Skip to main content

WIRED Middle East

Built To Crash: The UAE’s Eight-Year, One-Way Trip to a Red Asteroid
Space rocks

Built To Crash: The UAE’s Eight-Year, One-Way Trip to a Red Asteroid

A small probe has no engine to slow it down and no way to be steered from Earth. If it works, the mission could reveal what one of the solar system’s strangest asteroids is made of.
By Carla Sertin
Astronomers Confirm Discovery of the Youngest Known Exoplanet Ever
out of this world

Astronomers Confirm Discovery of the Youngest Known Exoplanet Ever

Under one million years old, “Elias 2-24b” is now the youngest exoplanet ever observed, and it may force researchers to reevaluate theories about how planets are formed.
By Teruyuki Hayakawa
Digger Is a Movie About Making Art While the World Burns
Dig in

Digger Is a Movie About Making Art While the World Burns

Tom Cruise’s strangest movie was sold as a gag reel. It’s actually the most unsettling portrait of our tech and climate moment yet.
By Carla Sertin
Is Roblox Safe for Kids? What Parents Need to Know
Video Games

Is Roblox Safe for Kids? What Parents Need to Know

Roblox has introduced age-based accounts and tighter chat rules. Here’s what those protections do–and what parents should check themselves.
You Probably Aren’t Going to Get the Plague
Health

You Probably Aren’t Going to Get the Plague

The death of a lab worker in Russia has authorities looking at whether plague played a role. Even if it did, though, the odds of it spreading are very low.
By Emily Mullin

Gaza

Israel’s Crocodile Prison Plan Is Part of a Wider Fight Over Nature
Security News

Israel’s Crocodile Prison Plan Is Part of a Wider Fight Over Nature

Palestinian ecologists say the proposal reveals how wildlife protections can be used to control land, resources and people.
By Kate McMahon
Palestinians Risked Their Lives to Document Gaza, Then Came The Algorithm
Algorithmic War

Palestinians Risked Their Lives to Document Gaza, Then Came The Algorithm

In Gaza, survival unfolds alongside a fight to be seen in a digital world increasingly shaped and manipulated by algorithms.
By Laura Albast
How Palestinians Are Building a Digital Archive That Can’t Be Erased
Digital Culture

How Palestinians Are Building a Digital Archive That Can’t Be Erased

Distributed backups, cyber resilience and half a million records are preserving Palestinian history beyond any single building or border.
By Tamara Davison
Gaza Is Rebuilding With Lego-Like Bricks Made From Rubble
Interlocking Gaza

Gaza Is Rebuilding With Lego-Like Bricks Made From Rubble

As reconstruction materials remain blocked, Palestinians are crushing debris into interlocking blocks to build shelters from destruction.
By Hassan Herzallah

SPECIAL EDITION

YOU, ONLINE ISSUE

Culture

log in, lock in

In the Age of Social Media, Silence Doesn’t Pay

In the endless noise of social media, silence stands out.
By Carla Sertin
Digital Culture

What Would A Child-Free Internet Look Like?

Social media bans promise to protect children. But young users, creators and their economic influence may simply move somewhere less visible.
By Megan Tomos
Lebanon’s LBCI Draws Criticism Over Sexism in AI-Generated Miss Lebanon Ad
Digital Culture

Lebanon’s LBCI Draws Criticism Over Sexism in AI-Generated Miss Lebanon Ad

An AI-generated casting ad for Miss Lebanon 2026 depicts men evaluating a woman’s looks. Critics say it objectifies potential contestants.
By Yasmina El Zein
Middle East Events 2026: What’s Cancelled, Postponed and Still Happening
FOMO

Middle East Events 2026: What’s Cancelled, Postponed and Still Happening

From Offlimits to Comic Con, these Middle East events have been cancelled, postponed or confirmed for new dates in 2026.
By Jumana Naim

Security

Security News

Every Iranian Strike on UAE Ports and Refineries Was Paired With a Cyberattack

The UAE says attacks on its ports and energy facilities have been accompanied by cyberattacks. Experts warn that connected industrial systems could be the next point of failure.
By Iain Akerman
US Strikes on Iran Were War Crimes, UN-Backed Mission Finds
Security News

US Strikes on Iran Were War Crimes, UN-Backed Mission Finds

The mission found failures in how a school in Iran was targeted. New reporting raises questions about AI’s role, but its impact remains unproven.
By Tamara Davison
Israel Is Blowing up South Lebanon So Hard It Registers as Earthquakes
Security News

Israel Is Blowing up South Lebanon So Hard It Registers as Earthquakes

A massive Israeli demolition in south Lebanon registered at magnitude 4.1. Here’s how an explosion can resemble an earthquake.
By Ghalia Alwani
Security News

What Happens to Your Photos After You Upload Them to ChatGPT?

The viral ChatGPT trend asks users to upload selfies – but what happens to your photos and personal data after you hand them over?
By Gia Chaudry

THE BIG STORY

How To and Advice

Israel Is Trying to Shape What Chatbots Say. We Tested Six.

Israel contracted a US firm to shape GPT conversations. WIRED Middle East tested whether its campaign sites are surfacing in chatbot answers.
By Malak Saleh
Digital Culture

Inside the Muslim Manosphere Policing Women Online

By Maysaa Ajjan
Digital Culture

A Stranger Made an AI Clone of My Voice. My Friend Thought It Was Me

By Carla Sertin

Business

What Is Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI, and How Close Are We?
Artificial Intelligence

What Is Artificial General Intelligence, or AGI, and How Close Are We?

Artificial general intelligence could transform how we work. But experts disagree on what it means—and whether today’s AI is close.
By Malak Saleh
OpenAI Delays Release of Latest Model Over Safety Concerns
Artificial Intelligence

OpenAI Delays Release of Latest Model Over Safety Concerns

The company said its latest Astra model would undergo more work to meet safety standards, and issued an apology for the way it handled the hacking of an Australian government website.
By Isabella Ward
Napster Is Back and It Wants to Digitally Clone Your Teacher
Encore

Napster Is Back and It Wants to Digitally Clone Your Teacher

Once the music industry’s biggest headache, Napster’s next act is bringing AI to the classroom.
By Iain Akerman
One of AI’s Fiercest Critics Says All the Doom Talk Is “Meant to Distract Us”
Artificial Intelligence

One of AI’s Fiercest Critics Says All the Doom Talk Is “Meant to Distract Us”

Timnit Gebru argues that AI companies are stoking fears of extinction to avoid discussing actual harms, like autonomous weapons.
By Lauren Goode

Gear

Fashion Tech Accessories We’re Watching in 2026
Products

Fashion Tech Accessories We’re Watching in 2026

From a Diesel smart ring to Kylie Jenner’s AI glasses, these devices make a case for putting tech in your outfit.
By Megan Tomos
Two Driverless Cars Crashed Going 250kmph. That Could Be a Good Thing.
Gear News

Two Driverless Cars Crashed Going 250kmph. That Could Be a Good Thing.

At Imola, only two of five A2RL cars finished the race – exposing what happens when autonomous systems meet blind corners, sensor failures and physics.
By Tamanna Sajeed
ZuckOff Is a Free App That Sees Meta Glasses Before They See You
Eye Spy

ZuckOff Is a Free App That Sees Meta Glasses Before They See You

You can't always tell if someone is recording you with their smart glasses – but your phone can help.
By Megan Tomos
Gear News

Humanoid Robots Are Funny – Until They Aren’t

Viral videos of humanoid robots falling look like slapstick. But they expose the limits of technology being readied for work and war.
By Malak Saleh

Science

This Cyborg Cockroach Could Save Lives in Disaster Zones
Environment

This Cyborg Cockroach Could Save Lives in Disaster Zones

Researchers have developed remotely controlled cockroaches that can locate victims and deliver injections–but only to simulated targets so far.
By Ritsuko Kawai
Health

What Is TPO – And Could It Be in Your Gel Manicure?

Europe banned TPO from gel polish over fertility concerns. Dubai can test for it, but its presence in UAE salons remains unknown.
By Bianca Carrera
What’s the Difference Between Postpartum Psychosis and Postpartum Depression?
Psychology and Neuroscience

What’s the Difference Between Postpartum Psychosis and Postpartum Depression?

The Lindsay Clancy trial has put postpartum psychosis in focus. Here’s how the rare psychiatric emergency differs from postpartum depression.
By Evangeline Elsa
The UAE Is Betting Big on Medical AI. Now Comes the Hard Part
Health

The UAE Is Betting Big on Medical AI. Now Comes the Hard Part

From autism screening to cancer diagnosis, the UAE’s medical AI ambitions face a harder test: proving these tools work in clinics.
By Malak Saleh
No AI, No Uploads, No Ads: Divine's CEO Says Friction Could Save Social Media
Digital Culture

No AI, No Uploads, No Ads: Divine's CEO Says Friction Could Save Social Media

The six-second video app is banning everything that made modern social media frictionless. Its founder says that's exactly what will make people trust what they're watching
By Megan Tomos
The Open-Source Investigators Reconstructing the Middle East’s Wars
Security News

The Open-Source Investigators Reconstructing the Middle East’s Wars

As journalists are shut out of conflict zones, investigators are using satellite imagery, social media and 3D modelling to document atrocities. But evidence alone cannot deliver accountability.
By Iain Akerman
YouTube Star AboFlah Made Streaming His Life. He Wants His Kids to Live Offline
THE ESCAPE ISSUE

YouTube Star AboFlah Made Streaming His Life. He Wants His Kids to Live Offline

AboFlah talks about his new goals, streaming for charity, and when it's time to log off.
By Carla Sertin
Roger Waters and Mona Miari Refuse to Become “Comfortably Numb”
Movies and TV

Roger Waters and Mona Miari Refuse to Become “Comfortably Numb”

Millions watch Gaza on their phones. Little changes. In a nine-minute reworking of a 47-year-old song, Roger Waters and Mona Miari refuse the numbness the feed is selling.
By Dana Alomar