Discovery's 2026 Shark Week adds AI-recreated prehistoric sharks and K‑pop conservation campaign

Discovery will air its 2026 Shark Week from 3 to 9 August, offering 17 premieres and more than 50 shark‑focused programs. The lineup introduces three new themes: artificial‑intelligence tools that digitally reconstruct extinct sharks that vanished 400 million years ago, a K‑pop‑driven marine‑conservation effort featuring actor Ken Jeong and artist REI AMI, and scientific research at Bikini Atoll to assess whether Cold‑War nuclear testing has altered shark behavior.

The week also includes on‑location expeditions ranging from New Zealand’s great white territories to a New York coastal investigation. In addition, the Discovery channel aired “Expedition Unknown: Shark Secrets” on 29 July, a special hosted by Josh Gates that revisits the 1945 USS Indianapolis sinking, widely regarded as the deadliest shark‑attack incident in history, and examines modern scientific perspectives on the event.