight that could enable swarms of low-power sensors for exploration of the upper atmosphere.

Chinese firm Prinano has shipped its first self-developed PL-SR nanoimprint lithography system, capable of sub-10 nm line widths, to a local customer. Positioned as an alternative to EUV for memory, photonics, and packaging, it marks the first Chinese placement of such a tool and only the second globally after Canon.

A team of researchers at the Harbin Engineering University has created a soft, fish-like robot that can swim with the power of seawater. This allows the robot to withstand the high pressures; the kind you find at the deepest parts of the oceans.

Four bachelor students at Aalborg University in Denmark built a submersible drone, capable of switching from underwater navigation to flight, all in an instant. The four students — Andrei Copaci, Mikolaj Dzwigało, Paweł Kowalczyk, and Krzysztof Sierocki built the drone as part of their thesis.

In a recent first-in-human study, a man with type 1 diabetes successfully received a transplant of gene-edited islet cells. The cells, which were engineered to evade his immune system now enable him to produce insulin without the need for immune-suppressing drugs.

Engineers at RMIT University say they have developed a new type of 3D-printed titanium that is about a third cheaper and much stronger than standard alloys. This breakthrough could impact many fields — from aerospace to medicine.

Tiramisu and Boba 3 are the two prototype VR headsets Meta has been working on. It will demo the two on August 11 and August 14 at SIGGRAPH 2025 in Vancouver.

Battlefield 6 only just made its open beta publicly available to all pre-orderers, and the game is already seemingly inundated with cheaters. This is despite Dice's use of kernel-level anti-cheat that even requires secure boot to be enabled.

In a technical discussion hosted by Gamers Nexus, Noctua’s Jacob Dellinger offers a detailed breakdown of PC cooling fan design fundamentals, from blade geometry and acoustics to airflow and heatsink resistance. While current designs have been refined over decades, Dellinger suggests that substantial future improvements may require material or systemic breakthroughs.

Researchers at MIT say they have created the first provably efficient algorithm for training AI to understand symmetry in data, a breakthrough that could lead to more powerful and accurate models for scientific discovery.

In a first-in-human trial, UCLA scientists have shown that a tandem therapy using engineered stem cells can create a renewable source of cancer-fighting T cells that show no signs of exhaustion, a key limitation of current treatments.

A European Starling named “The Mouth” has successfully replicated a spectrogram image using its voice alone, effectively demonstrating a form of acoustic data transfer. Captured using a 192kHz/32-bit ultrasonic recording setup, the bird reproduced a synthetic audio file encoding a visual shape, highlighting the precision of avian vocal mimicry and the potential for biological sound-based storage.

Inspired by the remora fish, MIT researchers have created a novel adhesive device that can stick to wet, soft surfaces, promising a non-invasive technology for delivering drugs inside the stomach, monitoring diseases like acid reflux, and tracking marine life.

In a recent flight test, NASA successfully deployed a parachute equipped with sensors — a key step in a project designed to gather critical data for building safer parachutes for future Mars missions.

Fusion startup Marathon Fusion claims its theoretical reactor design could generate up to 3000 kg of gold per year by converting mercury inside a layered neutron blanket. The process would also produce tritium fuel for deuterium-tritium fusion, but remains unproven and unreviewed.

While the market still has phones with some modularity, designs similar to Google's Project ARA are yet to make a proper comeback. With a similar idea, Mechanical Pixel has shown off a concept modular phone, but it has a rather "restrained" design.