German army considers proposal for cybernetic cockroach swarms

The biorobotics start-up Swarm Biotactics has proposed to German authorities that it strengthen the Bundeswehr (German Armed Forces) with swarms of cybernetic cockroaches equipped with special miniature backpacks and cameras for real-time reconnaissance, surveillance, and data collection on the battlefield.

Sven Weizenegger, head of the Bundeswehr Cyber Innovation Hub, confirmed this proposal in a statement to the Reuters news agency.

Weizenegger explained that these insects would be remotely controlled by military personnel via “electrical stimulators.”

The objective of these miniature animals is to obtain intelligence in hostile environments, such as gathering information about enemy positions.

Insects will be controlled with electrical stimulators

“Our biorobots, created based on live insects, are equipped with neural stimulation systems, sensors, and secure communication modules,” said Swarm Biotactics CEO Stefan Vilhelm.

According to Vilhelm, military personnel can control each cockroach individually, or the insects can operate autonomously in “swarm mode.”

Founded last year, Swarm Biotactics is headquartered in Kassel, Germany, and also has a branch in San Francisco, US.

The company defines its activities as creating live intelligent systems, a “new category of robotics” designed to operate in conditions inaccessible to drones and ground robots.

These areas include scattered, hard-to-reach, and high-risk terrains, including military conflict zones.

‘Our mission is to create an adaptable reconnaissance platform for any terrain’

“Our mission is to create a scalable, dual-use intelligence platform that can be adapted to any terrain, threat, or mission,” stated Swarm Biotactics CTO and Co-founder Moritz Strube.

The company announced in June that it had attracted 10 million euros in a seed funding round. With previous investments, the total amount invested in the company has reached 13 million euros.

The German military command is showing interest in such innovations as part of its plan to increase collaboration with technology start-ups that offer unconventional solutions for the armed forces.

In addition, Berlin plans to nearly triple its regular defense budget to 162 billion euros annually by 2029.