Freelance Breakthroughs Writer: Features & Profiles

Freelance journalists: MIT Technology Review is seeking pitches for our upcoming Breakthroughs Issue.

We're looking for big swings: narrative features, essential profiles, and sharp reported essays to go in the feature well of the magazine. The initial deadline for pitches is Friday August 7. Article drafts would be due in early October.

If you haven't seen it yet, please review our pitch guide. It includes general pitching advice, word rates, my e-mail address, and other helpful details.

Posted by: Rachel Courtland

MIT Technology Review welcomes pitches from freelance writers across a broad range of topics. We encourage writers of all skill levels, and from all backgrounds, to pitch us. We are especially interested in hearing from writers with backgrounds that are traditionally under-represented in technology and science journalism, and from outside the United States.

A quick note on AI

Please do not use AI to craft your pitch. Our editorial guidelines prohibit using generative AI to draft articles or parts of articles. We expect the same from pitches, which are supposed to showcase your writing abilities.

What is an MIT Technology Review story?

MIT Technology Review publishes a wide range of stories, from breaking news to long-term investigations. We want stories about technology itself, but we're particularly excited about those areas where technology and humans collide—where technology meets the real world.

In general, we commission news stories (generally 800-1,000 words), analysis pieces (800-1,000 words), and features (2,500-4,000 words) from freelance journalists for the website. In addition to news and features, the print magazine offers other potential formats for stories, including infographics and data spreads, reported essays, short profiles, and book essays. Please note we take op-eds very sparingly.

What makes a good MIT Technology Review pitch?

A pitch does not need to be long, but it should contain enough information to give the commissioning editor a good sense of what the end product would look like. A good pitch will tell us why our readers should care about your idea and why they should be reading about it now.

Features and essays

Features can take a wide range of possible approaches, including profiles, narrative features, and deep investigations. Feature pitches should have a specific story to tell—it is not enough to pitch an interesting topic. You must explain what kind of approach you'd take, what kind of ride you'll take readers on.

Pitching for print

The feature well of the magazine is devoted to narrative features, investigations, big profiles, and reported essays (generally between 2500-4000 words) centered around a theme.

Upcoming feature theme: Jan/Feb 2027: Breakthroughs (includes our annual round-up of high-impact innovations, pitches due mid-late July 2026)

How much does MIT Technology Review pay?

Rates range from $1 to $2 per word, depending on the experience level of the writer, the story, and the publication route. Deeply reported features pay more than shorter news pieces.