by ibby
The U.S. Mint unveils 2026 American Innovation $1 coin designs featuring Steve Jobs, Norman Borlaug, the Cray-1 supercomputer, and mobile refrigeration.
Talk about pocket change with real design chops. The United States Mint has unveiled the 2026 American Innovation® $1 Coin Program designs, and they honor the past while striking fresh inspiration. This year’s lineup puts the spotlight on Iowa, Wisconsin, California, and Minnesota, turning history’s heavyweights into some very shiny souvenirs.
Iowa: The Father of the Green Revolution
First up, Iowa honors Dr. Norman Borlaug, Nobel Peace Prize winner and agricultural pioneer. The coin depicts him holding a sheaf of wheat, a nod to his groundbreaking work developing resilient crops. Translation: he put the bread in breadbasket.
Wisconsin: Computing Power in the Round
Wisconsin gets nerdy (in the best way) with the Cray-1 Supercomputer. The design shows off its iconic circular form, stylized into a “C” for Cray. Back in the 1970s, this machine made supercomputing cool before “cloud” was more than just a weather term.
California: Make Something Wonderful
California pays tribute to none other than Steve Jobs, captured sitting in front of Northern California’s oak-dotted hills. His contemplative pose feels almost Zen, echoing his vision to make technology as intuitive as nature. Inscribed on the coin? Make Something Wonderful. A design mantra if there ever was one.
Minnesota: Keepin’ It Cool
Minnesota rolls in with mobile refrigeration, honoring the 1940s innovation that transformed global trade. The coin shows a vintage truck with an early front-mounted cooling unit, the unsung hero that made ice cream trucks (and vaccines) possible. Now that’s chilling design.
Obverse: Liberty with a Twist
The common obverse for 2026 features the Statue of Liberty in profile, complete with a privy mark of a stylized gear and Liberty Bell engraved with “250” to celebrate America’s Semiquincentennial (say that five times fast). Talk about ringing in 250 years of design and innovation.
About the Program:
The Mint has been running this multi-year series since 2018, with each coin honoring a state or territory’s role in American ingenuity. And in true design fashion, the details matter: every line, inscription, and symbolic element is carefully chosen with the input of governors, experts, and artists before being signed off by the Secretary of the Treasury. The takeaway? These coins aren’t just currency, they’re miniature canvases, tiny lessons in design, innovation, and history that jingle in your pocket.
