MIT Technology Review Announces Breakthrough Technologies 2018

It’s no surprise that an institution and prestigious and cutting edge as MIT would have a great handle on the new technologies that are changing the way the world works. That’s why each year many readers anticipate the MIT Technology Review’s list of new tech that is going to shape the world for years to come. This year’s Breakthrough Technologies 2018 does not disappoint in that regard.

The MIT Technology Review is a magazine which provides insight on the flood of information about technology coming out seemingly every day. As the magazine explains on its site:

We do this with serious journalism, written in clear, simple language, by a knowledgeable editorial staff, governed by a policy of accuracy and independence. We do this in features, news analysis, business reports, photo essays, reviews, and interactive digital experiences that invite our readers to probe deeper, examine data, and get to know experts and their opinions to see, explore, and understand new technologies and their impact.

That’s what makes the annual Breakthrough Technologies list so important to the industry, and possibly the world, as a whole. The MIT Technology Review explains that what they mean by breakthrough technology as something that will have a profound effect on our lives. These technologies span the gamut, from artificial intelligence and machine learning, to biological breakthroughs tied in with artificial biology, to metal printing, and more. Here are MIT’s 10 technologies:

3-D Metal Printing – While printing with plastics has been a hobby for many for years, it’s not becoming quicker and cheaper to use metals in 3-D printing
Artificial Embryos – Embryologists at the University of Cambridge have grown mouse embryos using only stem cells, and no sperm.
Sensing City – A new project in Toronto called Quayside hopes to rethink the urban neighborhood and create a working smart city.
AI for Everybody – Machine-learning tools based in the cloud are bringing AI to a broader audience.
Dueling Neural Networks – A new approach to AI called GAN (generative adversarial network) is giving machines the equivalent of an imagination.
Babel-Fish Earbuds – Google earbuds that translate language in real-time in order to help you bridge the language gap with other non-speakers of your language.
Zero Carbon Natural Gas – A power plant outside Houston is testing a technology that could make clean energy from natural has.
Perfect Online Privacy – An emerging cryptographic protocol called zero-knowledge proof could allow you to prove something online (like your age) without disclosing personal information.
Genetic Fortune Telling – A series of genetic studies allows scientists to use your genome to predict your chances of getting diseases, or even what you IQ will be, at birth.
Materials’ Quantum Leap – IBM has simulated the structure of a molecule using a seven-qubit quantum computer.