Scientists say that a new kind robot can reproduce - it can create baby robots. This is an example science fiction becoming science fact. The scientists, the Universities of Vermont, Tufts and Harvard, created the world's first "living" robots. They are called "xenobots". Scientists created them 2020 from the stem cells an African frog. Its scientific name - "xenopus laevis" - gave the xenobot its name. The xenobots are less than a millimetre wide. They can move, work together groups and self-heal. Although they are not what we imagine robots to be, scientists say they are technically robots. They are a machine-animal hybrid. The scientists say xenobots are "an entirely new life-form".
The scientists explained that the bots reproduce because their shape. Researchers used artificial intelligence (AI) to test billions body shapes. The result was a C-shaped robot. It was able to find tiny stem cells a petri dish. It gathered the cells its mouth. A few days later, the cells became a new, "baby" xenobot. The xenobots are very early technology. However, they could change science, medicine, technology and the way we live. They could carry tasks inside our body to repair damage to organs. They could also help the environment attacking micro-plastics our oceans, or by cleaning oil spills. Despite the possible benefits, some people are worried about robots that can reproduce
