There's a reason mosquitoes are so hard to catch: they're perfect flying machines, the product of millions of years of evolution. Now the Chinese military has decided to steal nature's secrets to build the micro drones smallest ever made.
All 'National University of Defense Technology (National University of Defense Technology, or NUDT if you prefer) have created biomimetic robots indistinguishable from real insects: wings that flap like natural ones, legs to land, microscopic dimensions. The result? Surveillance devices that can infiltrate anywhere without being noticed. Because when technology imitates biology, tools are born that change the rules of the game.
Design that copies nature
I micro drones of the NUDT are an impressive qualitative leap in military miniaturization. Liang Hexiang, a student researcher on the project, presented them live on television by literally holding them between his fingers. “Miniaturized bionic robots like this are perfect for reconnaissance and special missions on the battlefield,” he explained while showing the device to CCTV 7 cameras.
The design faithfully follows the anatomy of insects: two leaf-like wings that flap just like natural ones, three threadlike legs for landing, and a tapered body just a few centimeters long. The version shown on television also includes a smartphone-controlled prototype with four wings that move horizontally on the sides of the body.
The technological challenge of micro drones
Designing such tiny devices presents enormous challenges. Sensors, power systems, control circuits and materials must be compressed into a microscopic space. How NUDT researchers explain, a collaboration between different disciplines is needed: microscopic device engineering, materials science and bionics.
The real trick is to mimic the flight of real insects. The actuators must replicate the rapid and precise flapping of the wings, while the control systems must manage complex maneuvers in tight spaces. Unlike traditional drones that use motors (inefficient at this size), these micro drones use flight mechanisms biomimetic.
The global race for micro drones
China is not alone in this technological race. Norway produces the Black Hornet 4, a palm-sized drone used by Western militaries. The Norwegian model won the U.S. Department of Defense’s 2025 Blue UAS Refresh award for battery life and weather resistance.
Harvard is also working on similar projects with the RoboBee, a micro drone that can fly, land and even transition from water to air. In 2021 The U.S. Air Force has confirmed the development of miniaturized drones, although it has not provided updates on the progress.
Applications beyond war
These micro drones could revolutionize civilian sectors. In medicine, applications are being studied for surgery, drug delivery and diagnostics. In environmental monitoring, they could track pollutants, control crops or respond to natural disasters. How I was underlining in this article, the future of the battlefield will be dominated by increasingly smaller and more sophisticated autonomous systems.
Nature spent millions of years perfecting insect flight. Now humans are compressing that evolutionary wisdom into microscopic technological devices. And it's a shame that the legacy of so much wisdom is being used primarily for such stupid purposes.
