These 'Cute Little Micro-Robots' Are Fueling a Debate: Harmless Fun or Bad Idea?

Researchers are building flying micro-robots with many potential uses, including search-and-rescue operations and some tasks in hazardous environments. But there is also sentiment that the small airborne gadgets will create privacy issues that could become a problem.

They reportedly weigh less than a penny and have soft robot parts that allow them to hover and move around like bugs.

TikTok user @future_explored briefly demonstrates their intriguing functionality in this short video.

WATCH VIDEO HERE

The micro-robots are a budding technology whose existence is stirring debate about what the future might hold with these electronic critters flying around.

"That’s awesome. I love tech stuff like this," writes one commenter on the TikTok post.

Another agrees: "Yup! Let’s scale this up pronto."

One viewer of the video is a bit more skeptical. "Orrrr, they could be used to eliminate any remaining semblance of privacy in free societies… which is almost certainly how they will be used.

We tend to get excited about emerging technology and we write about it as often as we can. Keep an eye on this space for more developments.

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