100x Audio Digital-to-Analog Performance Improvement

Multi-Path is a new audio digital-to-analog conversion (DAC) architecture that improves today’s best DAC performance by 100X (40dB) or more. Noise, linearity, and dynamic range are so advanced that today’s finest test equipment cannot fully measure it (40nVrms broadband noise floor). Read on to learn more about the 2025 Create the Future Design Contest Electronics finalist.

Silent Sentry: A Software-Defined Passive Sensor for Counter-Stealth and Battlefield Survivability

Silent Sentry is a software system that transforms existing passive microwave sensors into advanced threat detectors. The system is based on Passive Microwave Radiometry (PMR), which “listens” for the faint, naturally emitted thermal radiation from all objects. Read on to learn more about Silent Sentry, which was the Aerospace & Defense finalist at the 2025 Create the Future Design contest.

Ultra-Efficient Hydrogen Combustion for Clean, Distributed Power and Propulsion

REV Force, a radically new hydrogen-compatible engine platform developed by Alpha-Otto Technologies, combines a patented mode of engine operation with an advanced combustion strategy to redefine what’s possible in clean, distributed power. Read on to learn more about the Energy, Power & Propulsion Finalist from the 2025 Create the Future Contest.

Making Diesel Engines Nearly Emission-Free

The team spent seven years developing NOxZero™ — a highly efficient, low-cost, and easy-to-install technology that reduces diesel NOx emissions to near-zero levels. In the standard Diesel system, urea — also known as Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) or AdBlue — is injected into the diesel exhaust stream. Read on to learn more about the 2025 Create the Future Contest's Automotive & Transportation finalist.

2025 Award Finalists

In this article, you’ll learn about the Create the Future Design Contest finalists in all seven categories chosen from over 600 new product ideas submitted from 67 countries.

High-Performance Electrification Solutions Reshaping Military Systems

The electrification of military systems is a positive step that will deliver enormous technical, operational, and sustainability advantages across defense equipment lifecycles. But it requires deep system-level technical expertise to ensure systems work seamlessly together across power conversion, distribution, and conditioning. Read on to learn more.

My Opinion: What’s AI Good For?

Some applications of generative AI are quite useful, some not so much. One way to tame its exponentially expanding hunger for power is to use it intelligently.

Using Street Lamps as EV Chargers

EVs can have lower fuel costs and reduce emissions relative to cars that use gasoline, but they are only a practical option if drivers have convenient ways to charge them. To address this issue, a team of researchers at Penn State created a scalable framework to develop, analyze, and evaluate using streetlights as a low-cost, equitable EV charging option.

A High-Performance Mid-Infrared Imaging System Without Lenses

Researchers have used the centuries-old idea of pinhole imaging to create a high-performance mid-infrared imaging system without lenses. The new camera can capture extremely clear pictures over a large range of distances and in low light, making it useful for situations that are challenging for traditional cameras.

Light-Powered Motor Fits Inside a Strand of Hair

For more than 30 years, researchers have been trying to create small gears in order to construct micro-engines. But progress stalled at 0.1 millimeters, as it was not possible to build the...

MultiRobot Team Walks, Flies, and Rolls

Introducing X1: The world's first multirobot system that integrates a humanoid robot with a transforming drone that can launch off the humanoid's back and, later, drive away. The versatile team can...

Programming Robots with Rubber Bands

From sorting objects in a warehouse to navigating furniture while vacuuming, robots today use sensors, software control systems, and moving parts to perform tasks. The harder the task or more complex the...

Using an AI-Powered Robotic Unicycle to Study How People Learn Complex Motor Skills

The path to recovery for stroke survivors taking their first tentative steps, or individuals navigating daily challenges from balance disorders, often feels...

Autonomous Targeting Systems for a New Autonomous Ground Vehicle

Bryan Bockmon, CEO of AimLock, is the guest on this episode of the Aerospace & Defense Technology podcast to discuss their new partnership with Overland AI and the future of autonomous targeting systems in modern warfare.

Test Your Knowledge About Small Satellites

Small satellites are revolutionizing space-based services due to their affordability, faster development cycles, and flexibility. Take this quiz to test your knowledge about smallsats.

SAE Automotive Engineering Podcast: EV Manufacturing

To help pass the time during your commute or while working around the house or in the garage, we've launched the SAE Automotive Engineering podcast.

Meet HandProxy: A Digital, Voice-Controlled Hand that Aims to Enhance AR/VR

A digital, voice-controlled hand could improve the convenience and accessibility of virtual and augmented reality by enabling hands-free use of games and apps. The prototype software was developed by computer scientists at the University of Michigan.

3D Printing Ultrastrong Materials

EPFL researchers have pioneered a 3D printing method that grows metals and ceramics inside a water-based gel, resulting in constructions for next-gen energy, biomedical, and sensing technologies.