Meet the 2026 Ig Nobel Prize winners
THE SO WHAT
The Ig Nobels are a reminder that odd, low-status research often seeds later breakthroughs and IP. R&D leaders should keep a small portfolio for unconventional bets—your competitors will mine this fringe work once it becomes legible.
READ THE SOURCE
MORE FROM THE WIRE
Tech & InnovationA White House official says Zuckerberg opposed a US AI regulator in a call with Trump last month; another source says he didn't ask Trump to change his stance
If one of the largest AI deployers is arguing against a dedicated national regulator directly to the White House, the near-term risk is fragmented, sector-by-sector rules instead of a single playbook. Operators should plan for overlapping regimes — privacy, competition, safety, labor — rather than betting on a unified AI authority.
Tech & InnovationAnker's 'personal fabric printer' will let you print customs designs on t-shirts and bags — new 'Direct-to-Garment' printing looks perfect for your side hustles
Cheap direct-to-garment hardware at consumer scale pushes more of the merch stack in-house — design, production, and fulfillment can collapse into a bedroom operation. If you run a brand or marketplace, assume more fragmented, on-demand inventory and rethink how you add value beyond the print itself.
Tech & InnovationThe Grand Tour presenters had Amazon meeting 'days after' Richard Hammond Throttle House cameo on YouTube — 'we had no idea of any details'
Legacy-format talent is already seeding YouTube-native franchises before the ink is dry on their next studio conversations. For anyone running IP or talent deals, the negotiation now assumes creators will multi-home across platforms — lock in rights and spin-offs explicitly.
Tech & InnovationTikTok Is Supercharging Comments With Voice, Photo Carousels, and Polls
TikTok turning comments into a full media surface — voice, carousels, polls — means engagement and discovery will live as much under the video as in it. Brands and creators need moderation, analytics, and content ops that treat the comment layer as a parallel channel, not an afterthought.