German defense technology startup SWARM Biotactics has deployed programmable cyborg insect swarms for paying NATO customers, including German military forces, moving a seemingly fictional concept from experiments to operational field use.
There are swooping close encounters with heavenly bodies, Lego blocks in antigravity mode and swarms of Separators, a sort of astro-anthropomorphic version of the tool that pries apart Lego bricks in real life.
—
Dewayne Bevil,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 Feb. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.