In April 2025, Dallas-based Colossal Biosciences announced the successful birth of three dire wolves, calling it the world’s first true de-extinction. To achieve this, Colossal developed a first-of-its-kind mammalian cloning method from blood samples, leading to the company’s 2026 gold Edison Award. [Screenshot: Colossal video]

The 2026 Edison Awards were held in Fort Myers, Florida, last week, celebrating innovation and excellence in technological and product development—and three Dallas companies came away winners: Colossal Biosciences, Breakout Learning, and OhmBody.

Inspired by the legacy of Thomas Edison, the 39th annual event showcased breakthrough ideas, visionary leaders, and the innovations shaping what’s next. this year’s winners and participants reflect the power of innovation to shape industries, improve lives, and move the world forward.

A gold award for ‘first-ever’ mammalian cloning method

Dire wolf pups “de-extincted” via Colossal Biosciences technology. [Screenshot: Colossal video]

Colossal took home a gold Edison Award in the category of Health, Medical & Biotech: Next-Gen Biotechnology Platforms. The company was cited for developing a first-of-its-kind mammalian cloning method from blood samples, eliminating the need for invasive tissue collection. The technology was born from the company’s landmark dire wolf de-extinction work, the Edison Awards noted, removing “one of the biggest barriers to cloning endangered or difficult-to-sample species.”

In April 2025, Colossal announced the successful birth of three dire wolves, calling it the world’s first true de-extinction. The pups—two males named Romulus and Remus and a younger female named Khaleesi—are were soon exhibiting early pack behavior.

You can see a video of Colossal Chief Science Officer Beth Shapiro explaining the technology here.

A silver award for NextBook learning platform

Breakout Learning Co-Founders Steven Walters, Ramit Varma, and Joshua Oster-Morris. The company won a silver award at the 2026 Edison Awards. [Video still: Breakout Learning]

Breakout Learning—a Dallas-based AI educational platform designed to empower modern educators—won a silver Edison Award in the category of Cultural Impact & Education: Personalized Experiential Learning. Breakout was cited for its NextBook platform, which transforms passive study into active, AI-moderated peer discussion. By analyzing conversations against custom rubrics, NextBook gives instructors unmatched insight into learning, the Edison Awards noted—”making authentic, discussion-based education engaging, equitable, and scalable.”

You can see a video about Breakout Learning here. 

A bronze award for period-easing wearable device

Photo: OhmBody

OhmBody, the “science-forward” women’s wellness division of Dallas’ Spark Biomedical, won a bronze Edison Award in the category of Health, Medical & Biotech: Women’s Health & Reproductive Innovations. OhmBody was cited for its July 2025 release of the first wearable device for menstrual care that combines vagus and trigeminal nerve stimulation to provide holistic support for disruptive periods. The newly released device is said to help reduce cramps, reduce unhealthy amounts of menstrual blood loss, and provide support for other disruptive effects of periods, the Edison Awards noted.

You can see a video about the device by going here.

Other 2026 Edison Award winners

There are 149 winners of the 2026 Edison Awards spanning 20 countries. They were chosen from over 40,000 product nominations evaluated by more than 3,000 judges from the products’ respective industries, as well as members of the awards’ steering committee, the organization said. The gold, silver, bronze winner status was judged by a panel of previous winners.

You can see the full list of 2026 Edison Award winners by going here. The 2026 Edison Achievement Award winners can be viewed here.

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