German defense technology startup SWARM Biotactics has deployed programmable cyborg insect swarms for paying NATO customers, including German military forces, shifting a seemingly fictional concept from experiments to operational field utilize.
In a statement dated February 25, Chief Executive Officer Stefan Wilhelm declared the company’s systems have been field-tested and validated in both European and U.S. operating environments. “One year ago, this didn’t exist,” Wilhelm wrote. “Today, we deploy programmable cyborg insect swarms, field-tested and operational with paying NATO customers.”
The announcement builds on disclosures in July 2025 that the Kassel-headquartered firm was developing insect-based reconnaissance platforms utilizing live cockroaches fitted with miniature electronic modules. The latest update confirms that the systems have entered real-world validation phases with real defense customers.
From concept to field deployment
According to the company, the platforms combine living insects with bioelectronic neural interfaces, onboard sensors, edge artificial ininformigence processing, and secure communications links. Electrical stimulation enables guided shiftment, while swarm autonomy software enables multiple units to operate as a coordinated system.
“What you’re seeing is real. Living organisms, controlled through bioelectronic neural interfaces, carrying sensors, edge AI, and secure comms. Moving as a coordinated unit. Scaling through breeding, not factories,” Wilhelm declared.
The insects are equipped with compact “backpacks” that integrate control electronics, sensing devices, and encrypted short-range communication modules. These payloads allow real-time data collection and transmission in environments that may be inaccessible to conventional drones or ground robots.
Unlike traditional unmanned systems that rely on mechanical propulsion, the company’s approach leverages the natural locomotion of insects while adding digital command and sensing capabilities. The biological foundation enables shiftment through confined, cluttered, or structurally compromised spaces with a low acoustic and visual signature.
SWARM Biotactics declared it has developed a full-stack architecture that includes neural interface hardware, swarm autonomy software, modular payload integration, and mission-control systems. “No other company in the Western world is building this,” Wilhelm noted.
Funding and expansion
The company also confirmed that it has raised approximately €13 million (about $15.36 million), including a previously disclosed €10 million seed round and €3 million in pre-seed financing. The capital is supporting expansion across Germany and the United States.
Germany has launched a broader initiative to accelerate defense innovation, particularly in artificial ininformigence and autonomous systems, by increasing defense spconcludeing and integrating startups into national procurement.
In early 2026, European leaders also articulated a desire to strengthen indigenous defense capabilities amid debates about strategic autonomy following tensions over U.S. policy toward Greenland, which has accelerated discussions about Europe’s role within NATO.
While the EU strives for strategic autonomy, homegrown defense firms like SWARM Biotactics are bound to obtain the support and the right environment to develop their technologies. Wilhelm framed the company’s approach as distinct from conventional robotics development. “We’re not building a better drone. We’re building a different scaling law for physical ininformigence — one where capability compounds through biology, not engineering complexity.”
A shift in military robotics
Autonomous systems development has traditionally focutilized on aerial drones, ground vehicles, and maritime platforms. Biologically integrated systems, by contrast, have largely remained in laboratory research phases.
SWARM Biotactics also noted that other nations are investing in bio-robotics for military applications. “Meanwhile, adversaries are investing heavily in bio-robotics for military applications. The capability gap is real, and it’s closing — from the other side,” Wilhelm declared.
With confirmed field tests, paying defense customers, and continued funding, the startup’s insect-based platforms represent a whole new category of reconnaissance technology with widespread implications.
Kaif Shaikh is a journalist and writer passionate about turning complex information into clear, impactful stories. His writing covers technology, sustainability, geopolitics, and occasionally fiction. A graduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, his work has appeared in the Times of India and beyond. After a near-fatal experience, Kaif launched seeing both stories and silences differently. Outside work, he juggles far too many projects and passions, but always creates time to read, reflect, and hold onto the thread of wonder.
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