University Teams Develop Smallest Autonomous Programmable Robots

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) and the University of Michigan (UMich) announced in December 2025 the successful creation of the world's smallest fully programmable, autonomous robots. Measuring approximately 200 by 300 by 50 micrometers, these microscopic devices are comparable in size to many biological microorganisms. This development resolves a long-standing scientific challenge concerning sustained locomotion and autonomy at dimensions where viscous forces significantly impede movement.

The core innovation integrates essential functions onto a single, minute platform, enabling the robots to operate independently for periods extending several months. The system includes electronic sensors and an onboard computer that allows the robots to perceive environmental conditions, specifically temperature, with a precision of one-third of a degree Celsius. This sensing capability permits autonomous trajectory adjustment based on local thermal variations.

Marc Miskin, an adjunct professor at Penn Engineering and a senior author on the related publications, noted that the team developed autonomous robots ten thousand times smaller than previous iterations. Propulsion bypasses traditional mechanical components, instead relying on integrated solar cells that power an electrokinetic system. This mechanism generates a small electric field to move ions in the surrounding fluid, which in turn drags water molecules to generate the necessary thrust for movement.

The computer component, developed by David Blaauw's team at Michigan, is the smallest of its kind, integrating a processor, memory, and sensors onto a chip smaller than a millimeter across. This unit consumes only 75 nanowatts of power, which is over 100,000 times less than the power consumption of a standard smartwatch. The research detailing these advancements was published in both Science Robotics and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

The technology presents expansive implications, particularly within the biomedical sector, offering novel methods for monitoring cellular health by reporting temperature as a proxy for cellular activity. Their durability, derived from the absence of moving parts, and ease of transfer via standard laboratory tools like a micropipette, suit them for long-term, non-invasive monitoring. Furthermore, the ability to program these microscopic swimmers to execute complex patterns or function in coordinated swarms opens new avenues for microscale device construction in industrial manufacturing.