WARNING: The article below contains minor spoilers for Marvel's Black Panther, in theaters now.


Technology in the Marvel Cinematic Universe has grown ever more elaborate. In the beginning, Tony Stark seemed to be the ultimate pioneer of technological advancements with his AI, holograms and suits. Then came the world of Asgard, showing us that, as incredible as his Hall of Armors was, Stark had barely scratched the surface. For a long time, it seemed as though the Agardians were among the most technologically advanced people in the MCU.

However, Asgard's place at the top has now come into question with Black Panther's introduction of Wakanda, an African nation that seems to possess weapons and medical technology capable of outperforming almost anything the "gods" could hypothetically throw at it. So we're going to take a look at both of these nations and compare everything we've seen from them in order to determine which of them is technologically superior.

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In 2011, director Kenneth Branagh's Thor made it a point to describe magic simply as being science that we humans couldn't yet comprehend. That notion informed our perception of Asgard. For example, in Alan Taylor's 2013 sequel Thor: The Dark World, the Asgardians use their soul forge to scan Jane Foster for the dark magic that resided in her body. She instantly recognized the device as a quantum field generator, which means it was using energy to generate particles that mimicked those comprising the basic outline of Jane's physiology. As Jane put it, it transfers molecular energy from one place to another. Still awake? Good.

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That's not all the Asgardians were capable of creating, however. In Thor we knew that the Rainbow Bridge of Norse myth was actually an incredibly advanced interstellar portal, or, as Jane described it, an Einstein-Rosen bridge (which is really just a fancy way of saying "wormhole"). It's clear the Asgardians have mastered interstellar travel, and it doesn't look to be driven by unfathomable magic. The bridge itself clearly feeds the observatory with energy drawn from the city.

The thing about Asgard is, we know that a large part of it consists of actual, ineffable magic of the kind Doctor Strange would be familiar with. It isn't technology that allows Heimdall to see every soul in the universe, and it isn't technology that keeps Mjolnir from being lifted by the unworthy. Asgardians possess a limited number of mystical abilities as well as supernaturally long lifespans. That would have definitely aided in their civilization's technological development. In fact, they seem to have perfectly melded technology with magic to create weapons such as the Destroyer, or Odin's scepter.

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Wakandans, on the other hand, has no magic to aid them. All they have is a huge mound of Vibranium and the unmatched intellect of their scientists, like Shuri (played by Letitia Wright).

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In Black Panther, Shuri takes T'Challa on a short tour of her lab, excitedly showing off her new inventions, most of which were created for use by the Black Panther or other warriors. Among them were two suits, both of which unfolded from a small necklace and completely enveloped the wearer in a Vibranium-mesh weave. The suits are capable of absorbing kinetic energy and turning it into an offensive force.

Throughout the film, the city is defended by an number of drones, as we can see when Everett K. Ross flies over Wakanda, chasing one of N'Jadaka's ships as it threatens to unleash Wakanda's wrath upon the rest of the world.

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Then there are Shuri's Kimoyo beads, which are seen in the film to serve a variety of uses. Wakandans use them to communicate with each other either through audio or through detailed holograms. They're also capable of providing remote control to a user, as you may have noticed when Shuri employed a Kimoyo bead to control the mining system beneath Wakanda. Surprisingly, these beads also serve one other vital function: They can aid in emergency treatment of a lethal injury, as they did when Ross was shot in spine during Killmonger's rescue of Klaue.

Asgard and Wakanda are similar in a variety of ways. For example, despite their advanced technology, their respective warriors continue to utilize relatively antiquated weapons like swords, spears and lances. They both maintain aspects of their ancient cultures, using technology to enhance their lives without allowing it to change them, which is why both Asgardian and Wakandan societies are functioning monarchies.

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The only real difference when it comes to pure technology between Wakanda and Asgard is that Wakanda has not yet been shown to be capable of interstellar travel. However, given enough time, there's no doubt Wakandan scientists, or just Shuri in her spare time, would be able to remedy that. More importantly, they'd do it without magic.

From what's been shown, Wakanda may be slightly more technologically advanced than Asgard, only because we're certain that absolutely no magic was involved, whereas on Asgard, it's difficult to separate the tech from the magic. Even if we look at magic as being science we don't yet understand, there are still parts of it that aren't accounted for.

It's probably a good thing, too, because when Thanos arrives in Avengers: Infinity War, the world will be armed with both magic and Wakanda's advanced technology, despite the destruction of the city of Asgard. For all we know, the new Asgard could be built with the aid of both.

Now in theaters, director Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther stars Chadwick Boseman as T’Challa /Black Panther, Michael B. Jordan as N’Jadaka /Erik “Killmonger” Stevens, Lupita Nyong’o as Nakia, Danai Gurira as Okoye, Martin Freeman as Everett K. Ross, Daniel Kaluuya as W’Kabi, Letitia Wright as Shuri, Winston Duke as M’Baku, Angela Bassett as Ramonda, Forest Whitaker as Zuri and Andy Serkis as Ulysses Klaue.