Newsletter · Aug 27, 2026
How you'll spend a 79-year life — and 9 more charts
Society
How you'll spend a 79-year life
If a whole life of 79 years followed the average American's day, this is roughly how the years add up — nearly a third of it asleep, and more than half sleeping or working.
Chartive Editorial
Health
The world gained 27 years of life
Life expectancy at birth worldwide rose from about 46 years in 1950 to 73 in 2023 — one of humanity's great gains. COVID-19 caused the first global setback in a generation, before the trend resumed.
Chartive Editorial
Climate
Wind and solar reached one-sixth of world electricity
Share of the world's electricity generated by wind and solar, 2000 to 2025. It has climbed from a rounding error to about one-sixth — and in 2025 solar edged past wind for the first time.
Daniel Okafor
Demographics
117 billion humans have ever lived
Demographers estimate about 117 billion members of our species have ever been born. The 8 billion alive today are only about 7% of them — the other 93% came before us.
Chartive Editorial
Demographics
From 2.5 to 8 billion in 74 years
World population by region, 1950 to 2024. Humanity more than tripled in under three generations — Asia is still home to most people, while Africa has become the fastest-growing region.
Mara Ellison
Economy
A billion is bigger than you think
We treat a million, a billion and a trillion as close cousins. They are not — each is a thousand times the last. Counted one per second, the gap becomes almost unimaginable.
Chartive Editorial
Technology
The top of the market went all-in on tech
In 2000 the world's biggest companies were oil, retail, pharma and industry. By 2026 the top of the list is almost entirely technology and AI — and only Microsoft is still there.
Chartive Editorial
Climate
Batteries got 99% cheaper
The price of lithium-ion battery cells has fallen from about $9,200 per kilowatt-hour in 1991 to under $80 in 2024 (in constant 2024 dollars) — the quiet engine behind cheap solar storage and electric cars.
Daniel Okafor
Health
U.S. overdose deaths hit a record — then a historic drop
Fentanyl drove U.S. drug-overdose deaths to a record of about 109,000 in 2022. By 2024 they had fallen roughly 26% — the steepest decline on record.
Chartive Editorial
Climate
One in four new cars is now electric
Share of new cars sold worldwide that are electric — battery-electric or plug-in hybrid. In 2010 it was about 1 in 8,000; by 2025 roughly one in four new cars had a plug.
Chartive Editorial
Get the next issue in your inbox
The best new data stories every week — each with its sources and the raw data to download.
Double opt-in — we'll email you to confirm. Unsubscribe anytime. See our privacy policy.