Impossible issue explores ambitious technology frontiers

MIT Technology Review’s final print edition of 2026 focuses on ambitious technologies intended to make life better, safer and healthier. The Impossible issue explores synthetic blood, cities on the moon and cognitive immortality, alongside a bionic eye designed to restore sight, blended meat and AI’s ability to refuse requests. It also revisits six technologies that have long been promised but remain elusive.

In lunar exploration, Astrolab’s FLIP rover is slated to carry a computer capable of running large language models to the moon as early as next month. The mission will test whether AI can support greater autonomy and real-time decision-making despite extreme temperatures and intense cosmic radiation.

Climate research in Alaska’s Denali National Park examines the aftermath of a 2013 lightning fire that burned nearly 35,000 acres. By stripping away insulating vegetation, the fire created an opportunity to study how permafrost thaw and carbon emissions can reinforce warming and further fires.

Separately, Goodfire researcher Nick Cammarata contends that large language models may be easier to understand, monitor and control than previously believed. His claims have attracted attention across the AI industry, but skeptics remain unconvinced.