Innovation : All Tech Considered An exploration of interesting ideas that solve problems, introduce new experiences or even change our world.

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Innovation

Wednesday February 25, 2015

Guido Rosa/Getty Images/Ikon Images

The World Loves The Smartphone. So How About A Smart Home?

Fresh Air

February 25, 2015 • The ultimate smart-home vision is a home that basically runs itself, from coffee makers to washing machines. But we're not there yet: The real world is a hard place for little computers to operate in.

The World Loves The Smartphone. So How About A Smart Home?

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Friday February 13, 2015

Javier Pierini/Getty Images

This Valentine's Day, I'm Loving The Boyfriend I Built For Myself

February 13, 2015 • Single and tired of being asked if you're dating? A new service offers the appearance of having a significant other who texts you and even leaves voice mails. NPR's Jasmine Garsd gave it a try.

This Valentine's Day, I'm Loving The Boyfriend I Built For Myself

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Wednesday January 28, 2015

'Maker Space' Allows Kids To Innovate, Learn In The Hospital

Emily Neblett, a patient at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital in Nashville, Tenn., demonstrates circuit pieces from the mobile maker space that are connected by magnets. Noah Nelson/Youth Radio hide caption

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Noah Nelson/Youth Radio

Society

'Maker Space' Allows Kids To Innovate, Learn In The Hospital

YR Media

January 28, 2015 • At a children's hospital in Nashville, Tenn., a mobile maker space allows patients to share materials and tools to build new things, while also teaching them about math and science.

'Maker Space' Allows Kids To Innovate, Learn In The Hospital

Listen · 3:55 3:55

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Monday January 19, 2015

At 90, She's Designing Tech For Aging Boomers

Barbara Beskind, 90, is a designer at IDEO who works with engineers on products that improve the quality of life for older people. Nicolas Zurcher/Courtesy of IDEO hide caption

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Nicolas Zurcher/Courtesy of IDEO

Innovation

At 90, She's Designing Tech For Aging Boomers

January 19, 2015 • Barbara Beskind stands out in youth-obsessed Silicon Valley. She inspires designers at the IDEO firm to think about the needs of older generations: What if your glasses could help you remember people?

At 90, She's Designing Tech For Aging Boomers

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Sunday January 11, 2015

If A Smart Stove Could Suggest Recipes, Would You Buy It?

Whirlpool's Kitchen of the Future is on display at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The concept includes a cooktop and connected backsplash that offers recipes and other information. Whirlpool hide caption

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Whirlpool

Innovation

If A Smart Stove Could Suggest Recipes, Would You Buy It?

January 11, 2015 • Tech companies are lining up to sell us "smart" things that learn what we might want and give it to us before we ask. But so far consumers seem wary, in part because of privacy concerns.

Saturday January 10, 2015

In Vegas, Intel Hopes A Smart Idea Takes Flight

Developers Jelena Jovanovic (from left) and Christoph Kohstall and Intel Corp. CEO Brian Krzanich watch the Nixie wearable drone camera at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Ethan Miller/Getty Images hide caption

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Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Innovation

In Vegas, Intel Hopes A Smart Idea Takes Flight

January 10, 2015 • Chipmaker Intel made Silicon Valley possible. But now the company is searching for a new identity — and business stream. As consumers abandon PCs, the CEO is looking toward an untested area.

In Vegas, Intel Hopes A Smart Idea Takes Flight

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Thursday January 8, 2015

Look Out, This Poker-Playing Computer Is Unbeatable

Dealer Omar Abu-Eid adjusts a stack of chips before the first day of the World Series of Poker's main event in Las Vegas last July. Humans still reign in most versions of poker. Whew. John Locher/AP hide caption

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John Locher/AP

Science

Look Out, This Poker-Playing Computer Is Unbeatable

January 8, 2015 • Forget chess. Poker may be even harder for a computer. But a software program has now "solved" a variant of Texas Hold'em, the bot's creators say. And nothing can keep it from winning.

Look Out, This Poker-Playing Computer Is Unbeatable

Listen · 3:36 3:36

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Innovation: An Alarm Clock That Won't Take 'Snooze' For An Answer

Ramos is a remotely deactivated alarm clock that forces the user to get out of bed for the alarm to turn off. Ramos hide caption

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Ramos

Innovation

Innovation: An Alarm Clock That Won't Take 'Snooze' For An Answer

January 8, 2015 • Even its developer says it's annoying — and that's the point. The Ramos clock forces you to get out of bed and walk to another room to turn it off. Even unplugging it won't silence the alarm.

Friday January 2, 2015

Why Buy When You Can Borrow? App Connects People And Stuff

Peerby allows people to share their stuff through a mobile app for free. Peerby hide caption

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Peerby

Innovation

Why Buy When You Can Borrow? App Connects People And Stuff

January 2, 2015 • Millions of people use apps to share their homes and their cars. Now Peerby, an app developed in the Netherlands, helps people to share things like power drills and bicycle pumps with people nearby.

Why Buy When You Can Borrow? App Connects People And Stuff

Listen · 2:51 2:51

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Saturday December 20, 2014

Tech Week: Sony's Cyber Woes, And A Coating To Ease Ketchup's Flow

Sony Pictures was forced to cancel the release of its film The Interview this week after the hacking group, Guardians of Peace, threatened theaters that planned to screen the movie. AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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AFP/Getty Images

Innovation

Tech Week: Sony's Cyber Woes, And A Coating To Ease Ketchup's Flow

December 20, 2014 • In our weekly roundup of tech headlines, we get you up-to-date on Sony's troubles after North Korea targeted its film The Interview, and tell you a community organizer's advice for tech companies.

Wednesday December 17, 2014

Weekly Innovation: Nonstick Coating Helps Ketchup Slide Out

With LiquiGlide, ketchup easily slides outside of the bottle with no shaking necessary. LiquiGlide hide caption

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LiquiGlide

Innovation

Weekly Innovation: Nonstick Coating Helps Ketchup Slide Out

December 17, 2014 • LiquiGlide is a coating that helps that last bit of ketchup or mustard slide out easily without shaking or squeezing the bottle. Now, the company is expanding to other kinds of uses and industries.

Friday December 12, 2014

Please Touch! Cooper Hewitt Creates A Museum For The Internet Age

Interactive touch screens at the newly redesigned Cooper Hewitt museum let visitors sort through the catalog and create their own designs. Cooper Hewitt hide caption

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Cooper Hewitt

Innovation

Please Touch! Cooper Hewitt Creates A Museum For The Internet Age

December 12, 2014 • The design museum is housed in a historic building, but it has been remade into one of the country's most technologically advanced museums. Officials hope it attracts younger visitors — and donors.

Please Touch! Cooper Hewitt Creates A Museum For The Internet Age

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Thursday December 11, 2014

Weekly Innovation: A Smart Power Outlet That Can't Shock You

Normal outlets are always live at 120 volts, but the Brio Safe uses embedded sensors to accurately identify a plug before delivering a current. Brio hide caption

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Brio

Innovation

Weekly Innovation: A Smart Power Outlet That Can't Shock You

December 11, 2014 • Kids often hurt themselves when they put their fingers into electrical outlets, but the Brio Smart outlet prevents injury by using sensors to differentiate between human touch and an electric plug.

Monday December 8, 2014

Inventor Ralph Baer, The 'Father Of Video Games,' Dies At 92

German-American game developer Ralph Baer shows the prototype of the first games console which was invented by him during a press conference on the Games Convention Online in Leipzig, Germany in 2009. Baer died on Saturday. He was 92. Jens Wolf/DPA /Landov hide caption

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Jens Wolf/DPA /Landov

Innovation

Inventor Ralph Baer, The 'Father Of Video Games,' Dies At 92

December 8, 2014 • Video games have become a ubiquitous, billion-dollar industry, but all of the Playstations, Xboxes and Wiis can be traced back to the work of Robert Baer and his "Brown Box." He died Saturday.

Saturday December 6, 2014

Is That $1 or $5? Ask This Money Reader For The Blind

After scanning a $1 bill with iBill, a speaker announces, "one dollar." Claire Eggers/NPR hide caption

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Claire Eggers/NPR

Innovation

Is That $1 or $5? Ask This Money Reader For The Blind

December 6, 2014 • The iBill, a new currency reader being offered by the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing, aims to change how the blind identify different kinds of bills.