Works in Progress is a magazine of new and underrated ideas to improve the world. It was founded in 2020, and is now a part of Stripe.
We are interested in economic growth, technology, policy, history, metascience, cities, medical research, aesthetics, transport, energy and much more.
We publish most pieces from our magazine on this Substack, as well as a range of Substack-specific work, including shorter articles, podcasts, links roundups, and chapters of Stewart Brand’s new book Maintenance: Of Everything.
Our most popular articles include The housing theory of everything, How mathematics built the modern world, The beauty of concrete, The maintenance race, and The future of weight loss. Go to our archive to see all our past issues.
Many pieces that were written specifically for this Substack have become classics in their own right. These include Hannah Ritchie’s diary of the surprising things she does to reduce her environmental impact, Stian Westlake’s explanation of how the degrowth movement succeeded in Britain, Alex Chalmers’s account of the collapse of the Spanish electricity grid, and Nick Whitaker’s history of the home espresso machine.
We’re always open to new pitches. If you like these posts, you should subscribe. And if you would like to get more involved, you should sign up to our events list!
