Best Inventions of 2023

TIME magazine has put out its list of the year’s best inventions. Some of these help us solve problems. Others make life easier. Some are just plain fun. TIME for Kids shares eight of them here. Which one do you think is the best?

Stopping Fires

AlertCalifornia is a public-safety program. It was created at the University of California San Diego. Working with Cal Fire, it designed an AI Wildfire Detector. The system uses AI to detect smoke and other signs of fire. It has cameras across the state. How well does the system work? In two months, it spotted 77 fires. That was before any 911 calls came in. —By Pranav Dixit

Lifelike Animals

This is the Hologram Zoo. It’s in Brisbane, Australia. In this zoo, you don’t just see an elephant. You see a herd that runs toward you. The animals are not real. They just look real. Visitors can see polar bears and whales in action. It’s a fun way to see wildlife. And the animals don’t need to be kept in cages. —By Jeff Wilser

A Flying Car

This is no ordinary car. This one can fly. The Model A is an electric vehicle. It seats two people. It’s made by Alef Aeronautics. The Model A got a permit from the Federal Aviation Administration. This lets Alef take it on test flights. The company hopes to have the first Model A out by 2026.  —By Alejandro De La Garza

Play Along

The Duolingo app teaches language. Now it teaches music too. You can take lessons on a smartphone. The app uses an on-screen piano. You learn by matching sounds to notes. This lets you play along with popular musical pieces. There are nursery rhymes to choose from. There are symphonies too. With this app, you don’t need natural talent to learn music. —J.W.

Building with Braille

Lego Braille Bricks are used to teach children who are visually impaired. But anyone can learn with them. They’re like classic Lego bricks. But the bumps are arranged into braille letters and numbers. Rasmus Logstrup Jensen is a Lego designer. “Even sighted children and family members can show their interest in learning braille,” he says. —By John Mihaly

Easy Walking

Do these look like skates? They’re battery-­powered shoes with wheels. They let you walk faster and more easily. Moonwalkers are made by Shift Robotics. They use AI to sense when you’re speeding up or slowing down. The wheels lock when you’re taking the stairs. With Moonwalkers, you can go farther without getting tired. —P.D.

For Starry Nights

This is LeapFrog’s Magic Adventures Telescope. It’s for budding astronomers. It has a zoom camera. This lets you take pictures of the night sky. The viewfinder can also show images and videos of space. The set includes educational games, too. These take you around the solar system while you learn about space. —By Katie MacBride

Air on Mars

Astronauts could land on Mars one day. They’ll need air to breathe. But Martian air is mostly carbon dioxide. NASA’s Moxie has an answer. It attaches to a Mars rover. It can take oxygen from carbon dioxide. Oxygen will help astronauts breathe. It can be used to make rocket fuel too. That will get astronauts back home.  —J.W.