In a past article, I covered 8 inventions that we consider distinctly “American,” yet only exist through the hard work of immigrants from across the globe. From cheeseburgers to classic blue denim jeans, the influence of immigrants in American culture is obvious: we are a nation of immigrants, after all. Despite that, these achievements have been swept under the rug, replaced with dangerous, hateful rhetoric that targets hardworking, established members of our society and rips apart American communities. So, here’s a reminder of some other ways immigrants have made America great, with 8 MORE inventions that we shouldn’t take for granted:

1. CAPTCHA, reCAPTCHA, and Duolingo

If you’ve ever browsed the internet, you’ve run into CAPTCHA. Standing for “completely automated public Turing test to tell computers and humans apart," CAPTCHA helps distinguish between human users and bots. It does this by using distorted characters and letters that non-visually impaired humans can read, but bots cannot. While these puzzles may be annoyingly disruptive, CAPTCHA is a useful tool that prevents malicious bot activity and even makes it easier to buy countdown items like concert tickets. There are many intelligent minds behind the invention of CAPTCHA, but Guatemalan-American Luis von Ahn is often credited due to his foundational work in its development. Later, he went on to invent the upgrade to CAPTCHA. This is known as reCAPTCHA, which uses user behavior, such as cursor movement, and image-based puzzles to determine whether you’re human. Through using background analysis, reCAPTCHA is often considered superior to its predecessor for its user-friendliness and its ability to distinguish humans from more advanced bots.Ahn’s work doesn’t just stop there—he’s also the one behind the leading language-learning service Duolingo. This program offers over 40 languages to learn from, and is a well-known source for beginner-to-intermediate language learning, teaching millions across the globe.  

2. WhatsApp

WhatsApp is a free messaging program, unique for bypassing SMS fees by providing communication pathways over the internet. It’s currently owned by Meta, but was founded in 2009 by Jan Koum, a Ukrainian immigrant at San Jose State University, and Brian Acton, an American programmer from Stanford. The two met while working at Yahoo!, but left the company around a decade later, where Koum invented the popular messaging app with Acton’s encouragement. Due to their hard work, millions are able to connect with their loved ones across the globe, no matter how far. 

3. Hot Dogs

German immigrants popularized a LOT of food well-known to “American” cuisine: hamburger meat, potato salad, coleslaw, Frankfurters, you name it! However, hot dogs were specifically invented by a German immigrant in 1876, when Charles Feltman put a sausage on a bread roll to avoid customers needing plates and silverware. But that’s not all: the well-known chain, Nathan’s Famous Hot Dogs, was opened a few decades later by Nathan Handwerker, a past employee of Feltman’s. So, yes, this means the quintessentially American tradition of the Nathan's Famous Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest only exists thanks to an immigrant!

4. Theory of Relativity

If all the other countless accomplishments aren’t enough to convince you that immigrants have made America great, this one definitely should: Albert Einstein, the most famous scientist in the world, is a German-born immigrant. He is known for many scientific discoveries: the general theory of relativity (a pillar of modern physics), quantum mechanics (like the discovery of the photoelectric effect), and the mass/energy equivalence formula E=mc2, to name a few. While much of his direct contributions lie in theoretical physics, understand that his work pioneered the way to inventions like GPS, digital cameras, smartphone clocks, and lasers (used in smoke detectors, home security systems, and even supermarket doors). Regardless, his work has been groundbreaking in establishing our modern world.

5. Google

WhatsApp, YouTube, Duolingo—so many well-known online services and programs have come from the work of immigrants, and Google is no different. Michigan-born Larry Page and Russian-born Sergey Brin created the world’s most popular search engine in 1998. Their story begins at Stanford University, where Brin was assigned as Page’s guide in his consideration of the grad school. A year later, they began their work on a search engine called BackRub. It took a few years to gain traction and a lot of hard work within a garage, but soon BackRub was reinvented as Google and gained investor backing. While their first server was made out of Legos, the search engine and the company quickly expanded to the global superpower it is today.

6. Doughnuts

Doughnuts are yet another classic American treat that has immigrant origins. The actual invention of the doughnut is a bit convoluted: most cite the introduction of the olykeok (“oily cake”) brought by Dutch settlers in 1803 as the pre-evolution of the modern doughnut, but there’s even been some evidence that the doughnut has Native-American origins. Regardless, the ring-shaped treat we know today was only popularized in the U.S. after Adolph Levitt, a Jewish refugee fleeing Russia, invented the first doughnut machine in 1920. He named this machine the Wonderful Almost Human Automatic Donut Machine and brought doughnuts to tables across New York City. His success allowed him to expand his business, founding the Doughnut Corporation of America and Mayflower Doughnut shops, which began to distribute his doughnuts across the 50 states. 

7. mRNA Vaccines

mRNA vaccines are described as a “powerful alternative to traditional conventional vaccines because of their high potency, safety and efficacy, capacity for rapid clinical development, and potential for rapid, low-cost manufacturing.” While Hungarian-American Katalin Karikó and American Drew Weissman discovered mRNA vaccines in 2005, it was not until the COVID-19 pandemic that the vaccines’ potential and importance were fully realized. While scientific discoveries like the mRNA vaccine were invented through decades of hard work and the collaboration of many scientists throughout history, both Dr. Karikó and Dr. Weissman were awarded the 2023 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine for their foundational breakthroughs that saved countless lives. 

8. The Pulitzer Prize

The Pulitzer Prize is a set of annual awards from Columbia University in New York for “outstanding public service and achievement in American journalism, letters [literature], and music.” The Pulitzer Prize is regarded as a mark of American excellence, but did you know it was actually the Hungarian-born publisher Joseph Pulitzer who established the awards in his 1904 will? Pulitzer was known as “a passionate crusader against dishonest government [and] a fierce, hawk-like competitor who did not shrink from sensationalism in circulation struggles.” He is but one of many immigrants who are fundamental in establishing what’s quintessentially American, and has been for over a century. 

Everyone deserves an opportunity. Without the immigrants on this list, we would have missed out on so many inventions that have laid the foundation of what it means to be American. It doesn’t stop at inventions either; many of the leading women in politics and business have been immigrants: Madeline Albright, a Czech-American who became the first woman to be US Secretary of State, and Anne Elisabeth “Liz” Claiborne, a Belgian-American who was the first woman to be the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, to name a couple. The sharing of these cultures and ideas has always made the United States the country it is today, and supporting that diversity is the most patriotic you can be. So be a proper American, and welcome, embrace, and lift others’ voices!