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  • 8 years4

    Why

    Cranking up the appeal of purchasing goods online by offering same-day delivery in some places.

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  • 8 years22

    Why

    Pushing the physical boundaries of computing with technologies inclusing circuits that transmit data with light.

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  • 7 years43

    Why

    Launching the private space-flight business. Its rockets are making new space-based businesses possible.

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  • 6 years6

    Why

    Improving displays by extending its Retina technology from small screens to MacBooks and iPads.

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  • 6 years17

    Why

    Figuring out how to correlate online and offline activity, which should lead to novel advertising methods.

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  • 6 years21

    Why

    Running the most widely used smartphone software, which has greatly expanded the competition for devices.

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  • 6 years23

    Why

    Driving down the cost of DNA sequencing and creating new diagnostics markets for genomics.

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  • 5 years25

    Why

    Surpassing rivals in the performance of mobile processors, even though it still trails badly in market share.

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  • 5 years45

    Why

    Dominating Chinese social media. The company's version of Twitter is hugely influential in political affairs.

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  • 4 years7

    Why

    Beginning to sell a novel kind of battery that it can manufacture cheaply; utilities could use it for grid storage.

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  • 4 years20

    Why

    Helping utilities make use of wind and solar. A new GE gas turbine ramps up quickly when greener power isn't available.

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  • 4 years29

    Why

    Combining traditional computing with touch technology. Windows 8 could influence the PC and mobile markets.

    $15 billion:

    projected annual revenue for its commercial cloud business

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  • 4 years42

    Why

    Developing batteries and wind technologies that will be crucial in Germany's plan to rely more heavily on renewable power.

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  • 4 years44

    Why

    Streamlining transactions. A Square mobile app lets you pay for things just by speaking your anme to a store clerk.

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  • 3 years8

    Why

    Becoming a bigger factor in computing as it expands from mobile chip designs into tablet, PC, and server processors.

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  • 3 years11

    Why

    Opening the biggest solar plant where mirrors reflect light onto a tower to generate steam.

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  • 3 years40

    Why

    Leading the market for smartphones and making a tablet that is one of the few credible challengers to the iPad.

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  • 3 years46

    Why

    Expanding its dominance of the hybrid-car market with its new plug-in version of the Prius.

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  • 2 years3

    Why

    Advancing ultra-efficient solar. The military will use Alta's flexible sheets to provide portable power to drones and soldiers.

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  • 2 years19

    Why

    Offering a genetic test that helps doctors select the right drugs for cancer patients.

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  • 2 years33

    Why

    Developing a continuous drug-manufacturing process that could combine compounds quickly and in novel ways.

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  • 2 years36

    Why

    Making efficient LED light bulbs affordable and more useful. One new bulb can be controlled by phones and tablets.

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  • 2 years38

    Why

    Broadening the use of robotics in manufacturing. Its robots are easily taught and can work safely alongside humans.

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  • 2 years39

    Why

    Extending the use of the mobile currency M-Pesa in Kenya. Its new mobile lending service challenges banks.

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  • 1 years1

    Why

    Perfecting a circuit breaker for high-voltage DC lines—a crucial step for widespread use of renewable energy.

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  • 1 years2

    Why

    Streaming local TV programs to mobile devices, filling a void left by broadcasters who have essentially ignored the Internet.

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  • 1 years5

    Why

    Making a battery for storing energy on power grids. Its molten electrodes quickly absorb large amounts of electricity.

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  • 1 years9

    Why

    Pushing autonomous cars closer to fruition with a laser-scanning road detector that fits in a vehicle's front grille.

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  • 1 years10

    Why

    Sequencing more genomes than anyone else and becoming a worldwide provider of genome services.

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  • 1 years12

    Why

    Producing a new kind of glass that is thin and flexible yet strong enough to be used in touch-screen devices.

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  • 1 years13

    Why

    Making college courses available free online and developing ways to adjust them to students' individual needs.

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  • 1 years14

    Why

    Introducing a new kind of antivirus software that's better at detecting attacks and identifying their sources.

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  • 1 years15

    Why

    Making inexpensive diagnostic tests on paper, which could greatly benefit poor countries.

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  • 1 years16

    Why

    Commercializing roof shingles that incorporate photovoltaic materials and thus double as cheaply installed solar panels.

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  • 1 years18

    Why

    Collecting and analyzing big data sets to create stores of knowledge that can inform many kinds of software.

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  • 1 years24

    Why

    Challenging Google and Apple in the market for mobile ads. InMobi sells, distributes, and helps make the ads.

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  • 1 years26

    Why

    Developing relatively small antennas that replace satellite dishes so planes and trains can get better broadband service.

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  • 1 years27

    Why

    Bringing gesture control to any computer. Leap's $70 controller responds to pinches, grabs, and swipes in the air.

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  • 1 years28

    Why

    Pioneering stretchable electronics with applications in sports and medicine, like an impact-sensing skullcap.

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  • 1 years30

    Why

    Expanding the delivery of live baseball and other sports video to mobile devices.

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  • 1 years31

    Why

    Bringing the smartphone revolution to more poor countries with Firefox OS, which is based on Web technology.

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  • 1 years32

    Why

    Marketing a thermostat that learns users' temperature preferences and maximizes efficiency as it implements them.

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  • 1 years34

    Why

    Creating new applications for speech recognition technology, from cars to video games.

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  • 1 years35

    Why

    Demonstrating an alternative business model for social networking: selling users extra services.

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  • 1 years37

    Why

    Creating a social network centered on collecting and finding images of desired products and experiences.

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  • 1 years41

    Why

    Using a novel method of concentrating sunlight through tiny lenses to boost the efficiency of solar power.

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  • 1 years47

    Why

    Restoring the promise of gene therapy. The Dutch company has approval to treat a rare metabolic disorder.

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  • 1 years48

    Why

    Threatening the likes of Cisco by using a compression technology to enable high-def video conferencing on smartphones.

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  • 1 years49

    Why

    Making cloud services more powerful with software-defined networking, a technology it gained by buying startup Nicira.

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  • 1 years50

    Why

    Automating urban services. A Xerox system in Los Angeles changes the price of parking spots as demand fluctuates.

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