The universe may be twice as old as we thought: 26.7 billion years

That is big news, if confirmed! It appears such an extension of the existence of the universe would explain quite a few phenomena without resorting to theoretical gimmicks etc..

"... For years, scientists have been intrigued by the existence of ancient stars, such as Methuselah, that seem to predate the calculated age of our universe. Furthermore, the recent discovery of early galaxies in an advanced state of evolution by the James Webb Space Telescope has posed a perplexing puzzle.
These galaxies, appearing a mere 300 million years after the Big Bang, exhibit levels of maturity and mass typically associated with billions of years of cosmic evolution. Curiously, they also exhibit unexpectedly small sizes, adding another layer of mystery to the equation. ..."

"... In 2021, thanks to new techniques and advances in technology, the age of our universe was thus estimated at 13.797 billion years using the Lambda-CDM concordance model. ..."

From the abstract (contains several special characters):

"Deep space observations of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have revealed that the structure and masses of very early Universe galaxies at high redshifts (⁠z∼15⁠), existing at ∼0.3 Gyr after the BigBang, may be as evolved as the galaxies in existence for ∼10 Gyr. The JWST findings are thus in strong tension with the ΛCDM cosmological model. While tired light (TL) models have been shown to comply with the JWST angular galaxy size data, they cannot satisfactorily explain isotropy of the cosmic microwave background (CMB) observations or fit the supernovae distance modulus vs. redshift data well. We have developed hybrid models that include the tired light concept in the expanding universe. The hybrid ΛCDM model fits the supernovae type 1a data well but not the JWST observations. We present a model with covarying coupling constants (CCC), starting from the modified FLRW metric and resulting Einstein and Friedmann equations, and a CCC + TL hybrid model. They fit the Pantheon + data admirably, and the CCC + TL model is compliant with the JWST observations. It stretches the age of the universe to 26.7 Gyr with 5.8 Gyr at z=10

 and 3.5 Gyr at z=20⁠, giving enough time to form massive galaxies. It thus resolves the ‘impossible early galaxy’ problem without requiring the existence of primordial black hole seeds or modified power spectrum, rapid formation of massive population III stars, and super Eddington accretion rates. One could infer the CCC model as an extension of the ΛCDM model with a dynamic cosmological constant."

The universe may be twice as old as we thought: a venerable 26.7 billion years (Secondary source again without referencing the primary source) A new study challenges the age of our universe and offers insight into early galaxies

Reinventing cosmology: uOttawa research puts age of universe at 26.7 — not 13.7 — billion years (Believed to be the primary source) Our universe could be twice as old as current estimates, according to a new study that challenges the dominant cosmological model and sheds new light on the so-called “impossible early galaxy problem.”

JWST early Universe observations and ΛCDM cosmology (no public access)