Inventions & Breakthroughs of October 2002
Gadgets, lab surprises, odd bets, and future-shocks from this slice of the calendar.
1 
Robotic Vacuum Cleaner
2 
Smartphone with Touch Interface
3 
Web Services APIs
4 
Social Networking Platform (Friendster)
5 
Online Payment Expansion
6 
Wi-Fi Security Standard (WPA)
7 
Digital Audio Streaming
8 
Medical Robotic Surgery Expansion
9 
High-Definition Digital Television
10 
Location-Based Mobile Services
The Sounds of
Popular recordings and roots/country selections associated with the year
HEADLINES ON October 9, 2002
Full News Archive
- Headline: HSBC Acquires Stake in Ping An Insurance. Impact: HSBC's investment in Ping An Insurance was the financial equivalent of buying a lottery ticket—everyone thought it was a smart play at the time, but in hindsight, it may have just been a gamble that could have led to a series of unfortunate financial Tinder dates.. Fact: HSBC once tried to rename itself to ‘Hugely Secure Bank Corporation’ to attract more customers. Spoiler alert: it didn’t work..
- Headline: Market Place; A Car Shipper Sold Shares; S.E.C. Implies It Sold Illusions. Impact: The SEC's revelation about ACLN Ltd. was the classic case of the 'Emperor's New Clothes' in finance, leading to a wave of corporate mistrust that eventually resulted in everyone starting to keep their money under their mattresses instead.. Fact: You know things are bad when even the auditors start to question the existence of your company—next they’ll be asking if your dog really ate your homework..
Wall Street Time Machine
The Right Call: If you'd invested $1,000 in any one of these companies in 2002, here's what the stored 2025 dataset estimates.
Rank #1
NFLX
Netflix
Price in 2002
$0.12
2025 dataset value
$785,671
Netflix - If you invested $1,000 in 2002, it would be worth $785,671 today (785.7x return)
Rank #2
AAPL
Apple
Price in 2002
$0.35
2025 dataset value
$779,032
Apple - If you invested $1,000 in 2002, it would be worth $779,032 today (779.0x return)
🦸 Top 5 Comics
The Ultimates #1
$25
Y: The Last Man #1
$300
New X-Men #128
$50.00
The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen Volume 2 #1
$30
Spider-Man: Blue #1
$200
🧸 Top 5 Toys
Beyblade (Metal Series)
$250.00
Yu-Gi-Oh! Trading Card Game
$150.00
LEGO Bionicle
$150.00
Bratz Dolls
$150.00
RoboSapien
$200.00
🎮 Top 5 Video Games
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City
$400.00
Metroid Prime
$22.98
The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind
$100.00
Kingdom Hearts
$120.00
Battlefield 1942
$50.47
⚾ Top 5 Trading Cards
Yu-Gi-Oh! Legend of Blue Eyes White Dragon 1st Edition Blue-Eyes White Dragon
$10,000
2002 Pokémon Neo Destiny Shining Charizard
$250,000
2002 Topps Chrome Tom Brady Refractor
$200,000
2002 Magic: The Gathering Set Foil Charmed Griffin
$20
2002 FIFA World Cup Ronaldo Panini Sticker
$28,800