The Boston Globe’s Tech Power Players list for 2026 features numerous MIT faculty, researchers and alumni. In response to a question about the most promising area in the Boston tech scene right now, President Sally Kornbluth shared: “There isn’t a more important technological field right now than quantum science and technology, and the Boston area has the greatest concentration of quantum talent anywhere in the world.”
Writing for IEEE Spectrum, reporter Matthew S. Smith highlights Fractal, a new operating system hand-coded by CSAIL researchers to provide a clear view of security vulnerabilities. “We paved the way with techniques such as custom kernel patches and kernel extensions,” says graduate student Joseph Ravichandran. “The dream was always to have a completely custom operating system which would make these hacks unnecessary.”
GBH "Particles of Thought" host Hakeem Oluseyi interviews Prof. David Kaiser about the puzzling nature of dark matter and how its explanation may be inconsistent with our assumptions of gravity. “If we assume we really know the laws of gravity, which Einstein wrote down beautifully just over a hundred years ago in his general theory of relativity...we have reason to be confident. But what people are saying is could dark matter be the first exception to that,” says Kaiser.
Associated Press reporter Rodrique Ngowi visits MIT to learn about how researchers in Prof. Xuanhe Zhao’s lab developed an ultrasound wristband that gathers data on human hand motions as part of an effort to help train humanoid robots to undertake complex tasks, from housework to surgery. “Imagine people doing housework,” says Zhao. “We can use the data obtained by our system to train a robot to do exactly (that) housework with this dexterous hand motion.”
Nature reporter Jyoti Madhusoodanan features Prof. Regina Barzilay and Prof. James Collin’s work developing AI tools aimed at accelerating the process of drug discovery and tackling the growing problem of antibiotic resistance. Barzilay notes that the goal of AI-based drug design is not to have the perfect method, but to find working solutions to the antibiotic-resistance crisis. “To me, the art is really in taking the tools we currently have, which are already doing quite a bit, and translating them into something which is useful in clinic,” she explains.
Prof. David Simchi-Levi speaks with Seb Murray of the Financial Times about how in an effort to increase their supply-chain resilience, companies are increasingly investing in digital tools to map supply chains, identify hidden vulnerabilities across supplier networks and prepare contingency plans. “It’s not enough to use intuition and experience,” Simchi-Levi explains. “You need data and analytics.”
In a series of papers published in the Journal of Plasma Physics, researchers from MIT, Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS) and other universities were able to validate the science and feasibility behind CFS’ plans to build a 400-megawatt fusion power plant, reports Timothy Gardner for Reuters.
Using an ordinary fridge magnet to control a microrobot might sound like fiction, but a team of MIT researchers engineered a technique to 3D-print magnetically activated robots and other materials that could be used in medicine and more. MIT graduate students Andrew Chen and Rachel Sun joined Edgar B. Herwick III of GBH’s Curiosity Desk to discuss their work and inspiration. Sun explains that ultimately, they’re “trying to develop these materials for everyday uses that push the frontiers of what’s possible and how we can help people in society.”
MIT engineers have developed a “two-in-one propulsion system that can fuel both traditional chemical thrusters and electrical thrusters, combining speed and power with slower, more precise maneuverability for small satellites,” reports Passant Rabie for Gizmodo. “The new propulsion system would allow small satellites to carry both thrusters using the same propellant, opening the door for cheaper, smaller spacecraft to explore beyond Earth orbit,” Rabie explains.
NPR reporter Jeff Brady spotlights a study by Prof. Jessika Trancik and Marco Miotti PhD ’20 that found “across most of the U.S., electric vehicles are cost-competitive with their gas counterparts. And it found that in most locations, EVs also reduce emissions between 40% and 60%.”
A study co-authored by Prof. Michiel Bakker finds that use of AI tools can impact cognitive function and problem-solving abilities in a relatively short period of time, reports Rob Taub for NewsNation. “We show that just 10–15 minutes of AI interaction can result in significant impairments in independent performance and persistence — capacities that are foundational to lifelong learning,” the researchers explain. “If brief exposure produces measurable erosion, the cumulative effects of daily AI use over months or years may be profound and difficult to reverse.”
Reporting from MIT, GBH’s Kirk Carapezza highlights how MIT is launching a “major effort to advance quantum computing, with a state investment of $25 million to help build a new research facility in Cambridge.” Said President Sally Kornbluth: “Everything you can think of that uses classical computing now, think about quantum speeding it up, making it more efficient. We think about the AI revolution and the expenses of AI and data centers. This is going to be impacted by a whole new different way of computing.”
President Sally Kornbluth and Governor Maura Healey announced the establishment of a new quantum hub at MIT, called the Quantum Systems Laboratory, which is aimed at enabling scientists to undertake impactful work applying quantum research across practical domains, including life sciences and national defense, reports Aaron Pressman for The Boston Globe. “Greater Boston has the greatest concentration of quantum talent anywhere in the world,” said Kornbluth. “It has been clear to us for some time that if we could magnify all of that talent with the right facilities and shared quantum toolbox, we could establish Massachusetts as a national hub for quantum innovation.”
To help establish Massachusetts and the nation as a quantum leader, President Sally Kornbluth and Governor Maura Healey announced plans for a new share-used quantum research facility at MIT, writes Axios reporter Steph Solis. The Quantum Systems Laboratory would “host teams focused on using quantum mechanics for life sciences and defense research, but what would set the MIT project apart from existing labs is its ability to power direct communication among multiple quantum computers,” Solis explains.
Thanks in part to a $25 investment from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, MIT plans to open the Quantum Systems Laboratory, which will “provide quantum experts from across Massachusetts access to quantum hardware and specialized equipment,” reports Lucia Maffei for the Boston Business Journal. "This is good news for MIT, good news for Massachusetts and, frankly, good news for the world," said Governor Maura Healey. "This is really setting the stage to have cutting-edge quantum computers be able to operate in that building," said President Sally Kornbluth. "There will be many people throughout Massachusetts who come to use this facility. It's really a hub to make Massachusetts a quantum center.”