Technology
Tiny autonomous robots can now swim on their own
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For decades, microscopic robots lived mostly in our imagination. Movies like “Fantastic Voyage” convinced us that tiny machines would one day cruise through the human body, fixing problems from the inside. In reality, that future stayed frustratingly out of reach.
The reason was not a lack of ambition. It was physics.
Now, a breakthrough from researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Michigan has changed the equation. The teams have built the smallest fully programmable autonomous robots ever created, and they can swim.
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A new way to swim without moving parts
Seen on a fingertip, this tiny swimming robot is smaller than a grain of salt yet fully autonomous. (Kurt “CyberGuy” Knutsson)
ROBOTS LEARN 1,000 TASKS IN ONE DAY FROM A SINGLE DEMO
The robots measure about 200 by 300 by 50 micrometers. That is smaller than a grain of salt and close to the size of a single-celled organism. They do not have legs or propellers. Instead, they use electrokinetics. Each robot generates a small electrical field that pulls charged ions in the surrounding fluid. Those ions drag water molecules with them, effectively creating a flowing river around the robot. The result is motion without moving parts. That makes the robots extremely durable and surprisingly easy to handle, even with delicate lab tools.
A brain powered by almost nothing
Each robot runs on tiny solar cells that generate just 75 nanowatts of power. That is more than 100,000 times less than a smartwatch. To make this work, engineers redesigned everything. They built ultra-low voltage circuits and created a custom instruction set that compresses complex behavior into just a few hundred bits of memory. Despite the limits, each robot can sense its environment, store data and decide how to move next.
How these robots communicate with a dance
The robots cannot carry antennas, so the team borrowed a trick from nature. Each robot performs a tiny wiggle pattern to report information like temperature. The motion follows a precise encoding scheme that researchers can decode by watching through a microscope. The idea closely mirrors how bees communicate through movement. Programming works the other way. Researchers flash light signals that the robots read as instructions. A built-in passcode prevents random light from interfering with their memory.
What these tiny robots can do today
In current tests, the robots demonstrate thermotaxis. They sense heat and autonomously swim toward warmer areas. That behavior hints at future uses like tracking inflammation, locating disease markers or delivering drugs with extreme precision. Light can already power robots near the skin. For deeper environments, the researchers are exploring ultrasound as a future energy source.
PRIVATE AUTONOMOUS PODS COULD REDEFINE RIDE-SHARING
Tiny robots move by creating electric fields that pull surrounding fluid, allowing them to swim without propellers or moving parts. (iStock)
Cheap enough to use by the thousands
Because these robots are made with standard semiconductor manufacturing, they can be produced in large numbers. More than 100 robots fit on a single chip, and manufacturing yields already exceed 50%. In mass production, the estimated cost could drop below one cent per robot. At that price, disposable robot swarms become realistic rather than theoretical.
What this means to you
This technology is not about flashy gadgets. It is about scale. Robots this small could one day monitor health at the cellular level, build materials from the bottom up or explore environments too delicate for larger machines. While medical use is still years away, this breakthrough shows that true autonomy at the microscale is finally possible.
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Kurt’s key takeaways
For nearly 50 years, microscopic robots felt like a promise science could never quite keep. This research, published in Science Robotics, changes that narrative. By embracing the strange physics of the microscale instead of fighting it, engineers unlocked an entirely new class of machines. This is only the first chapter, but it is a big one. Once sensing, movement and decision-making fit into something almost invisible, the future of robotics looks very different.
If tiny robots could swim through your body one day, would you trust them to monitor your health or deliver treatment? Let us know by writing to us at Cyberguy.com.
Light-based commands trigger precise movements as microscopic robots receive instructions, change direction and move independently. (iStock)
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Technology
Use this map to find the data centers in your backyard
When Oregon resident Isabelle Reksopuro heard Google was gobbling up public land to fuel its data centers in her home state, she didn’t initially know what to believe. “There’s a lot of misinformation about data centers,” she said. “Google has denied taking that land.”
Technically, she explains, The Dalles, a city near the Washington state border, sought to reclaim that land, “and Google is just a big, unnamed power user.” The city had in fact asked for ownership of a 150-acre portion of Mount Hood National Forest, claiming it needs access to Mount Hood’s watershed to meet municipal needs as its population — 16,010 as of the 2020 census — grows. But critics, including environmentalists, say the city is trying to secure more water for Google, which has a sprawling data center campus in The Dalles that already consumes about one-third of the city’s water supply.
This controversy made Reksopuro curious about the backlash to data centers being built in other communities. So Reksopuro, a student at the University of Washington who studies the connections between tech and public policy, decided to map it out. Using information collected by Epoch AI and data scraped from legislation on data centers, she built an interactive map tracking AI policy around the world. She designed it to be simple enough for anyone to use. “I wanted it to be something that my younger sisters could play through and explore to understand what are the data centers in the area and what’s actually being done about it,” Reksopuro said. She hoped to shift their opinions that way, “instead of like, through TikTok.”
Four times a day, the map searches for new sources and checks them against the existing database Reksopuro built out. “Once it does that, it will write a new summary, add it to the news feed, and populate it on the sidebar,” she said. “I wanted it to be self-updating, since I’m also a student.”
Reksopuro isn’t against data centers, but she thinks tech giants benefit from a lack of transparency around data center policies. “Right now, it’s this really opaque thing — and all of a sudden, there’s a facility,” she said. “I think that if people knew about data centers beforehand, it would give them leverage. They would be able to negotiate: ask for job training programs, tax revenue, environmental monitoring, things to improve their community.”
Technology
Fox News AI Newsletter: Graduation speaker praises AI, gets instantly booed
UCF commencement speaker Gloria Caulfield (University of Central Florida via Storyful)
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Welcome to Fox News’ Artificial Intelligence newsletter with the latest AI technology advancements.
IN TODAY’S NEWSLETTER:
– UCF graduates clobber commencement speaker with boos after she says AI is the ‘next Industrial Revolution’
– OPINION: DIRECTOR KASH PATEL: We brought the FBI out of the past and into the AI age
– OpenAI backs creation of global AI governance body led by the U.S. that would include China as a member
TOUGH CROWD: During a recent commencement ceremony at the University of Central Florida, a speaker was met with loud boos from the graduating class after declaring that artificial intelligence represents the next industrial revolution. Fox News Digital reporting captures this tense cultural moment, illustrating the mixed public sentiment and skepticism surrounding AI’s growing footprint in daily life.
A statue on the campus of the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Florida. (iStock)
BADGE MEETS BYTE: Reflecting on the modernization of national security in a Fox News op-ed, FBI Director Kash Patel explores how the bureau must adapt its strategies to address modern threats and advance beyond the artificial intelligence age.
TECH DIPLOMACY: OpenAI is throwing its support behind the establishment of a new global artificial intelligence governance organization that would be led by the United States while notably including China as a member. Fox News Digital reporting examines the geopolitical dynamics and regulatory implications of this proposed framework as global powers race to set the standards for AI development.
EQUITY ELEVATION: The massive wave of wealth generated by the explosive growth of ChatGPT and the broader AI industry is driving a sudden surge in the San Francisco Bay Area’s luxury real estate market. Fox News Digital reporting breaks down how the influx of new tech capital is reshaping local housing dynamics and fueling a high-end property frenzy.
FBI Director Kash Patel listened as Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche spoke during a press conference at the Department of Justice on April 28, 2026, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)
STRATEGY RESET: Tech giant Cisco is planning to eliminate thousands of jobs as the company shifts its primary focus to accelerate its artificial intelligence initiatives, a move that comes despite the company beating earnings expectations. Fox News Digital reporting details the corporate restructuring and broader economic trends pushing legacy tech firms to aggressively pivot toward AI.
ROAD HAZARD: Waymo is issuing a sweeping recall of its autonomous vehicle fleet following a concerning incident that highlighted significant safety issues with the self-driving technology. Fox News Digital reporting outlines the specifics of the recall, the nature of the safety flaw, and what this setback means for the future of fully autonomous transportation on public roads.
BOTS IN THE BAY: A newly developed, artificial intelligence-powered robot has been engineered to seamlessly change and balance vehicle tires without human intervention. Fox News Digital reporting showcases this latest innovation, exploring how automation and AI mechanics could soon revolutionize the automotive service and repair industry.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman speaks during the 2026 Infrastructure Summit in Washington, D.C., on March 11, 2026. (Kylie Cooper/Reuters)
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Technology
Microsoft’s Edge Copilot update uses AI to pull information from across your tabs
Microsoft Edge is adding a new feature that will allow its Copilot AI chatbot to gather information from all of your open tabs. When you start a conversation with Copilot, you can ask the chatbot questions about what’s in your tabs, compare the products you’re looking at, summarize your open articles, and more.
In its announcement, Microsoft says you can “select which experiences you want or leave off the ones you don’t.” The company is retiring Copilot Mode as well, which could similarly draw information from your tabs but offered some agentic features, like the ability to book a reservation on your behalf. Microsoft has since folded these agentic capabilities into its “Browse with Copilot” tool.
Several other AI features are coming to Edge, including an AI-powered “Study and Learn” mode that can turn the article you’re looking at into a study session or interactive quiz. There’s a new tool that turns your tabs into AI-powered podcasts as well, similar to what you’d find on NotebookLM, and an AI writing assistant that will pop up when you start entering text on a webpage.
You can also give Copilot permission to access your browsing history to provide more “relevant, high-quality answers,” according to Microsoft. Copilot in Edge on desktop and mobile will come with “long-term memory” as well, which can tailor its responses based on your previous conversations. And, when you open up a new tab, you’ll see a redesigned page that combines chat, search, and web navigation, along with the Journeys feature, which uses AI to organize your browsing history into categories that you can revisit.
Meanwhile, an update to Edge’s mobile app will allow you to share your screen with Copilot and talk through the questions about what you’re seeing. Microsoft says you’ll see “clear visual cues” when Copilot is active, “so you know when it’s taking an action, helping, listening, or viewing.”
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