Microscopic robots might sound like the plot of a futuristic novel, but they are very real.

In fact, nanotechnology has been a point of great interest for scientists for decades. In the past few years, research and experimentation have seen nanotechnology's science develop in new and fascinating ways.

In this episode of Short and Sweet AI, I delve into the topic of microscopic robots. The possibilities and capabilities of nanobots are something to keep a watchful eye on as research into nanotechnology starts to pick up speed.

In this episode, find out:

• What microscopic robots are
• How new research into nanotechnology has improved nanobot design
• Why nanobots use similar technology to computer chips
• The possibilities of nanobots for healthcare
• How nanotechnology could connect humans to technology and the Cloud

Important Links & Mentions

• Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart
• The Singularity is Near
• March of the Microscopic Robots
• The Future of Work: ‘Remembrance,’ by Lexi Pandell

Resources:

• Singularity Hub: An Army of Microscopic Robots Is Ready to Patrol Your Body
• Interesting Engineering: Nanobots Will Be Flowing Through Your Body by 2030

Episode Transcript:

Today I’m talking about microscopic robots.

In the book Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart, set in the future, wealthy people pay for life extension treatments. These are called “dechronification” methods and include infusions of “smart blood” which contain swarms of microscopic robots. These tiny robots are about 100 nanometers long and rejuvenate cells and remodel major organs throughout the body via the bloodstream. In this way the wealthy live for over a century.

That book was my first introduction to the idea of microscopic robots, also known as nanobots, more than a decade ago. Nanotechnology is more than a subplot in a futuristic novel. It’s an emerging field of designing and building robots which are only nanometers long. A nanometer is 1000 times smaller than a micrometer. Atoms and molecules are measured in nanometers. For example, a red blood cell is about 7000 nanometers while a DNA molecule is two and a half nanometers.

The father of nanotechnology is considered to be Richard Feynman who won the Nobel prize in physics. He gave a talk in 1959 called “There’s Plenty of Room at the Bottom.” The bottom he’s referring to is size, specifically the size of atoms. He discussed a theoretical process for manipulating atoms and molecules which has become the core field of nanoscience.

The microscopic robots are about the size of a cell and are based on the same basic technology as computer chips. But creating an exoskeleton for robotic arms and getting these tiny robots to move in a controllable manner has been a big hurdle. Then in last few years Marc Miskin, a professor of electrical and systems engineering, and his colleagues, used a fresh, new design concept.

They paired 50 years of microelectronics and circuit boards to create limbs for the robots and used a power source in the form of tiny solar panels on its back. By shining lasers on the solar panels, they can control the robot’s...