Now Available: Innovators Under 35 2014 See The 2014 List »

Since 1999, the editors of Technology Review have honored the young innovators whose inventions and research we find most exciting; today that collection is the TR35, a list of technologists and scientists, all under the age of 35. Their work--spanning medicine, computing, communications, electronics, nanotechnology, and more--is changing our world.
2009 Innovator of the Year: Kevin Fu
2009 Humanitarian of the Year: José Gómez-Márquez
Andrea Armani
Sensitive optical sensors detect single molecules
Michael Backes
Proving that Internet security protocols can really be trusted
Jeffrey Bigham
Free service to help blind people navigate the Web
James Carey
Using “black silicon” to build inexpensive, super-sensitive light detectors
Jorge Conde
Offering consumers whole-genome sequencing--and software to interpret it
Ranjan Dash
Nanoporous carbon could help power hybrid cars
Adam Dunkels
Minimal wireless-networking protocols allow almost any device to communicate over the Internet
Nathan Eagle
Mining mobile-phone data for the public good
Cody Friesen
Making cheaper, higher-energy batteries to store renewable energy
Kevin Fu
Defeating would-be hackers of radio frequency chips in objects from credit cards to pacemakers
José Gómez-Márquez
Practical medical devices for use in poor countries
Jeffrey Heer
Easy-to-use tools allow people to present data in creative and interesting ways
Andrew Houck
Preserving information for practical quantum computing
Kurt Zenz House
Capturing carbon dioxide through cement production
Shahram Izadi
An intuitive 3-D interface helps people manage layers of data
Ali Javey
“Painting” nanowires into electronic circuits
Michelle Khine
A children’s toy inspires a cheap, easy production method for high-tech diagnostic chips
Anat Levin
New cameras and algorithms capture the potential of digital images
Erez Lieberman-Aiden
Quantitative tools offer new insights into evolution
Andrew Lynn
Repairing joints by stimulating regrowth in bone and cartilage
Ellis Meng
Micropumps deliver drugs that prevent blindness
Pranav Mistry
A simple, wearable device enhances the real world with digital information
Aydogan Ozcan
Inexpensive chips and sophisticated software could make microscope lenses obsolete
Shwetak Patel
Simple sensors to detect residents’ activities
Andrew Perlman
Slashing carbon emissions by converting coal into natural gas
Ashoke Ravi
Using software to send diverse radio signals
Vera Sazonova
World’s smallest resonator could lead to tiny mechanical devices
Elena Shevchenko
Assembling nanocrystals to create made-to-order materials
Vik Singh
Opening up search secrets to spur innovation
Dawn Song
Defeating malware through automated software analysis
Jaime Teevan
Using personal information to improve search results
C. Shad Thaxton
Nanoparticles could treat cardiovascular disease by mimicking “good cholesterol”
Andrea Thomaz
Robots that learn new skills the way people do
Adrien Treuille
Complex physics simulations that can run on everyday PCs
Cyrus Wadia
Identifying materials that could be unexpectedly useful in solar cells