Skip to main content

MIT enlists 6,500 silkworms and one robot to print a silk pavilion

MIT enlists 6,500 silkworms and one robot to print a silk pavilion

Share this story

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

Silk Pavilion MIT
Silk Pavilion MIT

Robot fish can lead real aquatic life to safety, and apparently robotic weavers can guide silkworms, too. One year after the MIT Media Lab's artificial spider wove an artificial web, the group has used another such robot to create a biological printer and print a giant cocoon. After using a CNC machine to lay down the foundations, a swarm of 6,500 live silkworms finished the job, depositing their natural silk to create a partially natural, partially artificial structure. Watch them at work in the video below.