When then entire sky is your canvas, the possibilities are endless. #TEDTalks

From a boy setting off small explosions in his living room to the creator of world-famous pyrotechnic events, multidisciplinary artist Cai Guo-Qiang has always been drawn to gunpowder. He gives a stunning tour of his work — including his fireworks spectacle at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, his "sky ladder" of fire reaching to the clouds and new work created with AI — and shows how his art probes the line between destruction and construction, control and freedom, violence and beauty.
[NOTE: This TED Talk was delivered in Mandarin and translated live into English. The translation was put through a custom AI model of Cai Guo-Qiang’s voice, powered by technology from Metaphysic. What you’re hearing is how Cai would sound if he were speaking English.]

Post from TED on July 05, 2025