A team led by Cornell University has developed biohybrid robots controlled by king oyster mushroom mycelium, which blend living organisms with machines. By integrating mycelium into the robot's hardware, these robots can sense and respond to their environment using the electrical signals produced by the fungus, showcasing biohybridization — the merging of biological and synthetic components.
The mycelium's electrical activity, when processed, allows these robots to move, adapt to light, and change their behavior. This innovation exemplifies the growing field of biohybrid robotics, which seeks to use biological materials for enhanced functionality. These fungi-controlled robots highlight potential applications in agriculture and environmental monitoring, such as sensing soil chemistry or mitigating agricultural impacts.
Andrew Adamatzky, a professor of unconventional computing at the University of the West of England, helped grow from fungus a self-healing skin for robots that can react to light and touch that was described in a separate January study./Antoni Gandia
While biohybrid robots hold exciting possibilities, experts caution about the ethical implications of integrating such technology into natural ecosystems, emphasizing the need for careful consideration as these technologies evolve.
