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Ahead of Skyscraper Live, hear the story behind Alex Honnold’s free solo at El Capitan #TEDTalks

Imagine being by yourself in the dead center of a 3,000-foot vertical cliff — without a rope to catch you if you fall. For professional rock climber Alex Honnold, this dizzying scene marked the culmination of a decade-long dream. In a hair-raising talk, he tells the story of how he summited Yosemite’s El Capitan, completing…

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Imagine being by yourself in the dead center of a 3,000-foot vertical cliff — without a rope to catch you if you fall. For professional rock climber Alex Honnold, this dizzying scene marked the culmination of a decade-long dream. In a hair-raising talk, he tells the story of how he summited Yosemite’s El Capitan, completing one of the most dangerous free solo climbs ever.

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19 Comments

19 Comments

  1. @bklynmyke

    January 23, 2026 at 3:12 pm

    How do you get down? Do you have to climb back down?

    • @tonytong5844

      January 23, 2026 at 3:27 pm

      Helicopter

    • @bklynmyke

      January 23, 2026 at 3:31 pm

      @tonytong5844 Thank you. I knew it had to be something like that.

    • @birmzboy

      January 23, 2026 at 3:43 pm

      There’s a hiking path to get back down on the Eastern ledge. 2-3 hour hike with some rappelling in parts, for which his crew left him gear for.

    • @aidenhamms7923

      January 23, 2026 at 3:44 pm

      Walk down the other side

    • @bklynmyke

      January 23, 2026 at 3:52 pm

      @birmzboy Oh, okay. That also makes sense. To the inexperienced, it looks like there’s that side of the mountain on all sides. But a path on a different side of the mountain makes sense. And probably cheaper than renting a helicopter to pick you up.

  2. @iborov

    January 23, 2026 at 4:04 pm

    Love baby love. Pure visualization of love for what you do.

  3. @Multiply6x9

    January 23, 2026 at 4:20 pm

    Incomprehensible to me!

  4. @jonathanzimmerman634

    January 23, 2026 at 5:24 pm

    This guy is impressive but that skyscraper live thing just feels like a bad idea. Watch a man climb a skyscraper or watch a man fall to a horrific death? It’s oddly morose.

  5. @LeBurkaTron

    January 23, 2026 at 9:39 pm

    The Dawn Wall is another great movie if you like this . But with kidnapping and Guns.

    Aand Free Solo ☝️is an astonishing accomplishment.

  6. @safespot69

    January 23, 2026 at 10:14 pm

    I hope it works out for you.? Not somebody I do!

  7. @monicadagna683

    January 24, 2026 at 2:39 pm

    This man is one of my heroes

    • @plato-avenue

      January 26, 2026 at 4:09 am

      Marc Andre was a beast too.

  8. @baristermbolor4867

    January 24, 2026 at 2:52 pm

    Until it goes wrong!

  9. @pink.29

    January 24, 2026 at 4:55 pm

    🤲👏

  10. @KimtheTravelingFoodie

    January 24, 2026 at 9:27 pm

    Absolutely not.

  11. @KingJ-w4z

    January 25, 2026 at 4:07 am

    Bros fingers and thumb are the missing link

  12. @godloving--611

    January 25, 2026 at 3:57 pm

    ❤❤❤❤❤❤

  13. @LuvwJ2025

    January 26, 2026 at 7:00 pm

    He truly showed the world all you need is a drive and passion not all those ropes and gadgets God already gave us that.

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The United States is on track to win the AI race — and hollow itself out in the process, says Gina Raimondo, former Governor of Rhode Island and US Secretary of Commerce. In this unflinching look at the threat of AI-induced economic disruption and social unrest, she offers a concrete blueprint to prepare workers for what’s coming next. “AI is a 100-year technology and needs a 100-year response,” she says. Is America up to the challenge?

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Entrepreneur and TED Fellow Jane Marie Chen started a company that created a low-cost, portable incubator for premature babies in underserved communities, with the goal of saving more than one million babies around the world. After a decade of relentless challenges, the company shut down — pushing her into complete burnout and a profound personal reckoning. In this powerful talk, she shares what happened next and how it taught her the secret to resilience.

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