Xenobots: Biology plus artificial intelligence could mean a recipe for new life

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  Quantumrun Foresight
• April 25, 2022

Insight summary

Xenobots, artificial lifeforms designed from biological tissues, are poised to transform various fields, from medicine to environmental cleanup. These tiny structures, created through a combination of skin and heart muscle cells, can perform tasks like moving, swimming, and self-healing, with potential applications in regenerative medicine and understanding complex biological systems. The long-term implications of xenobots include more precise medical procedures, efficient pollutant removal, new job opportunities, and privacy concerns.

Xenobot context

Named after the African clawed frog or Xenopus laevis, xenobots are artificial lifeforms designed by computers to execute specific roles. Xenobots are composed of and constructed by combining biological tissues. How to define xenobots—as robots, organisms, or something else entirely—often remains a point of contention among academics and industry stakeholders.

Early experiments have involved creating xenobots with a breadth of less than a millimeter (0.039 inches) and are made of two types of cells: skin cells and heart muscle cells. The skin and heart muscle cells were produced from stem cells collected from early, blastula-stage frog embryos. The skin cells operated as a support structure, while the heart cells acted similar to tiny motors, expanding and contracting in volume to drive the xenobot forward. The structure of a xenobot's body and the distribution of skin and heart cells were created autonomously in a simulation through an evolutionary algorithm. 

Long-term, xenobots are being designed to move, swim, push pellets, transport payloads, and operate in swarms to collect material dispersed around the surface of their dish into tidy heaps. They can survive for weeks without nourishment and self-heal after lacerations. Xenobots can sprout patches of cilia in place of heart muscle and utilize them as miniature oars for swimming. However, xenobot movement powered by cilia is currently less controlled than xenobot locomotion by cardiac muscle. Additionally, a ribonucleic acid molecule may be added into xenobots to impart molecular memory: when exposed to a specific type of light, they will glow a specified color when viewed under a fluorescence microscope.

Disruptive impact

In certain ways, xenobots are built like regular robots, but the use of cells and tissues in xenobots provides them with a distinct shape and creates predictable behaviors rather than relying upon artificial components. While previous xenobots were propelled forward by the contraction of heart muscle cells, newer generations of xenobots swim faster and are propelled by hair-like features on their surface. Additionally, they live between three and seven days longer than their predecessors, which lived for approximately seven days. Next-generation xenobots also have some capacity to detect and interact with their surroundings.

Xenobots and their successors may provide insight into the evolution of multicellular creatures from primitive single-celled organisms and the beginnings of information processing, decision-making, and cognition in biological species. Future iterations of xenobots may be constructed entirely from patients' cells to repair damaged tissue or specifically target cancers. Due to their biodegradability, xenobot implants would have an advantage over plastic or metal-based medical technology options, which could have a significant impact on regenerative medicine. 

Further development of biological "robots" may enable humans to understand both living and robotic systems better. Since life is complex, manipulating life forms may help us unravel some of life's mysteries, as well as enhance our use of AI systems. Apart from the immediate practical applications, xenobots may aid researchers in their quest to understand cell biology, paving the way for future human health and lifespan advancements.

Implications of xenobots

Wider implications of xenobots may include:

• The integration of xenobots in medical procedures, leading to more precise and less invasive surgeries, improving patient recovery times.


• The use of xenobots for environmental cleanup, leading to more efficient removal of pollutants and toxins, enhancing the overall health of ecosystems.


• The development of xenobot-based educational tools, leading to enhanced learning experiences in biology and robotics, fostering interest in STEM fields among students.


• The creation of new job opportunities in xenobot research and development.


• The potential misuse of xenobots in surveillance, leading to privacy concerns and necessitating new regulations to protect individual rights.


• The risk of xenobots interacting unpredictably with natural organisms, leading to unforeseen ecological consequences and requiring careful monitoring and control.


• The high cost of xenobot development and implementation, leading to economic challenges for smaller businesses and potential inequality in access to this technology.


• The ethical considerations surrounding the creation and use of xenobots, leading to intense debates and potential legal challenges that may shape future policy.

Questions to consider

• Do you think xenobots can lead to previously untreatable diseases being cured or allow those suffering from them to live longer and more fruitful lives?


• What other potential applications can xenobot research be applied to?