Can A Thousand Tiny Swarming Robots Outsmart Nature? | Deep Look

How does a group of animals -- or cells, for that matter -- work together when no one’s in charge? Tiny swarming robots--called Kilobots--work together to tackle tasks in the lab, but what can they teach us about the natural world?
↓ More info, videos, and sources below ↓
DEEP LOOK: a new ultra-HD (4K) short video series created by KQED San Francisco and presented by PBS Digital Studios. See the unseen at the very edge of our visible world. Get a new perspective on our place in the universe and meet extraordinary new friends. Explore big scientific mysteries by going incredibly small.
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About Kilobots
How do you simultaneously control a thousand robots in a swarm? The question may seem like science fiction, but it’s one that has challenged real robotics engineers for decades.
In 2010, the Kilobot entered the scene. Now, engineers are programming these tiny independent robots to cooperate on group tasks. This research could one day lead to robots that can assemble themselves into machines, or provide insights into how swarming behaviors emerge in nature.
In the future, this kind of research might lead to collaborative robots that could self-assemble into a composite structure. This larger robot could work in dangerous or contaminated areas, like cleaning up oil spills or conducting search-and-rescue activities.
What is Emergent Behavior?
The universe tends towards chaos, but sometimes patterns emerge, like a flock of birds in flight. Like termites building skyscrapers out of mud, or fish schooling to avoid predators.
It’s called emergent behavior. Complex behaviors that arise from interactions between simple things. And you don’t just see it in nature.
What’s so interesting about kilobots is that individually, they’re pretty dumb.
They’re designed to be simple. A single kilobot can do maybe... three things: Respond to light. Measure a distance, sense the presence of other kilobots.
But these are swarm robots. They work together.
How do Kilobots work?
Kilobots were designed by Michael Rubenstein, a research scientist in the Self Organizing Systems Research Group at Harvard. Each robot consists of about $15 worth of parts: a microprocessor that is about as smart as a calculator, sensors for visible and infrared light, and two tiny cell-phone vibration units that allow it to move across a table. They are powered by a rechargeable lithium-ion battery, like those found in small electronics or watches.
The kilobots are programed all at once, as a group, using infrared light. Each kilobot gets the same set of instructions as the next. With just a few lines of programming, the kilobots, together, can act out complex natural processes.
The same kinds of simple instructions that kilobots use to self-assemble into shapes can make them mimic natural swarming behaviors, too. For example, kilobots can sync their flashing lights like a swarm of fireflies, differentiate similar to cells in an embryo and follow a scent trail like foraging ants.
Read the article for this video on KQED Science:
ww2.kqed.org/science/2015/07/21/can-a-thousand-tiny-swarming-robots-outsmart-nature
More great DEEP LOOK episodes:
Where Are the Ants Carrying All Those Leaves?
kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y2fSfH1re6yeaJY
What Happens When You Put a Hummingbird in a Wind Tunnel?
kzbin.info/www/bejne/gKrUimlqpNudnLs
Pygmy Seahorses: Masters of Camouflage
kzbin.info/www/bejne/h2SmpXqlpt9mrdk
Related videos from the PBS Digital Studios Network!
Is Ultron Inevitable? | It’s Okay to Be Smart
kzbin.info/www/bejne/Y3rVnqeharZ6btU
A History Of Robots | The Good Stuff
kzbin.info/www/bejne/inyQmWeldrmMias
When Will We Worry About the Well-Being of Robots? | Idea Channel kzbin.info/www/bejne/fH3Mlph3iraKg9U
Funding for Deep Look is provided in part by PBS Digital Studios and the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. Deep Look is a project of KQED Science, which is supported by HopeLab, The David B. Gold Foundation; S. D. Bechtel, Jr. Foundation; The Dirk and Charlene Kabcenell Foundation; The Vadasz Family Foundation; Smart Family Foundation and the members of KQED.
#deeplook

[@bl4ckbl00d]

The End of the Human Race is sooo cute

[@mq-r3apz291]

From the creators of sharknado. BOTNADO!

[@mistuslordus]

I don't think so

[@beyondme9369]

Human race is far too diverse to end that soon..

[@yashjha7670]

I've heard everything now

[@gamerknight1014]

Killua Zoldyck yea I agree

[@YoungTheFish]

Praise our Robot Overlord!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

YoungTheFish Amen!

[@kaiserwilhelmii6440]

+Deep Look *Ramen

[@alexwang982]

*r'amen

[@SchlossRitter]

\○/

[@connortremblay1259]

omg I want 4000

[@fanuchman]

It will cost $80,000 according to the specs. Hope you've got that laying around.

[@MrTGamer_]

You would also need to know how to program

[@phyl568]

Learn to program if fairly simple, the robots themselves do most of the hard job trying to understand what to do with limited instructions

[@Rai2M]

Programming is simple.

[@jordanbaron4341]

You guys are all saying that programming is easy. No, it's not. You obviously don't know that much if you think that it's simple.

[@MaxLohMusic]

Sometimes, I like to blow my own mind by thinking about ants. Ants by themselves are pretty dumb but in teams can accomplish huge tasks like fetching food from a hard-to-reach trash can and delivering it all the way to the hive. In fact, the ant-swarm can be thought of as a HIGHER CONSCIOUSNESS, a MIND which emerges from the individual dumb ants, building an "arm" made of ants with which to retrieve the tasty food. The ants are basically its "cells". Sounds loony? This is exactly what happens in the human brain! A swarm of billions of DUMB neurons work as a team to produce your very own consciousness, an entity beyond any individual neuron's comprehension.

[@Fieldyrhart]

W

[@dachfo123]

Learn some molecular biology and biochemistry, it'll start to be a lot less mysterious.

[@MaxLohMusic]

Dan F. Scientists who know a lot about biochemistry agree that large swarms of bugs essentially function as a single organism with its own mind. In a very similar way that our "swarm of neurons" functions as a single consciousness.

[@dachfo123]

Yes, and we know how it works. It's certainly amazing, but the fact that it's not magic makes it all the better

[@MaxLohMusic]

Dan F. I see. Well, I obviously don't think it's magic either, since the "magic" is in the sheer complexity of the connections, but I would expect the mere fact that a bunch of dumb stuff can produce a mind should be mind-blowing even to those who understand it. Physics will not have an adequate explanation for the mind even after we completely understand the workings of the entire brain. That's because the inner subjective world is "sure to exist" (you might be in the Matrix or an alien brain made of gas dreaming about being human, but at this moment you know for sure "something is going on"). Whereas, the neurons that cause this phenomenon do not have that special property of being 100% certain to exist. So we can never say "your mind IS your brain activity"; at best we can conclude "your mind is CAUSED by your brain activity", and are left with the hard problem of how/why it happens. Please note I am not endorsing any religious, spiritual or quantum woo explanation in any way, as those have zero explanatory power as well.

[@legion8585]

They get smarter if their number increases. Like us.

[@KQEDDeepLook]

+Legion Geth Exactly! Thanks for commenting! We hope you enjoyed the video.

[@hagalathekido]

no these work together we just have a chanse when born to be a genious, we can specialize and work together in more primitive ways but thats about it.

[@Grothgerek]

humans dont get smarter, if you have more of them. The more people work at the same project, the less effective they work. If 1 person need 1 day for a project, 2 Persons need (for example) 16h and not 12h or less.

[@lydiad1536]

Ok, if you feel like being harsh on your own species, go ahead. Just remember who invented these things! ;)

[@mobspeak]

You're dead, you sacrificed yourself for the Geth.

[@AlyssaMcNeil]

The recipe for destruction: 1)Have a robot with human-level if not higher intelligence and self-awareness 2)Have a robot capable of self-improving 3)Have a robot capable of reproduce itself Have all those 3 in one single robot, and you can be pretty sure the whole humanity will be wiped in the next 70-100 years. Those robots are cute btw, reminds me of insects.

[@eixeon395]

Like futurama

[@nekrondavaile]

That would only work if it has no programm which would lead for it to eradicate us, so long as it doesnt have that and, for example is supposed to just make better technology, it would have no logical reason to hurt us. Though, if it has a free will on its own, without any restriction at all, it COULD try to kill us, but even then, it would really just depend on its "personality" and on how we treat it.

[@slothonabike]

REPLICATORS!!! (StarGate anyone?)

[@rexyliusde7681]

Nekron Da Vaile It does have a reason to kill us... We are basically destroying the world so the logical reason would be to kill us or ,depending on the level of intelligence, somehow supervise us.

[@nekrondavaile]

That would only be the case only if it actually has any reason to protect the planet, for example, why would it need air, or clean water? So long as the machines arent affected, they wouldnt mind. I do agree that if we'd tell it to supervise or protect us, it would see us as dangerous. But an AI still has a programm, so if we dont mess up the orders we give, for example not telling them just to protect us, but specifically how, there wouldnt be much of a problem. Of course thats entirely different for an unrestricted AI that simulates to have/has emotions.

[@ShutterAuthority]

Your videos are brilliant!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

So nice of you to say - many thanks!

[@Jebby44v]

Huh, it’s weird how this guy only has 5 likes

[@sheer9203]

Yep Ninth like lol

[@canister0]

I don't understand why these kinds of videos get dislikes!!!

[@philusaphur4924]

Im from the future... This things... Took over.. You've been warned...

[@KQEDDeepLook]

Thanks for the tip.

[@devotedsatanist3541]

Mystery Train these*

[@reactiegever1986]

Mystery Train these

[@alex46215]

the way english is going, this things is probably how future humans speak

[@devotedsatanist3541]

Alex Jones so true.

[@highoffdank]

This video is extremely cool and insightful. It's amazing what scientists are building in order to understand living organisms. Not only that but the demonstration on how the mini robots (Kilobots) work was very visually intriguing. Thanks DeepLook, I'll be sharing this video with my siblings.

[@KQEDDeepLook]

highoffdank You are welcome - thanks for sharing with family!

[@JoaoGomesDesign]

Like a few other people also pointed out elsewhere on your channel, I rarely comment on videos posted on KZbin but felt compelled to do so this time. These, these right here, are true gems. The content isn't too dense and the length not too big (and, thus, appropriate to the medium… though with such a level of quality, I would love to watch full-length documentaries done by your team); the scripts are well-humoured without veering into the corny, and the narration is very engaging and super clear even for non-native english speakers; the edition, with those split-screen techniques worthy of a Roger Avary, is on point (as it adds to the scientific meaning instead of detracting - or distracting - from it); the camerawork, lighting, etc. are just stunning, to say the least (you evidently have access to great microphotography resources which give you an edge by default, but you are making the most of them where others might've failed); and the music, with its eerie/cheerful harmonies and a perfect mix of acoustic and electronic sources so appropriate for science-y subjects, is just the icing on the cake (and this, coming from someone who actually studied in music schools for a few years and loves performing and listening to it to this day, is not just some random compliment). By the second video (meaning, by the moment I realized it was actually a series), you had my instant subscription. Really cool stuff you have here on your channel.

[@nav3346]

Science! YAH!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

#science! Yay!

[@nav3346]

+Deep Look see, know if you could get the mini robots to follow a similar pattern to the discharges of neurones in the brain then you might be able to make something super cool!

[@nathangek]

They're just proving that really simple organisms can create complete patterns in nature when working together. Which in itself is a useful tool.

[@nathangek]

meri The whole video? The Kilobots represent the simple organisms with simple programming and you can see that in a large group they create complex patterns.. Kind of obvious if you've watched the video at all.

[@nathangek]

meri But that's not what the kilobots are designed to illustrate..

[@borgholable]

pattern emerging from chaos *starts programming*

[@DW-vl2wi]

w wyborn I don't know why this doesn't have any reply. It's hilarious.

[@frankss4201]

min 3:23....take over the world and destroy us all...lmao

[@Zaxares]

To be fair, it was our own fault for naming them "Kill-o-bots". ;P

[@nimishanarayan7048]

Honestly if that cute little thing took over the world, I wouldn't complain about it

[@FrizFroz]

This video reminds me of a Michael Crichton novel about robot swarms that I read more than a decade ago, called "Prey".

[@opiniondiscarded6650]

Surely this is more of a toy than an actual research aid. I can't imagine that this works better than a software visualization. If nothing else, a good computer screen has more pixels of resolution and more bits of color depth than a large swarm of kilobots in a room. That said, it does look like a neat toy. I like the infrared programming hardware. That is very neat

[@StickPlaysBR]

1:30 remeber kids, comment out the lines that don't work! :P

[@coreydoyle4702]

Debugging, but yeah, bad practice ;-)

[@StickPlaysBR]

I mean, just use github or somethin' to store old/useful code... i learnt this the hard way.

[@usmantariq7997]

You guys are great!

[@squid197]

i'd just love to see these tiny things take over the world

[@Rakhilya]

my favorite video so far. thank you guys!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

Awesome! Thanks for watching!

[@brycebubbbles6941]

Yeah so far this is my fav

[@kylewellsby2176]

Deep Look

[@joshcassidy7270]

Hi I'm Josh Cassidy. I shot and produced this episode of Deep Look. Check out where kilobots come from and what they're up to now: goo.gl/e1ioFv. You can also find out more about the kilobots' creators: Mike Rubenstein (goo.gl/StAFb0) and the Harvard Self Organizing Systems research group (goo.gl/QxiyDb).

[@hass1697]

+Josh Cassidy i'm 100% sure spams are just waiting you behind this links

[@ChrisT4rmKT]

Hass Lier, just click the link its pure and honesty

[@pistonpkm]

Watching these tiny robots mimicking microscopic organisms makes me think that we and our reality are the result of unimaginably advanced engineering.

[@henrisblog134]

In 2018, still my favorite video from deep look! :D

[@wilsonbakerr287]

Deep look I really liked the robot vid could you make more of them

[@guivecchi]

Another awesome video, like always! Great robotics, that's pretty clever!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

***** Thank you, Guilherme - it will be fun to watch these kilobot projects develop. You can order or build your own!

[@guivecchi]

That's pretty cool! Is there any guide to build it?? I'd like to know the materials, if that's cheap and easy I'd try to build one, I'm really into robotics

[@KQEDDeepLook]

***** Yes there is a guide to making or buying your own kilobot swarm: www.eecs.harvard.edu/ssr/projects/progSA/kilobot.html#make

[@alexisfortin4379]

gotta love the dramatic music and the cute robots

[@DogsBAwesome]

I am rooting for a benevolent super computer that keeps us as a pet project but stops us being to dumb or destructive.

[@dachfo123]

That stuff she was talking about at the end sounds amazing and it's not even very far into the future. I work in a lab doing research on G-proteins, an important component in cell signaling - the reason cells can interact with and react to stimuli without being conscious.

[@ap1970]

amazing stuff!

[@hwolf833]

Can you say "Grey Goo"

[@SubjektDelta]

Are you into that shit?

[@foodfrogs6052]

Paperclips

[@commentator3513]

turtles!

[@Patchuchan]

At least they're not self replicating yet.

[@masomirmanic3771]

I don't get it.

[@ranjeet1449]

Man that was awesome

[@daniell.2664]

Very nice video. I was thoroughly interested. Very potent technology. Keep it up guys!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

Justin Mathew Thank you Justin, we have new videos every two weeks.

[@samgluck1783]

Like big hero six! Lol the way they slowly march towards the light:)

[@Oliepolie]

Pretty cool.... And I definitely enjoyed this, I'm sure some people got inspired and want to take over the world using these. :)

[@MrOquedo]

Love the music! Awesome productions.

[@KQEDDeepLook]

+MrOquedo Wow, thanks for the fantastic feedback! We're glad you enjoy our channel!

[@Kevin-Peter]

Wow, this is amazing!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

Shine Onu Thank you!

[@SteelersFans99]

Do another one like this:)

[@Ambidextroid]

This music is so good, it reminds me of a mix of Cyriak, the Ratchet and Clank music and something I can't put my finger on. Please, please put your music up on soundcloud or band camp or something! I would pay to have this in my music library

[@RichGwilliam]

Seconded.

[@foodfrogs6052]

First

[@KQEDDeepLook]

All our music is composed by Seth Samuel. He's awesome. sethgsamuel.com

[@upercutsss]

The intro of Halt And Catch Fire

[@DragonDePlatino]

Wow. Reminds me of Conway's Game of Life!

[@Treemike1000]

Amazing :D

[@hamsalad3909]

( dramatic voice ) SCIENCE! ( Love your videos btw )

[@KuldeepSingh-cm3oe]

Superb :D

[@authenticwarrior7877]

Very interesting...thanks for excellence....

[@diy_wizard]

It's cool to see this, I've always wanted to build such tiny robots, but with ordrinary equipment like arduino it is very difficult and/or expensive ;) It really amazing how they interact and how nature can be simulated by this!

[@Tiucaner]

Nanomachines, son!

[@bjarnes.4423]

Awesome!

[@CreeperUniverseTV]

THIS IS AMAZING 😍

[@NerdInTangelo]

If they use Glados voice in this video...

[@devilishhhthebluedemon730]

this will help us in the future after all its the modern world new things are happening and this is one of the most resourceful things ive seen

[@rozneg]

Absolute awesome

[@VR_OP]

Last part was amzing

[@DokesConspiracyNetwork]

Intresting!

[@KairahVTVods]

This was really interesting and the music really put some mystery to the subject, Nice video. Speaking of Music, was that an original song made for the video or can I find that somewhere? I would really like to listen to the whole thing.

[@KQEDDeepLook]

+TheEducatedZombie Thanks for your nice feedback! All of the music is original, produced by the Deep Look team.

[@junelfuentes5847]

Very nice content

[@Razgriz_01]

Now that's awesome. I wonder if this can be done for creating things like nanites. Basically make a kilobot so small but have millions of them. I wonder what the possibilities are.

[@dinosaurcb]

That is actually what I was thinking, I have an idea for nano technology and this was one puzzle piece out of many that could help me build them. I just need to learn how to make robots.

[@Cortex403]

The Kilobots look cool, but what are they pro versus a computer simulation? For example, software-wise, you can test how 10 000 bots interact with each others. You can't easily do that with physical robots.

[@digipoke12345]

I get this comment is 4 years old, but simulation is usually used to test the 'emergence rules' (terrible way to put it, I mean whether the code gets the desired swarming behaviour). Yes, simulation is great because you can simulate so many machines, but when the eventual goal is real-world applications, tests will have to be done on real-world robots because there are physical constraints on real machines that need to be accounted for.

[@athomenotavailable]

Looks like a physical implementation of Kohonen Self Organizing Maps to me..., very well done

[@Lanijiro]

Very Interesting.

[@zralokk]

Great fitting music!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

David Smehlik Thank you, David, the music is by Seth G. Samuel - www.sethgsamuel.com/ .

[@smokingsamosa]

how am I supposed to take this seriously? they are programming on Mac books

[@axid8354]

Macbooks and Linux machines are really good for programming. Windows isn't. Unless you get Visual studio which won't even install on my Windows 7 PC

[@jonwindle8778]

lol your not very smart are you. "unless you get visual studio" trolololololol PCs are way better for programming because more software development apps run on PC. Linux is best for pen testing since you get the most control of your hardware, and mac is the best for wasting your damn money

[@Patchuchan]

The OSX is not any better than Windows for programming as you still need to download the dev tools. You can install cygwin and get all the same advantages. Linux on the otherhand all the dev tools are usually available with the distribution.

[@Patchuchan]

I do not understand why anyone would want a Macbook these days as they're a terrible deal for the money.

[@axid8354]

+Patchuchan All you have to do to code in Linux is open terminal, and there you go. On Windows however, you can't compile and assemble the code from cmd or notepad. No download required.

[@rottentwapple]

I love the surprise ending.

[@breezysaint9539]

Computer science approximates nature, wonderful!

[@xile6]

reminds me of the movie "battiers not included". but cool looking bots and one step closer to nano bots

[@JWMcLay]

Anyone else reminded of the little space ship aliens from *batteries not included. Now there's a childhood memory. Loved Jessica Tandy & Hume Cronwyn

[@heisenberg9616]

"few codes of programming" so there has to be a designer that programs them to do something. Can these little Robots do anything without being programmed do something is the question?

[@thearmchairmystic]

I'm interested in robotics and I think these kilobots are just the cutest thing. :')

[@davidshi451]

Fascinating!

[@KQEDDeepLook]

David Shi Thanks David - do you have any other favorite Deep Look episodes?

[@davidshi451]

Deep Look The hummingbird episode and the second sleep one stick out in my mind...the familiar, seen in an unfamiliar way!

[@gadielgonzalez2755]

Stan: "They're developing a new society!" Tweek: "Soon they'll discover frozen food *DYHAAAA*!"

[@guymontag162]

Thanks for the just kidding part.

[@yeeleng1000]

Whoa, I thought the stuff talked about in this video was just amazing and I just have to leave a comment lol.

[@p00pie]

best vids ever

[@Patchuchan]

Neat yet kinda scary I want few thousand of them to play with.

[@ITzRoyall]

I feel itchy watching them swarming together

[@commentator3513]

How to mimic white cell tracking Have around 50 kilobots with red light, scattered in a small-ish rectangle section to mimic red blood cells Have one blue light kilobot at one end and a white light kilobot at the other Have the red light kilobots send information that they are harmless when the white light kilobot engages (touches) If the white light kilobot does not get a signal when engaged, the white light will turn the unresponsive kilobot into a green light kilobot (dead)

[@HandyTammy548]

Love how she said what everyone was thinking in the end

[@lucasjackson7671]

all I can really say is thanks matpat for directing me to this ideo, and thank ou gys for helping me with my EPQ. the link is very helpful!

[@Cyberbully008]

The twist at the end tho😂

[@fred7159]

Yes this is something that can be incorporated into a robot or any type of machinery for that matter to locate a specific persons .

[@alexandramelodichristabell4327]

Phew. Good thing these robots are friendly.

[@PangeranFaiz]

Apik robote nyong sunk, sok ge deleng dewek ng daftar videone nyong sing judule Robot polisi patroli.

[@hgrunt100]

Jesus they are so cute!

[@SketchBook570]

"Bill." "What?" "The Killer Bots are taking over." "OH SHI-"

[@mamboo0743]

Who would win: -the entire ecosystem Or -smol metal bois

[@skunktheshrink]

From Kilobot to Killerbot: The Story of World Domination

[@stevendafox3756]

that's so cool 😀

[@dmarsub]

i find the aspect of: every single one following the same program, but then due to their position they do different things, very interesting. seems potentially difficult but very fun to program useful structures like this :).

[@johnrichie7199]

The point of it is that the programs are actually quite simple. Flocking behavior? Two lines: Follow your neighbor, try to keep a certain distance.

[@dmarsub]

yes of course, but i think it can get very complex rather quickly :), i have been playing around with "cell lab" a cell simulation app, and you can "program the genome" individually but afterwards it is out of your control :).

[@vercingetorix680]

it's pretty cool i've recognized some java codes for these robots

[@andrewshaw6921]

hey, that's pretty good

[@konpeitosart]

They remind me of those little robots from that one episode of Futurama when a robot universe was created due to them being released 😀

[@niallp.o.7567]

3:23 Well that took a dark turn.

[@venkata.varun.javvaji]

Background music is dominating the voice!

[@levisanchez7143]

"It will be a pretty sweet ride up until that point" - Why Wolf (adventure time)

[@Jts441]

damn it you jinxed it XD

[@ratatouille1682]

3:23 Now thats...scary. One intelligent robot could be recognized and shut down before it became too intelligent. But individually, the kilobots were quite dumb and you wont know what they were doing until it became a reality...

[@djadysiti7371]

Haha the last part i can't even imagine😂

[@uberfighter962]

She sounds like the announcer of the beginning of the Astro boy movie. That's cool.

[@77Avadon77]

ps what are the jumpers for? Also are you programming the robots on a mac running itunes?

[@edwardwu7730]

when the kilobots swarmed toward the lights. its so creepy

[@MBTshock]

I want to work on this so bad