🌅 These Cyborg Roaches Help with Search and Rescue

SOURCE

Fan et al. (2026)

WHAT TO KNOW

• Researchers at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore developed flexible “diving suits” for cyborg Madagascar hissing cockroaches, expanding their use in search-and-rescue missions where humans can navigate the roaches through flooded rubble, puddles, or submerged spaces that can block conventional robots’ access. Rather than having a tiny pressurized tank to supply oxygen, the suits are fitted with an oxygen-generation tank holding a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and manganese dioxide. When the two chemicals react, the hydrogen peroxide decomposes to produce oxygen, which is then supplied directly to the cockroaches’ breathing holes via a collection of tubes. Tests show the suits allow the cockroaches to be  remotely navigated underwater for up to three hours at a depth up to 20 inches. Watch one of the cyborg roaches in action.

WHY IT MATTERS

• The work builds on more than a decade of cyborg insect research at NTU, where researchers have developed cyborg insects for different human-guided applications, including using them to survey damage and search for survivors after natural disasters. However, prior to the diving suits, the cyborg cockroaches were limited to dry land, limiting their usability as rescue scenarios often involve navigating wet environments. The cyborgs have already been deployed in a search-and-rescue mission after the 7.7 magnitude earthquake in Myanmar that killed 3,600 people last year.

CONNECT THE DOTS

• The work is led by NTU professor Hirotaka Sato, pioneer of cyborg insect technology. Previously, Sato and his team developed tiny backpacks that used electrical signals to remotely control insects’ movement, earning a Guinness World Record for the first untethered controlled flight by a cyborg beetle.