🌎 New Atlas stories of the week

by Bronwyn Thompson

What was announced as a 2050 pipe dream by Kawasaki, the company's hydrogen-powered, four-hooved, all-terrain robot horse vehicle Corleo is actually going into production and is now expected to be commercially available within a few years.

by Utkarsh Sood

Just when you thought you’d seen it all in motorcycle safety tech, along comes ViberAlert, a product that poses a simple, yet deeply unsettling question: What if your motorcycle seat could vibrate to keep you safe?

by David Szondy

Texas A&M’s Ship collision avoidance of Machine learning And Radar Technology for Stationary Entities and Avoidance (SMART-SEA) system combines AI, radar, and human expertise to help crews navigate one of the most complex safety problems at sea.

by Utkarsh Sood

VW’s ID.UNYX sub-brand has adopted an “in China, for China” strategy, and the new ID.Unyx 08 carries that baton forward as an electric SUV built exclusively for the Chinese market – meaning readers in the West can’t get one – which is a bit of a bummer.

by Bronwyn Thompson

ADHD drugs have been thought to sharpen attention, but a new study has found something very different is at play. They don't offer laser-sharp focus but boost wakefulness and engagement, helping the brain stick to tasks it would otherwise give up on.

by Malcolm Azania

Columbia and Stanford researchers have debuted a new paper-thin brain-computer interface, the Biological Interface System to Cortex (BISC). The device offers hope to patients enduring seizures, strokes, spinal cord injuries, ALS, and blindness.

by Bronwyn Thompson

Millions of Americans can now look forward to a better time traveling, with the US Food and Drug Administration approving a novel oral pill that helps prevent motion-induced vomiting – the first of its kind in more than 40 years.

by Malcolm Azania

Magnetic bioactive nanocomposites can eliminate tumors through magnetic arson while helping build new bone. Integrating bioactivity with magnetic performance may be key step in creating smart nanomaterials for oncology and medical regeneration.

by Adam Williams

This striking metal-finish tiny house provides a spacious interior while remaining road-legal. Named the Wilhite, it also has an unusual "upside-down" layout that places the bedroom downstairs and the living room upstairs.

by Simon Heptinstall

Living on the coast, I enjoy driftwood bonfires that keep you warm enough to sit out on a stony British beach after sundown year-round. The portable Packfire is like an ultra-sophisticated version of making a fire in an old oil drum or trash can.

by C.C. Weiss

From self-driving smart trailers to on- and off-road explorers that bulge out in every direction to maximize living space, some truly jaw-dropping and inspiring camper vans, travel trailers, large motorhomes and expedition trucks emerged in 2025.

by Ben Coxworth

If you live in a cold climate and wear a face covering along with eyewear, you'll be aware of a problem: such coverings cause your eyewear to fog up. Well, the Stratus Balaclava solves that problem brilliantly, as I recently found out for myself.

by David Szondy

If you have a redundant nuclear aircraft carrier lying around, you can give HGP Intelligent Energy a call. The Texas-based developer wants to repurpose the nuclear reactors used to power carriers to generate electricity for onshore data centers.

by Paul Ridden

Though big-screen televisions still dominate many living rooms around the globe, smart laser projectors have been making steady inroads of late – particularly those you can push right up to the wall. AWOL Vision has now launched another contender.

by Omar Kardoudi

LG has debuted a home robot that's designed to cook, clean, and manage chores using advanced Physical AI. Part of LG's "Zero Labor Home" vision, the wheeled humanoid features dexterous hands and visual learning to automate daily household tasks.

by Malcolm Azania

A new method converts user-selected 3D structures into string-pulled pop-up structures of connected tiles. Ideal for rapid creation and deployment in disaster zones, these pop-ups can also “pop-down” for re-use and easy transport.

by Jay Kakade

Using chemical clues from Neanderthal bones, researchers have placed them at the top of the food chain, alongside apex predators like lions. However, until now, experts have been missing out on one of their key, fat-rich, food sources: Maggots.

by Malcolm Azania

A new thumb-patch of dissolvable microneedles injects biofertilizer directly into plant leaves. In lab tests, kale and choy sum grew taller and faster with bigger leaves and shoot biomass, using 15% less biofertilizer.

by Bronwyn Thompson

In 1995, divers first noticed a group of bizarre sandy "crop circles" on the seabed near southwest Japan. But it took decades for scientists to identify the marine artists behind them – and why they were building such geometrically precise structures.