UCLA-Led Team Develops 185-Milligram Flying Robot That Survives Crushing and Takes Off

Researchers at UCLA and collaborating institutions have developed a flying robot weighing just 185 milligrams that can withstand being flattened by a load 11,000 times its own body weight and still take off. According to 立德共创 Leaderobot, the team's device demonstrates unusual mechanical resilience at insect scale, where conventional drones would be destroyed. The robot's lightweight structure and propulsion system allow it to recover its shape and resume flight after extreme compression, the report says. Such durability could support search-and-rescue missions, environmental monitoring, and other tasks where tiny aerial robots must survive collisions, crushing, or rough deployment. While few technical details were disclosed, the work highlights growing interest in sub-gram flying machines that combine agility with physical toughness, and the team says the advance may help pave the way for more robust micro-aerial vehicles.