Features of the week
AircraftTransport
Flying cell tower beams phone signal to Japan from 10 miles up
by Omar Kardoudi
An unmanned Sceye airship flew from New Mexico to Japan and back, beaming mobile service to ordinary phones from the stratosphere. Still a test, but SoftBank – one of Japan's major mobile carriers – eyes commercial service in Japan from 2027.
Technology
A laser just photographed objects through six feet of concrete
by Mike McRae
Firing up the world’s most powerful laser at Romania’s Extreme Light Infrastructure Nuclear Physics (ELI-NP), a team of physicists generated a beam of high-energy particles called muons to image an object through concrete.
WearablesConsumer TechTechnology
Smart rings are suddenly everywhere. Has their time finally come?
by Howard Armitage
Smart rings have gone from niche health tech to casual online impulse buys. With established brands now joining Oura and Samsung, has the technology finally hit the mainstream, and what are you giving up when the price collapses?
AI and HumanoidsTechnology
Wait, AI is hacking government networks now?
by Abhimanyu Ghoshal
Australia's PM announced an AI model operated by OpenAI had gained unauthorized access into the country's healthcare systems. It was arguably the first ever breach into a government network by an AI system – and it likely won't be the last.
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Top Stories: Transport
Aston Martin DBX GT offers 717 horsepower in a tailored suit
by Simon Heptinstall
Aston Martin returns to its classy roots with the new 717-hp DBX GT. The super-SUV mixes storming V8 performance with grand touring comfort. The GT’s James Bond style challenges rivals like Bentley’s Bentayga.
Radical electric bikemaker is coming to the USA next year
by Utkarsh Sood
Ultraviolette isn’t a household name in the motorcycle market yet. It’s not a one-hit wonder, either. It might be lesser-known in Western circles, but where it’s from, it's carrying a lot of momentum. Naturally, a 2027 US launch is on the cards.
Visionary coupe self-cleans the emissions EVs still create
by Omar Kardoudi
Electric cars don't cough out exhaust, but their tires and brakes are still shedding an invisible haze into the air. A team of Dutch students has built a concept that traps those particles with a static charge like a balloon grabbing lint.
Hillbilly Express: Riding the 2026 Harley-Davidson Pan America Special
by Boris Mihailovic
I’m fairly certain a few good ol’ boys from Appalachia had a big hand in creating the Pan America. Which, as an aside, is still the most polarizing motorcycle Harley-Davison makes. And I understand why.
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Top stories: Body & Mind
Google wants to spread mosquitos to fight deadly diseases. Here's why.
by Emma Schneck
As Aedes aegypti spreads further across the world, can natural mosquito “birth control” fight some of the world’s most fearsome diseases?
Tinnitus answer may be found in our blood
by Mike McRae
For the 14% of us living with tinnitus, the persistent ringing inside our heads is impossible for anybody else to hear. Or measure. Now, a blood test for an inner-ear protein could reveal the sign of the condition that makes it easy to detect.
Top Stories: Outdoor
24-ft tiny house finds space to squeeze in three bedrooms
by Adam Williams
A downstairs bedroom is already a luxury in a tiny house, doubly so in this model, which also somehow manages to find room for two lofts and an open layout despite having a modest length of just 24 ft.
30-sec folding A-frame camper is an ultralight standing-height wonder
by C.C. Weiss
The newly debuted Alite camping trailer from Aliner is about as small, light and simple as hard-walled towable living gets. The resurrected micro-camper weighs less than 700 lb, sets up in 30 seconds and becomes a tiny A-frame for escaping it all.
Modular camp kitchen packs down into a metal case
by Maryna Holovnova
Imagine if you could bring your whole kitchen cabinet with you on a road trip or a weekend camping getaway. A new Kickstarter project called Hecheer turns an aluminum case into a portable outdoor kitchen that has just about everything you might need.
Folding fingertip knife is the ultimate in discreet urban EDC
by Abhimanyu Ghoshal
If you're looking to build out an easy-to-carry EDC kit with just the essentials for days in the city, this impossibly tiny knife is worth a look. It's got a titanium alloy handle and a Damascus steel blade, and it's small enough to go on a keyring.
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Top Stories: Technology
Did Germany really come close to making an atomic bomb?
by Mike McRae
A study led by University of Maryland materials scientist Timothy Koeth claims Germany's atomic bomb project had virtually no hope of success, requiring 20% more uranium and 80% more heavy water than was available to them at the time.
Mind-reading tech aims to make AI actually intelligent
by Etiido Uko
For all its intelligence, instructing AI can feel like talking to a toddler. You explain the task, but the AI does a different thing. Scientists have now developed a system that detects that “that's not what I meant” response right from your brain.
Song-splitting app achieves the impossible in 40 seconds
by Howard Armitage
AudioPrism's AI stem separation is impressive. Unfortunately, the software wrapped around it occasionally made me want to throw something.
'Floating' gaming headset pumps immersive audio to your skull
by Abhimanyu Ghoshal
Desktop accessories brand Cololight is working on an interesting addition to gamer setups: a pair of speakers that appear to float around your head to create a more immersive experience while you get destroyed in your favorite competitive shooter.
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