Journey into the groundbreaking world of implantable technology. Discover the science driving these innovations, explore the life-changing devices already in use, and glimpse the remarkable advancements still on the horizon.

Over millennia, humanity has mastered fire, wind, steam and even the atom to fuel its progress. Now, we stand on the brink of the next monumental leap: fusion.

Step inside LLNL’s National Ignition Facility, home to the world’s largest and most powerful laser. It’s a building as vast as three football fields, with beams amplified a million times in strength, all focused on a tiny target no bigger than a centimeter. The scale is immense, but the goal is even bigger: to create the most extreme conditions in the universe and unlock a revolutionary energy source.

Think of the nuclear triad—land, sea and air—as a three-legged stool that holds up the entire US defense strategy. For this "stool" to remain steady, the weapons, systems and devices within each leg must be credible. But what does it take to ensure that credibility?

Today, we're diving deep into the national security principle of strategic deterrence—a policy designed to win wars not by preparing for their inevitability, but by preventing them outright.

In the 1960s, a quiet revolution was taking shape behind the scenes—one that would eventually touch every corner of our modern world. As Cold War tensions rose and the future grew more uncertain, scientists embarked on a mission to harness a new kind of power: high-performance computing. What began as an effort to solve complex nuclear challenges would soon transform the way we think, work, and live.

This is the story of how Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory was born—and how it began to change the world.

Welcome to Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, where groundbreaking scientific discoveries are transforming the way we understand, interact with and shape our reality.

Welcome to the Big Ideas Lab, a weekly podcast that takes you inside Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. Hear untold stories, meet boundary-pushing pioneers and get unparalleled access to groundbreaking science and technology. From national security challenges to computing revolutions, discover the innovations that are shaping tomorrow, today.