What happens when the design of everyday things misses the mark? People fill in the blanks. Designer Kate Canales has spent more than 20 years photographing the handmade, improvised signs that appear when the original falls short. From perplexing bathroom directions to our struggles with doors and point-of-sale machines, her photos capture something technology can’t replace: our instinct to look out for each other and leave a few instructions behind. (Recorded at TEDNext 2025 on November 11, 2025)

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“Every conversation has the potential to open up and reveal all the layers and layers within it, all those rooms within rooms,” says podcaster and musician Hrishikesh Hirway. In this profoundly moving talk, he offers a guide to deep conversations and explores what you learn when you stop to listen closely. Stay tuned to the end to hear a performance of his original song “Between There and Here (feat. Yo-Yo Ma).”

Relationships were never meant to be efficient, says sextech expert Bryony Cole, and yet AI companions are increasingly designed to be exactly that. As intimate relationships between humans and AI become more common, Cole challenges us to think more deliberately about how we shape our connections to machines — and with each other. (This conversation, hosted by TED’s Whitney Pennington Rodgers, was part of an exclusive TED Membership event. TED Membership is the best way to support and engage with the big ideas you love from TED. To learn more, visit ted.com/membership.) (Recorded at TED Membership on February 5, 2026)

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