From a boy setting off small explosions in his living room to the creator of world-famous pyrotechnic events, multidisciplinary artist Cai Guo-Qiang has always been drawn to gunpowder. He gives a stunning tour of his work — including his fireworks spectacle at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, his "sky ladder" of fire reaching to the clouds and new work created with AI — and shows how his art probes the line between destruction and construction, control and freedom, violence and beauty. (This talk was delivered in Mandarin and translated live into English. The translation was put through a custom AI model of Cai Guo-Qiang's voice, powered by technology from Metaphysic. You'll hear how Cai would sound if he were speaking English.)This episode originally aired July 30, 2024.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Imagine this: you walk into a room, and your dog is on a video call with their fellow canine friends. Computer scientist Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas thinks the notion of a social internet for animals is not far off. She explores what happens when animals control their own technology — from parrots making friends online to monkeys choosing their favorite audio tracks — and shows how this technology transforms our understanding of animal consciousness.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

“ How do you trust anything anymore? Who do you trust? Where do you trust?” asks technologist and digital forensic expert Hany Farid. Following his talk at TED2025, Farid sat down for a special conversation with Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, to discuss the erosion of trust in American society. From TikTok algorithms to AI deepfakes, Farid argues that critical thinking education is more important than ever and why it’s therapeutic to unplug from social media and connect with nature.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do you know if that shocking photo in your feed is real, or just another AI fake? Digital forensics expert Hany Farid explains how he helps journalists, courts and governments find structural errors in AI-generated images, offering four practical tips everyday individuals can use when facing the internet’s war on reality.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How does a city change when its art doesn’t hang on museum walls but instead roams the streets? Artist Frédette Lampre of the production company La Machine shares how their towering, handcrafted mechanical creations transform urban spaces into living theaters, creating unforgettable experiences that reconnect people with their cities and each other.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this urgent and hard-hitting talk, Nobel Laureate Al Gore thoroughly dismantles the fossil fuel industry’s narrative of "climate realism," contrasting their misleading claims with the remarkable advancements in renewable energy. Drawing on data showing clear signs of progress across the world, Gore makes a powerful case that we already have everything needed to solve the climate crisis — and reminds us of what the most valuable renewable resource actually is.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sarah Kay is a spoken word poet and the author of the new poetry collection "A Little Daylight Left." In this TED Talks Daily Book Club interview with host Elise Hu, Kay reflects on her relationship with poetry — from reading the poems her parents left in her lunchbox to frequenting the local dive bar’s weekly poetry slam to becoming an “accidental ambassador” of spoken word. She also talks about how she uses different artistic mediums to invite others into poetry, showing how the art form can open you to community, healing and vulnerability.The TED Talks Daily Book Club series features TED speakers discussing their latest books and exploring their ideas beyond the page. Stay tuned to our feed for more interviews like this one and for special live book club events open exclusively to TED members. Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Don't second-guess what "distracts" you, says actor-producer Yara Shahidi; that's your curiosity coming through. The star of hit shows like "black-ish" and "grown-ish" tells how she learned to spot clues to her own future — and how you can, too.This episode originally aired January 16, 2024.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Artificial intelligence could cost many of us our careers — but that doesn’t mean we should stop its development, says journalist Megan J. McArdle. As she watches AI encroach on her own craft, she shares a fresh take on the 19th-century Luddites, who tried to destroy machines that would upend their trade. Looking back, McArdle reframes today’s fears with a poignant question: If we halt progress to protect the present, what might we be stealing from the future?Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Actress Chloé Hayden is best known for her role as Quinnie on the popular TV show "Heartbreak High" — one of the first-ever autistic characters to actually be played by an autistic person. Now, she's inviting us to imagine a world where seeing autistic people in any role isn't groundbreaking, it's simply expected.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After a mysterious wave of tics and twitches swept through a small-town high school in New York, documentary podcaster Dan Taberski set out to investigate what was really happening. Drawing on extensive research and intimate interviews with the people involved, he explores the roots of mass hysteria — and what it reveals about the line between illness and belonging. What happens when the very thing that makes us sick ... is also what connects us?Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Too many people believe in something closer to freedom from speech rather than freedom of speech," says attorney Greg Lukianoff. In a timely talk, he warns against the rise of "mob censorship" — and reminds us why free speech is the best check on power ever invented.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On June 21, the United States launched strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites, escalating the ongoing conflict between Israel and Iran. Political scientist Ian Bremmer explains why President Trump decided to bomb Iran, the risk of a broadening war and what to look for next at this uncertain moment. (This interview, hosted by TED’s Helen Walters, was recorded on June 22, 2025.)Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tech journalist, opinion leader, and disruptor—Kara Swisher has hosted hundreds of newsmaking interviews tracking tech and media's changing power dynamics, often going head-to-head with the most prominent figures in the technology industry. She joins a live studio audience to talk about her inimitable career covering the ever-evolving world of technology.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Video creator Jon Youshaei and workplace expert Michelle Weise team up to crack the code on how to thrive through career chaos. They discuss how technological change is upending traditional career paths, explore the art of making your skills stand out and offer essential advice for young people entering the workforce. (This conversation is part of "TED Intersections," a series featuring thought-provoking conversations between experts navigating the ideas shaping our world.)Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marrying for love is a relatively recent phenomenon for humanity, and we still don't fully understand what it means for building successful relationships, says author and psychiatrist George Blair-West. Drawing from his extensive experience working with couples, he shares four questions every couple should ask themselves before tying the knot — and highlights surprising findings on how the way marriage starts impacts if it ends. This episode originally aired May 3, 2024.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At the end of the Civil War, though slavery was technically illegal in all states, it still persisted in the last bastions of the Confederacy. This was the case when Union General Gordon Granger marched his troops into Galveston, Texas on June 19th and announced that all enslaved people there were officially free. Karlos K. Hill and Soraya Field Fiorio dig into the history of Juneteenth. [Directed by Rémi Cans, Atypicalist, narrated by Christina Greer, music by Jarrett Farkas]. This episode originally aired June 19, 2023.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a show-stopping duet, Broadway legends Todd Almond and Donna Murphy (portraying the imagined character of AI) dig into our tangled relationship with artificial intelligence — blending wit and warmth with a touch of existential dread. This Broadway act, written exclusively for TED, is cabaret meets searing social commentary meets comedic gold.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Palm oil is in nearly every commodity you use — food, shampoo, makeup and more — but harvesting this essential material has contributed to the destruction of millions of hectares of forests globally. Sustainability leader Andika Putraditama shares how a groundbreaking collaboration between conservationists and global brands is turning this crisis on its head, unlocking a new model for forest preservation. Discover a vision for preserving the forests still standing and restoring the ones we’ve lost.Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kickstarter cofounder Yancey Strickler unveils a radical new economic model that could transform how creative people build sustainable careers, amass collective wealth and escape the burnout of hustle culture. Hear his vision for how artists can pool resources, share profits and own their work in a new kind of economy, as he poses a tantalizing view of the future: What if the next Disney wasn't a corporate giant but an artist-owned collective?Want to help shape TED’s shows going forward? Fill out our survey!Learn more about TED Next at ted.com/futureyouFor the Idea Search application, go to ted.com/ideasearch Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.