5 breakthroughs in 2024 that laid a foundation for future tech
From transforming coal to computing with DNA to pharmaceutical manufacturing in space, these are the discoveries that will set the stage for the next decade’s technology.
Alex Knapp, Forbes Staff
Robinhood’s billionaire cofounder wants to set up hundreds of solar panels in space
Aetherflux, founded by Baiju Bhatt, plans to build a constellation of satellites that can beam renewable energy to the surface using lasers.
The Cybertruck in the room: Why Elon Musk isn’t on the first Forbes Sustainability Leaders list
When the editorial team behind this year’s Forbes Sustainability Leaders List started brainstorming possibilities for the list, the name Elon Musk came up early. And for good reason. The 2008 introduction of the Tesla Roadster did something many thought impossible–it made electric cars cool. And as Tesla continued to deliver new models, it spurred the auto industry into accelerating their own EV models. That’s been a big deal for the environment in the U.S., where cars count for over 20% of total carbon emissions.
The startup behind the first pig-human kidney transplant is targeting hearts and livers next
Biotech startup eGenesis developed a gene-edited kidney that was successfully transplanted into a living patient last week. Its CEO says the company is just getting started.
This startup is one step closer to making drugs in space
Varda Space Industries successfully manufactured a sample of HIV medication on board its spacecraft and returned it safely to Earth.
Explosions, asteroids and a moon landing: A year in the space economy
2023 saw a number of different milestones that laid the foundation for a thriving space economy in the next decade.
New XPrize will award $101 million to innovators who can reverse aging
The new contest aims to spur innovation into longer ‘healthspans’ with treatments that can actually reverse age-related degradation in body, mind and immune system.
This startup raised $38 million to fill one of the biggest gaps in drug discovery
Khosla Ventures-backed Vivodyne is growing human tissues in the lab to test potential new therapies before they go to clinical trials.
Brewing prescription drug ingredients like they were beer
Backed by US$120 million in venture funding, Stanford professor Christina Smolke’s company Antheia just completed its first scaled production of a key drug ingredient.
This company just raised US$71 million to see the forest for the trees within a patient’s cells
Spatial biology startup Resolve Biosciences is building up capital.