The Xenobot is the world’s first living, self-healing robot created from stem cells from the embryos of frogs. Named after an African species, the clawed frog from which its stem cells are taken, the machines measure around one millimeter wide. That’s small enough to travel around our organism by walking or swimming around and they can survive without the need to eat for weeks as well as work together. The cells from the African clawed frog were scrapped from its embryos and left to incubate. After that, they were cut and redesigned into different forms made by a supercomputer. The process of their making has never been done before. It was revealed that Xenobots have self-healing abilities. After being cut, they can rebuild themselves and keep on living. The University of Vermont (where the robots were developed) says that “They’re neither a traditional robot nor a known species of animal. It’s a new class of artifact: a living, programmable organism”. Recently, scientists announced that Xenobots could reproduce on their own. It happens rarely and on specific conditions, but it accomplished a special milestone in the science of biology and artificial intelligence. With the help of a supercomputer, more suitable shapes of the Xenobots were designed such as a C-shape body rather than the old spherical form. Scientists found that the robots were able to find tiny stem cells in a petri dish, collect them in their mouth, and within a few days, pop out new Xenobots. While researchers say these inventions could potentially help with cleaning radioactive waste, collecting microplastics in the oceans, or even delivering medicine to human bodies, their ethics could spark controversy. To the average person, it may cause concern that AI-created robots (even in microscopic form) have the ability to self-replicate. A future when these robotic organisms will be more advance could be dangerous for the species of mankind.
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Sounds amazing, though. I am concerned about the “A future when these robotic organisms will be more advance could be dangerous for the species of mankind.” What purpose they are going to serve?