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Necrobotics: Dead Spiders, AI Brains, and the Future of Robotics
Beyond Sci-Fi: How AI and Biotic Materials are Merging to Create a New Breed of Robots — and What it Means for Us
Introduction
Imagine a world where robots aren’t just made of cold, hard metal, but also incorporate biological components. Sounds like science fiction, right? But this isn’t a scene from a futuristic movie; it’s the reality of necrobotics, a groundbreaking field that’s blurring the lines between life, death, and robotics. And with the rapid advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AI), particularly Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Bard, and LLaMA, this eerie yet exciting field is poised for explosive growth.
What is Necrobotics? Rise of the Spider Grippers
Necrobotics is the ingenious (and perhaps slightly unsettling) practice of using biotic materials — that is, parts from deceased organisms — as components in robotic systems. The term itself is a chilling blend of “necromancy” and “robotics.” These creations, aptly named necrobots, are pushing the boundaries of what we consider a robot to be.
One of the most striking examples of this new field is the work being done with dead spiders. Researchers at Rice University have made headlines…
