14-year-old student Miles Wu is obsessed with origami, transforming everyday scraps of paper into unexpected creations. In a joyful talk, he explores the ancient art form ? from making Christmas ornaments and pigeons to folding patterns that can hold 10,000 times their weight ? and shows all the possibilities hiding inside a single piece of paper.

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Community Notes on X started with a wild idea: Instead of tech companies deciding what's true, what if you let people fact-check each other? Jay Baxter and Keith Coleman, who helped build the crowdsourced system adding context to misleading posts, discuss how the program reduces viral misinformation ? and why people across the political spectrum trust it. In conversation with TED guest curator Audrey Tang, they discuss how their "surprising agreement" algorithm could reveal the common ground that quietly exists across a polarized internet. (Followed by a note from TED guest curators Divya Siddarth and Audrey Tang)

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Passion doesn't drive work ? fascination does, says venture capitalist and author Bill Gurley. Drawing on years of research into the lives of high achievers, he shows why obsessive, lifelong learning is the real engine of career excellence.

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In 2009, marine biologist Sylvia Earle stood on the TED stage and made a wish: to build a global network of "Hope Spots" and protect the ocean before it's too late. Seventeen years later, she's back to report on what's happened since ? and the picture is both more urgent and more hopeful than you might expect. From 100,000 fur seals saved from near-extinction to coral reefs rebuilt clam by clam, Earle says we already know exactly what needs to be done; the only thing left is to find the will to do it.

(Following her talk, Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, interviews Earle on how she uses AI to gather data on the ocean and what she saw in a one-person submarine surfacing off the coast of Hawaii during a storm.)

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In celebration of Pride Month, we?re revisiting conversations with accomplished LGBTQ+ guests?Carol Leifer, Paul Tazewell, Sonya Passi, Leisha Hailey, and Kate Moennig?about the journeys that led them to fulfilling professional lives and the influences that shaped who they are today.

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What does it look like when a city becomes a laboratory for innovation? His Excellency Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of the Dubai Future Foundation, explains why Dubai is cutting the bureaucratic red tape to experiment with big ideas in everything from AI and emerging tech to finance and climate solutions. The future, he says, depends on those willing to test it. (This conversation is hosted by TED's Whitney Pennington Rodgers.)

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Philanthropy disruptor Sara Lomelin thinks communities can build power through collective giving, or what she calls ?giving circles?: groups of people with shared values who come together to make change, strengthen their social fabric and help diverse solutions get funded. Learn the four steps to start a thriving giving circle in your community -- and see how thousands of people worldwide are already part of this movement to usher in a new era of philanthropy that is democratic and joyful.

(This episode originally aired in 2022.)

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Coaches kept telling Maxwell Pearce to stick to the fundamentals. Good thing he didn't listen. A Harlem Globetrotter and artist, he went on to build a global reputation for gravity-defying dunks and a theory that the same playful rule-breaking is what powers progress in every field. In this joyful talk, he makes the case that play isn't the opposite of serious work ? it's the secret ingredient behind it.

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When filmmaker Desiree Akhavan told her Iranian immigrant parents she was in love with a woman, she knew they would object. She explains why it's worth the risk to let people get to know the real you.

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If you want to live in a world where people read, novelist Ann Patchett has news for you: it's your job to help create that reality. Tracing her path from a chance airport encounter through a career writing iconic novels and opening a beloved independent bookstore, she makes the case that reading isn't a private pleasure but a civic act that builds empathy, sustains a "long-format brain" and pulls people out of isolation. Ready to lose yourself in a book?

(Following her talk, Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, interviews Patchett on the joys and challenges of owning a bookstore. They also discuss whether audiobooks count as reading, the inefficiency of book banning, and how to raise young people to be readers. Patchett also teases the books she?s excited about in 2026.)

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Larz May has spent a decade building digital wellness programs for young people, and she's discovered something quietly radical: the smartphone doom loop of screen dependence and anxiety isn't inevitable, and joy (not restriction) is the way out. She makes the case for a different relationship with technology ? starting with swapping screens for some analog fun.

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On today's "Sunday Pick" on TED Talks Daily, we're bring you an episode from the TED Podcast ReThinking with Adam Grant. You probably know Kristen Bell as the star behind characters like Veronica Mars, Princess Anna from Frozen, and Eleanor from The Good Place. In this episode, Adam sits down with Kristen live at BetterUp?s Uplift leadership summit to examine how she?s learning to overcome her people pleasing tendencies and stop internalizing other people?s emotions. Kristen gets in character to demonstrate how to be honest without being unkind. She also makes the case that compliments are underrated, opens up about her strategies for dealing with envy, and offers a surprising theory of why we overexplain.

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Control is an illusion ? and the leaders who chase it are holding their teams back. Workplace culture expert Jessica Kriegel explores the tactic that leaders who want to achieve extraordinary results should try instead.

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Humans aren't just social ? we're ultrasocial, wired like bees and ants for deep connection. So what happens when smartphones take over childhood, tablets replace textbooks and AI companies infiltrate our kids? lives? Social psychologist Jonathan Haidt lays out three principles of technoskepticism ? and explains why, two years after sounding the alarm in ?The Anxious Generation,? he's more concerned (and hopeful) than ever before.

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Drones aren't just weapons of war; they're becoming first responders, infrastructure inspectors and guardians of the grid. Adam Bry, who leads the top drone manufacturer in the US, shows how autonomous drones are transforming emergency response and public safety ? from detecting faulty power lines and preventing wildfires to catching crime in real time. During his talk, he demos the technology live from the TED stage, piloting a drone in Tokyo from his laptop in Vancouver.

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Mark Rober spent years trying to land a rover on Mars. Now, the former NASA engineer turned science YouTuber with millions of subscribers is launching a new mission: to teach the next generation of big problem solvers. That's why he's spending 60 million dollars to build a STEM curriculum kids actually want. With squirrel obstacle courses, giant lasers and elephant toothpaste explosions, who wouldn't want to learn from YouTube's top engineer?

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What if the path to peace starts with self-interest? After four decades inside some of the world's most dangerous conflict zones, mediator Hiba Qasas has learned that most peacebuilding efforts get it wrong from the start. She makes a provocative case that conciliation shouldn't begin with empathy ? and reveals how leading with shared incentives brought hundreds of Israeli and Palestinian leaders into active collaboration, even in the midst of war. (Following her talk, Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, interviews Qasas on our collective responsibility to advocate for peacemaking.)

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You can't just "find" motivation, says scientist Ayelet Fishbach ? you have to learn how to motivate yourself. She shares a handful of tips backed by 20 years of motivation research, offering surprisingly simple wisdom on how to optimize your goals, set yourself up for success and avoid the tempting calls of procrastination.

(This episode originally aired in 2024.)

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Do you feel like work is taking over your life? Guy Winch is a psychologist and author of the book Mind Over Grind: How to Break Free When Work Hijacks Your Life. In this episode, Anne sits down with Guy at the annual TED conference in Vancouver to discuss the insidious ways work can follow you home and how to set boundaries to avoid burnout. They dig into the harmful effects of after-hours rumination, share practical rituals to help you separate work from the rest of your life, and offer tips on how to take a truly restorative vacation. 

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Political scientist Ian Bremmer has access to the rooms, conversations and world leaders who make the news of the day. So how does he stay on top of everything that?s going on? In conversation with TED?s Helen Walters, Bremmer opens up about how he thinks about sources, how he avoids getting spun ? and what we can all do to think more clearly about the news. (This interview was recorded on May 20, 2026.)

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AI artist Mick Mahler has a counterintuitive take: the more powerful the machines get, the less the technology actually matters. Showing delightful examples of his own art, from jazz-playing spiders to a Kafka-inspired beetle film, he explains how creators can use new technology to serve their vision (not replace it). The real question ? the one that separates meaningful work from AI slop ? is the one only you can answer.

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Multihyphenate entertainer Keke Palmer has mastered the art of performing ? on stage and off. But she realized the skills that carried her family out of poverty might be the very thing keeping her trapped. In this powerful talk, she unpacks the hidden cost of hyper-functioning and what it really means to stop acting and start living.

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Streaming media gives us access to everything instantly, but at what cost? Music professor Tom Rizzuto traces the history of physical media ? from CDs and vinyl to bone music (Soviet-era records pressed onto discarded X-rays) and the near-loss of "Nosferatu" ? making the case that art shouldn't just live in the cloud.

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We are wired for connection, and yet many of us spend most of our lives avoiding it, says behavioral scientist Nicholas Epley. Drawing on decades of research into happiness, loneliness and well-being, he reveals why we consistently underestimate how receptive others are to connecting ? and invites us to seize the small moments that lead to a more social life.

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Welcome to Club Reality, where no matter what life throws at you, the music never stops. In this talk and performance, musician ELEW shares his path from jazz pianist to DJ ? and the unexpected philosophy he finds in both.

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On today's "Sunday Pick" on TED Talks Daily, we bring you an episode from TED Podcast TEDHealth. Does eating local honey help reduce your allergies through microexposure to local pollen? How effective is at-home allergies test? And why do so many Olympic athletes have asthma? These are some of the questions raised in today?s conversation with host Shoshana Ungerleider and her guest, immunologist Dr. Zachary Rubin. From cat dander to pollen to peanuts, Dr. Rubin discusses how having minor to severe allergies can affect your health and what you can do to manage your allergies.

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One month before the Rio Olympics, runner Alexi Pappas couldn't hit her splits in practice. She was begging her watch to change its mind. Then her coach told her to take it off ? and shared the best advice she's ever received. That single piece of wisdom led her to break a national record and changed how she chases her goals, carrying her through ultramarathons, a memoir and three films. Bad days aren't a detour, she says ? they mean you're right on track.

Following the talk, host Elise Hu caught up with Alexi for a "Beyond the Talk" conversation to dig deeper ? into what the rule of thirds looks like beyond sport, what it means to befriend pain rather than just survive it, and what she wants people to know about how to keep going even when you think it?s impossible. A heads up: this conversation involves mention of mental health struggles and suicide.

Afterwards, check out Alexi's own podcast Mentor Buffet, where she talks to athletes, actors, movie producers, DJs, chefs, authors, and other people she admires about who has influenced them along their journey. You can find Mentor Buffet on Apple, Spotify, and YouTube.

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Most managers give feedback. Few give feedback that actually works. Drawing on her background in psychology and executive coaching, Renee St Jacques breaks down what so many well-intentioned leaders get wrong ? and introduces a three-part framework to help teams rebuild trust and perform at their best.

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Deep tech entrepreneur D. Scott Phoenix spent years building AI ? now, he believes we're on the cusp of a profound merger between humans and machines. Reframing the AI debate through the lens of evolutionary biology, he shifts the question from whether we should fear or embrace AI to whether we understand what's at stake if we get it wrong. Hear his provocative case for why we need to "eat the AI."

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Leadership expert Melissa M. Mikus breaks down why most workplace friction isn't about personality clashes or bad intentions ? it's about not knowing how to effectively communicate. Her solution? A small, visible and easy tweak that anyone can implement right away.

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Creator Maya Higa is on a mission to use the internet to build the next generation of conservationists. Her virtual education center, Alveus Sanctuary, is one of the most-watched sanctuaries on Earth, with dozens of rescued animals and cameras livestreaming to a community of millions inspired to help protect the wildlife. Visit with Bean the Hawk, Winnie the Moo and more ? and see what the future of conservation looks like.

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What if we could solve the problem of fatal car accidents? Waymo co-CEO Tekedra Mawakana joins TED's Sal Khan to explore why fully autonomous vehicles (where you never have to touch the wheel) are more than a tech novelty ? they could help end the dangerous status quo.

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Most of us assume data-driven people make data-driven decisions. Not quite. Adam Grant has built a career helping others think more clearly ? but when it comes to his own career, the most important calls he?s made didn?t have clear data behind them. So how did he decide? In this first episode of WorkLife with Molly Graham, Adam joins Molly to talk about how he actually navigates uncertainty ? the four questions he asks before committing to any big project, what he calls ?deliberate then dive?, and how he measures success when the numbers don?t tell the whole story.

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Success in your career looks different for everyone ? but no matter your industry, you'll need to take risks. Company and community builder Molly Graham took to the TED stage two years ago to share three key skills to learn before jumping off a metaphorical cliff, outlining a path off the corporate ladder and into true professional and personal growth -- and these key skills are more relevant today than ever.

Today, Molly has returned to TED as the new host of the podcast, WorkLife. WorkLife is a show where Molly and her expert guests talk through the messy feelings we all experience at work?conversations that delve into our ambitions and failures. Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, caught up with Molly to look back at her talk and how those ideas continue to evolve in today's world. They discuss the importance of embracing the emotional side of work, how to tell the difference between good fear and bad fear, aging, why so many successful things feel messier than we think they?re supposed to, and so much more.

Listen to WorkLife with Molly Graham wherever you get your podcasts.

Molly's talk originally aired in 2024. Elise and Molly?s conversation was recorded in April 2026.

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When is the last time you did absolutely nothing for 10 whole minutes? Not texting, talking or even thinking? Mindfulness expert Andy Puddicombe describes the transformative power of doing just that: Refreshing your mind for 10 minutes a day, simply by being mindful and experiencing the present moment. (No need for incense or sitting in uncomfortable positions.)

(This episode originally aired in 2012)

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In November 2025, Neal Kumar Katyal was asked to do what no US Supreme Court litigator had ever done: convince the justices to strike down a sitting president's signature initiative. After enlisting the help of four unlikely coaches ? and one secret weapon he hasn't told anyone about until now ? he walked into the courtroom ready for anything. What he discovered about winning and connecting might just change how you think about performing under pressure.

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Mothers undeniably impact and shape history -- but their stories are often left out or misrepresented, says sociologist and author Anna Malaika Tubbs. This erasure limits policies to support mothers and their essential roles in society. Citing the remarkable lives of Alberta King, Louise Little and Berdis Baldwin (the mothers of Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X and James Baldwin, respectively), Tubbs emphasizes the need to shift the perspective on motherhood at a cultural level -- to better reflect the presence, power and influence of moms as our first leaders, caretakers and teachers. "Would the world be different today if we had been telling their stories all along?" she asks.

(This episode originally aired in 2022.)

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You know it's important to take care of your physical and mental health. But what about your social health? Social scientist Kasley Killam shows how feeling a sense of belonging and connection has concrete benefits to your overall health ? and explains why it may be the missing key to living a longer and happier life.

This episode originally aired in 2025.

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Former senior US national security official Miles Taylor shares a personal account that raises a broader civic concern: the growing cost of dissent in American public life. Drawing on his experience inside government and living the consequences of speaking openly, he says that the real threat to US democracy isn't the politicians or hard-liners ? it's the two-thirds of Americans who don?t speak up. (This talk contains mature language.)

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What if your hardest emotional challenges could be solved by talking to a stranger? A person who has gone through the exact same situation or something very similar. That?s the premise of Proxy, a podcast that investigates your niche emotional conundrums with host Yowei Shaw. In this episode, Yowei and Chris talk about the power of knowing you?re not the only person going through something, however specific. Whether it?s losing your job, a friend breakup, or an alternate version of your life that you can?t let go of, Yowei has a method to make it all make more sense.

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What do you hear when you sit in silence? For artist Rose B. Simpson, that question is the beginning of all art. She comes from a line of ceramic artists stretching back generations and, as part of her multidisciplinary work, she also builds custom lowrider cars. (If that sounds like a contradiction, that's kind of the point.) In conversation with "Design Matters" podcast host Debbie Millman, Simpson invites you to find your own aesthetic ? not by searching, but by listening.

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We see consciousness in AI the same way we see faces in clouds, says neuroscientist Anil Seth. He explores the all-too-human tendency to project inner life onto machines that are brilliant mimics, not sentient beings, and gives a definitive answer to the urgent question: Will AI ever gain consciousness?

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Architect Riyad Joucka believes your home should be a mirror of who you are. Using 3D printing and ancient architectural wisdom, he's designing efficient, personal homes that respond to context, climate and culture without sacrificing character. He makes the case that we should start designing for people, not the market.

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Confidence doesn?t come before action ? it comes from taking action, says business leader Kat Cole, who worked her way up from waitress to CEO of a global health company. She presents a simple yet powerful practice called the ?hot shot rule? to help you step into a leadership mindset, break free from inertia and take decisive action when it matters most.

This episode originally aired in 2025.

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Over two decades of interviewing countless creative people, Debbie Millman (host of the iconic "Design Matters" podcast) had a realization: the pride and joy of accomplishing something often evaporates almost instantly. She explains how to stop chasing external validation for your achievements and instead live for the act of creation itself.

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Why does searching your symptoms online always leave you more frightened than before? As former chief medical officer of WebMD, physician John Whyte spent years believing more information meant better health ? until he saw how too much of it was making people spiral. In a world of health influencers, algorithms and AI tools designed to keep you clicking, he reveals why clarity and context is a better prescription. 

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The author of the award-winning novels ?Pachinko? and ?Free Food for Millionaires,? Min Jin Lee, discusses her remarkable career and the long journey and intention behind her Korean diaspora novels.

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?Every conversation has the potential to open up and reveal all the layers and layers within it, all those rooms within rooms," says musician and host of the beloved podcast Song Exploder, Hrishikesh Hirway. In this profoundly moving talk from 2022, he offers a guide to deep conversations and explores what you learn when you take that same kind of close listening we often give to music, and turn it toward people.

A lot has changed for Hrishikesh since this popular talk was released, and after more than a decade helping other artists tell their stories and helping us think about listening in new ways, he's got a new solo album that just came out, called In the Last Hour of Light, which he describes as a memoir of sorts. Elise Hu, host of TED Talks Daily, caught up with him earlier this month to talk about his new album, how his ideas about listening have evolved since his talk, and what his own creative process looks like today. They also do a mini Song Exploder of sorts to take a peak into Hrishikesh's own songwriting process, breaking down one of the new songs on this album, "Things Change, Even Now," (co-written with Vagabon), which is shared in full at the end of the episode.

This episode originally aired in 2022. The interview was recorded in April 2026.

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?Truth is the real oxygen for democracy,? says Vjosa Osmani Sadriu, the 6th President of the Republic of Kosovo. As a child of war, she once longed for someone to save her people. Now she?s been in the rooms where decisions are made ? and she?s never forgotten what brought her there. In conversation with solutions journalist Angus Hervey, she reflects on what it takes to defend democracy in a world where truth itself is under threat. (Recorded on April 14, 2026)

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What do the story of Oedipus and your insurance premiums have in common? They are both driven by self-fulfilling prophecies. Philosopher and TED Fellow Carissa Véliz traces the hidden power of prediction, from Roman emperors who banned prophets to the AI algorithms quietly making decisions about your life right now. We tend to associate predictions with knowledge, she says, but they're actually attempts to grab power. So the next time someone tells you a specific outcome is inevitable, remember: they aren't describing the future ? they're selling it.

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