Giada Gerboni: The incredible potential of flexible, soft robots

The incredible potential of flexible, soft robots

Robots are designed for speed and precision -- but their rigidity has often limited how they're used. In this illuminating talk, biomedical engineer Giada Gerboni shares the latest developments in "soft robotics," an emerging field that aims to create nimble machines that imitate nature, like a robotic octopus. Learn more about how these flexible structures could play a critical role in surgery, medicine and our daily lives.

Rigid, precise robots excel in factories but falter in unpredictable real-world settings. By embracing flexibility, soft robotics mimics nature’s resilience, as seen when an octopus manipulates objects with ease under extreme pressure. Soft robots, built from deformable materials and inspired by both plants and animals, can squeeze under obstacles, survive getting run over, and adapt to delicate environments. In medicine, these nimble machines are already paving the way for safer, less invasive surgeries and new ways to reach inside the human body.