Scientists have already made edible robotic components. The next challenge is integrating them together to create an entire robot snack that could be used in a wide range of applications, from delivering healthcare to monitoring the environment.
Imagine ordering drone delivery for your takeout, and then, after eating your food, you eat the delivery drone for dessert. The first part has been happening for a while; the second – the edible robot – could be coming soon, according to scientists from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (EPFL). “Bringing robots and food together is a fascinating challenge,” said Dario Floreano, director of the EPFL’s Laboratory of Intelligent Systems (LIS) and the lead author of a recently published perspective article that considered how far we are from the reality of edible robots. “We are still figuring out which edible materials work similarly to non-edible ones.” At first glance, food and robots appear to be at opposite ends of the scientific spectrum. But, according to the article’s authors, edible robots are not just a novelty you’d pay a ridiculous amount of money to see on a plate at a high-end restaurant. They have a wide range of potential applications in areas like human health and nutrition, wildlife preservation and animal welfare, and the environment.
