Fast Company Names Boston University–Designed Sound Shield a “World Changing Idea”
The smart sound shield can act “like an open window for air but a barrier for noise,” says BU engineer Xin Zhang. Image courtesy of Zhang/BU Laboratory for Microsystems Technology
Fast Company Names Boston University–Designed Sound Shield a “World Changing Idea”
Technology could make air conditioners, airplanes, and data centers quieter
Our world is a cacophony of sound: air conditioners rattle, factories thrum, airplanes roar. And all that clamor isn’t just annoying—excessive noise can also mess with our well-being, impacting cardiovascular and mental health, memory, even birth weights.
An emerging technology from Boston University researchers offers a path to a quieter future. Developed in the lab of mechanical engineer Xin Zhang, the smart sound shield blocks noise without restricting airflow—an attribute that could be used to turn the volume down on a range of technologies, from fans to engines.
In recognition of its potential impact, the smart sound shield has been named an honoree on Fast Company’s 2026 World Changing Ideas Awards list.
To dampen noise, the shield uses metamaterials, which Zhang describes as “engineered materials whose structure can be precisely designed to manipulate different types of waves, including electromagnetic and sound waves.”
According to Fast Company, World Changing Ideas finalists were selected from 1,500 entries nationwide and all “tackle the world’s most pressing issues.”
“The World Changing Ideas Awards are more than inspiration—they’re a measure of real-world impact,” says Brendan Vaughan, Fast Company‘s editor in chief. “This year’s honorees are turning bold ideas into tangible solutions and addressing urgent global challenges with creativity and rigor.”
It’s the second year running that Zhang, a BU College of Engineering Distinguished Professor of Engineering, has earned the leading business magazine’s recognition. In 2025, her team’s low-cost, metamaterials-infused device to boost the speed and accuracy of MRI scans was an academic excellence category honoree. Her BU colleague James Galagan, an ENG professor of biomedical engineering, also made last year’s list, for his work on a biosensor to monitor fertility.
The Brink spoke with Zhang to learn more about the smart sound shield and its potential impact.
Q&A
With Xin Zhang
The Brink: What is the smart sound shield—and how does it work?
Zhang: The smart sound shield is a technology that can significantly reduce unwanted noise while still allowing air to pass through freely. Traditionally, those two goals have been in conflict. If you want to block sound, you typically need a wall, enclosure, foam, or other barrier that also blocks airflow. The smart sound shield challenges a century-old engineering constraint that has shaped how we design buildings, transportation systems, workplaces, and public infrastructure.
Using carefully engineered structures rather than electronics or moving parts, the smart sound shield manipulates sound waves in ways conventional materials cannot. Air flows through freely, while sound waves are redirected, trapped, and dissipated.
We first demonstrated this concept in 2019. The latest generation builds on that original breakthrough and takes an important step forward. Earlier designs were highly effective against specific types of noise; the new design is far more adaptable, suppressing a much broader range of sounds while preserving ventilation.
The Brink: What kinds of uses might the technology have?
Zhang: Noise pollution affects far more than comfort. It influences how people live, work, learn, and recover, particularly in environments such as offices, schools, hospitals, transportation systems, and urban infrastructure. It also has broader environmental consequences, affecting wildlife behavior and ecological systems. Despite its widespread impact, noise is often treated as an unavoidable byproduct of modern life. At the same time, many of the systems that generate noise also require airflow to function: ventilation systems, cooling equipment, transportation infrastructure, industrial machinery, factories, and data centers all depend on moving air.
Potential applications include HVAC systems, vehicles, aircraft, data centers, public infrastructure, and consumer products. Ultimately, our goal is to help create healthier, quieter, and more sustainable environments without sacrificing comfort, ventilation, or energy efficiency.
The Brink: What are the next steps to commercializing the technology?
Commercialization has been part of our vision from the beginning. We have developed an extensive international patent portfolio and have received interest from numerous companies across a broad range of sectors. The next phase focuses on adapting the technology to specific products and applications. A successful laboratory demonstration is only the beginning. Real-world deployment requires scalable manufacturing, durability, cost-effective integration, regulatory considerations, and compatibility with existing systems.
Many companies and organizations have reached out to us with challenges and application opportunities that we had never previously considered. The response reinforced how widespread and important noise pollution is across many sectors of society. The exchange has been remarkably two-way: we have shared the possibilities of the technology, while industry and end users have helped us better understand real-world needs, constraints, and opportunities.
The Brink: What does this recognition from Fast Company mean for you and your team?
It is especially meaningful because it highlights impact beyond the research community. Scientific awards often recognize discovery and technical achievement. Fast Company’s World Changing Ideas program asks a different question: Can this innovation make a meaningful difference in people’s lives? That question has always been central to our work.
This recognition is also a tribute to my students—both past and present—whose creativity, perseverance, and hard work transformed a scientific idea into a technology with real-world potential. Research breakthroughs rarely happen overnight. They are usually the result of years of experimentation, refinement, teamwork, and persistence. This technology reflects countless contributions from students who continually pushed ideas forward, challenged assumptions, built prototypes, conducted experiments, and explored new directions.
For all of us, the award serves as encouragement to continue pursuing ideas that are not only scientifically interesting, but also capable of improving people’s lives in meaningful ways.
The Brink: What’s the next problem you’d like to tackle or solve?
Throughout my career, I have been fascinated by how the physical design of a system can shape what that system is capable of doing. Traditionally, engineers often improve performance by developing new materials, adding more electronics, writing better software, or increasing system complexity. My research explores a different question: Can we solve important problems through better design? More specifically, I am interested in how the design of a system can achieve outcomes that would otherwise require additional hardware, power, or complexity. That question has led us into areas ranging from acoustics and photonics to medical imaging and intelligent engineering systems.
In many cases, engineers have long accepted compromises between competing objectives—noise reduction versus airflow, imaging performance versus complexity, functionality versus efficiency. I am most excited by opportunities to challenge those assumptions and find solutions that no longer require those compromises.
