China Military Unveils Mosquito-Sized Drones for ‘Special Missions'
"This type of micro-robot is especially suitable for special missions, such as information reconnaissance, on the battlefield," said Liang Hexiang, a student at the National University of Defence Technology, told China Central Television in a June 14 report.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry by email with a request for comment.
Technological advances have enabled sensors, batteries, and other components to be packed into ever smaller frames, enabling development of smaller, lighter, and increasingly sophisticated drones.
Miniaturization opens up a host of possibilities, from a low-cost alternative to missiles to search and rescue operations. At the same time, it also raises concerns over personal privacy and criminal exploitation.
What To Know
The new device, developed at China's National University of Defence Technology, is just 2 centimeters long (under an inch), 3 cm wide (just over an inch), and weighs less than 0.2 grams. It appeared almost weightless between the researcher's fingers in the CCTV broadcast.
While the design pushes the limits of miniaturization, similar micro-robotics research has been ongoing elsewhere.
Another insectoid robot, Harvard Microrobotics Laboratory's RoboBee, achieves flight by beating its wings 120 times a second with artificial muscles. The goal is for swarms of these tiny robots to one day assist with tasks like rescue missions or artificial pollination.
On the military side, slightly larger micro-drones like the Black Hornet-originally developed in Norway and produced by Teledyne FLIR Defense-have boosted situation awareness among dozens of armed forces. The newest Black Hornet 4 can transmit thermal images, cover distances up to 2 miles, and remain airborne for more than 30 minutes, according to the company.
Despite their promise, analysts say ultra-tiny drones like the "mosquito" are limited in their potential on the battlefield.
Bryce Barros, a security fellow at the Washington, D.C.-based Truman National Security Project, told Newsweek: "The impact of this mosquito-sized drone on wartime surveillance will likely be minimal due to its limited capacity, short range, and presumable short battery life,"
Timothy Heath, senior international defense researcher at the Rand Corporation, told The Telegraph: "If China is able to produce mosquito-sized drones, it would likely be interested in using them for various intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance tasks, especially in places that larger drones struggle to access, such as indoor areas.
Perhaps most consequential, Barros said, is how UAVs like the National University of Defence Technology's new model could be integrated into China's dual-use drone strategy, particularly when it comes to artificial intelligence and asymmetric warfare, where such technologies can offer an edge against larger conventional forces.
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