Living Neurons Drive Robot Dog in Lab Test
Australian firm Cortical Labs used lab-grown brain cells on a chip to steer a robotic dog toward a point on a simple map.
Updated on Nov. 8, 2026 in Semiconductors
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Cortical Labs, an Australian company, placed lab-grown brain cells onto an electrode-equipped chip and translated their activity into the movement of a robotic dog. Feedback loops adjust the device's direction to navigate to a designated point.
Why it matters
Living neurons could eventually form the basis of computer chips more efficient than silicon processors, and bio-hybrid robots could help where modern robots struggle with complex decisions and sudden environmental change. The technology remains in its nascent stage, with limited processing speed and accuracy.
The experiment ran for more than 4,000 hours in a virtual environment, testing nearly 1,300 distinct signal combinations between the neuron cluster and the robot. Biological chips still lack high processing speeds and perfect accuracy, and the study did not establish how they would perform at scale.
The players
Cortical Labs
Cortical Labs is an Australian company that develops biological computing hardware built from living neurons grown on electrode-equipped chips.
Honda Research Institute Europe
Honda Research Institute Europe is the European research arm of Honda that works on advanced robotics and intelligent systems, and partnered with Cortical Labs to extend living-chip technology beyond virtual environments.
The details
The Australian team grew neurons directly on the surface of a microchip equipped with electrodes, which enable bidirectional transmission of electrical signals. The activity of a small cluster of cells was converted into physical movement, building on earlier demonstrations in which the same kind of lab-grown neurons played the video games Pong and Doom.
Timeline
Article on the robot dog study published November 8, 2026
The Tech Race
The robot dog study extends Cortical Labs' earlier demonstrations, in which lab-grown neurons played Pong and Doom, from virtual games into physical robotics. It positions biological computing as a potential alternative to silicon in a field where companies are racing to build more efficient processors.
For now, the living-chip approach remains experimental and is not available as a consumer product. Its near-term relevance is to researchers and robotics developers rather than everyday users.
The takeaway
Biological chips are at an early stage, but they point toward computing hardware that could be more efficient than silicon and robots that learn while operating. Progress will depend on improving speed and accuracy before such systems can be deployed.
Further reading
For background on the chip hardware behind this work, see Semiconductors.
Source note: This article includes information reported by RBC-Ukraine.
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