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Wrap up 2024 with a look back at your favorite TED Talks of the year— from AI and aliens to work advice and democracy. Have you seen any of the top 10 most-watched? Visit the link in bio to check out the full playlist and more — including the most mind-blowing talks and others to help you become a better human in 2025.

If you struggle with being photographed, this one is for you. In her @tedxwinnipeg talk, photographer @TeriHofford explains that there’s a disconnect between what your brain sees in your reflection and what you see in a picture of yourself — and how this can cause discomfort or contempt when they don’t match. Her advice? Look at yourself in photos more. By doing so she says it helps your brain understand that both realities are, in fact, true. “I want this to encourage you to take all the photos of all the moments and just recognize that they’re simply different documentations of this one wild, magic, amazing life of yours,” she says. “And maybe, just maybe, you don’t actually look bad in photos.” Visit the link in @TED’s bio to watch hear 4 more reasons why you may think you’re not photogenic — and how to feel more confident in photos.

Take a moment to dive deep into the sea and spend time with some of the ocean’s incredible creatures. In this classic TED Talk, oceanographer David Gallo explores the blackest depths of the oceans where bioluminescence flicker in neon lights — then, he brings us back up to shallow waters to follow a seemingly invisible octopus and a color-changing cuttlefish. Visit the link in bio to see more jaw-dropping work from ocean explorers and fellow TED speakers Edith Widder and Roger Hanlon.

From computers you wear in your ears to a tiny robot that you can swallow that let’s doctors see inside your stomach, this year brought some of the latest and greatest in innovation to the TED stage. Here are just 5 of our top tech talks of 2024. Visit the link in our bio to watch these plus 3 more!

If you ever find yourself questioning your place in the world, journalist Krista Tippett (@onbeing) suggests drawing inspiration from poet Rainer Maria Rilke — and learn to live with your questions instead of rushing to answer them. In doing so, she says you may find yourself opening up to new possibilities you may not have found otherwise. “It is a deep, deep truth in science as in life that at any given moment we are being shaped as much by the questions we’re carrying as by the answers we have it in us to give,” she explains. “Those moments when a new question rises up in us, stops us in our tracks, those are pivot points. Those are moments when the possibility of discovery breaks in.” Visit the link in our bio to watch her full talk.

Meet imma (@imma.gram) — the virtual influencer making a real-world impact. In this TED Talk, talent manager Sara Giusto (@saragiustoo) invites her biggest client on stage and shares how she’s built a major social media presence — despite not being human. For Giusto, virtual influencers like imma can help us explore our relationship with technology and each other. “I truly believe that this virtual human technology will better our world and make the treasures that we have as humans — our love, our connection and our self-expressions — way better,” she says. Visit the link in our bio to watch the full talk.

Consent isn’t just about sex, says @TEDFellow Kaz (@kazkarenlucas) — it’s about communication and relationships. In her TED Talk, she explains how young people often struggle to talk about consent, which can lead to challenging experiences throughout their lives. She also offers 4 key guidelines for teaching bodily autonomy — and explains how demystifying the topic can lead to healthier communication and behaviors for all. “I truly believe that the more we talk about sex, the safer and the better it’ll be for everybody,” she says. Visit the link in @TED’s bio to watch the full talk.

One of the most important things you can get good at in your career is taking risks, says community builder Molly Graham. In her TED Talk, she shares how we often feel pressured to climb the corporate ladder — what she calls “the stairs” — and how true success is found when we jump off that path and into new possibilities. “It takes bravery to trade the known for the unknown,” she says. “But you will never really know who you are or what you are capable of until you learn how to try.” Visit the link in our bio to watch the full talk.

The top 10 TED podcast episodes of 2024 are here! This year, we shared conversations across all our different shows that asked profound questions like: Why does body image affect us so much? How do you know if you are in a cult? And can an AI chatbot help you make major life decisions?⁠ We also want to extend a special thank you to all of our listeners who tuned in this year. We’re thrilled to share even more curiosity-igniting and thought-provoking episodes and shows in 2025. Visit the link in our bio to listen to this special playlist of episodes.

There’s a cycle of violence perpetuated by men, explains gender equality advocate Gary Barker — and it starts with how they’re raised. In his TED Talk, he shares how having honest conversations about masculinity can help break these harmful patterns — and begin fostering a culture of care, compassion and connection among young men. “We must talk about manhood. And I also believe that it is this conversation about pulling men into care that we get them to be allies for gender equality,” he says. Visit the link in our bio to watch the full talk.

The couple behind the largest private land donation in history. @tompkins_conservation @rewildingchile @rewilding_argentina Host: @manoushz • Manoush Zomorodi/NPR Producers: Matthew Cloutier/NPR, @nickolaihammar • Nickolai Hammar/NPR Correction: Kristine Tompkins’ name and the shortened version of her first name, Kris, were spelled incorrectly in the subtitles of a previous version of this video.

You have more control over your emotions than you think. In her TED Talk, psychology professor Lisa Feldman Barrett (@lfeldmanbarrett) explains how our brains predict what we feel based on the sensations in our body — like getting sweaty palms during a test — and how learning to rethink our experiences can actually improve them. “You have the capacity to turn down the dial on emotional suffering and its consequences for your life by learning how to construct your experiences differently,” she says. “And all of us can do this and with a little practice.” Visit the link in @TED’s bio to watch the full talk.