Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs

Abstract Jellyfish cyborgs present a promising avenue for soft robotic systems, leveraging the natural energy-efficiency and adaptability of biological systems. Here we present an approach for predicting and controlling jellyfish locomotion by harnessing the natural embodied intelligence of these an...

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Main Authors: Dai Owaki, Max Austin, Shuhei Ikeda, Kazuya Okuizumi, Kohei Nakajima
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-05-01
Series:Nature Communications
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59889-7
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author Dai Owaki
Max Austin
Shuhei Ikeda
Kazuya Okuizumi
Kohei Nakajima
author_facet Dai Owaki
Max Austin
Shuhei Ikeda
Kazuya Okuizumi
Kohei Nakajima
author_sort Dai Owaki
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Jellyfish cyborgs present a promising avenue for soft robotic systems, leveraging the natural energy-efficiency and adaptability of biological systems. Here we present an approach for predicting and controlling jellyfish locomotion by harnessing the natural embodied intelligence of these animals. We developed an integrated muscle electrostimulation and 3D motion capture system to quantify both spontaneous and stimulus-induced behaviors in Aurelia coerulea jellyfish. Our key findings include an investigation of self-organized criticality in jellyfish swimming motions and the identification of optimal periods of electro-stimulus input signal (1.5 and 2.0 seconds) for eliciting coherent and predictable swimming behaviors. Furthermore, using Reservoir Computing, a machine learning framework, we successfully predicted future movements of the stimulated jellyfish, which also characterizes how the jellyfish swimming motions are synchronized with the electro-stimulus. Our findings provide a foundation for developing jellyfish cyborgs capable of autonomous navigation and environmental exploration, with potential applications in ocean monitoring and pollution management.
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spelling doaj-art-66d9b9056f1a401b82d3f2a7f636ade12025-08-20T02:33:32ZengNature PortfolioNature Communications2041-17232025-05-0116111710.1038/s41467-025-59889-7Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgsDai Owaki0Max Austin1Shuhei Ikeda2Kazuya Okuizumi3Kohei Nakajima4Department of Robotics, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku UniversityGraduate School of Information Science and Technology, The University of TokyoKamo AquariumKamo AquariumGraduate School of Information Science and Technology, The University of TokyoAbstract Jellyfish cyborgs present a promising avenue for soft robotic systems, leveraging the natural energy-efficiency and adaptability of biological systems. Here we present an approach for predicting and controlling jellyfish locomotion by harnessing the natural embodied intelligence of these animals. We developed an integrated muscle electrostimulation and 3D motion capture system to quantify both spontaneous and stimulus-induced behaviors in Aurelia coerulea jellyfish. Our key findings include an investigation of self-organized criticality in jellyfish swimming motions and the identification of optimal periods of electro-stimulus input signal (1.5 and 2.0 seconds) for eliciting coherent and predictable swimming behaviors. Furthermore, using Reservoir Computing, a machine learning framework, we successfully predicted future movements of the stimulated jellyfish, which also characterizes how the jellyfish swimming motions are synchronized with the electro-stimulus. Our findings provide a foundation for developing jellyfish cyborgs capable of autonomous navigation and environmental exploration, with potential applications in ocean monitoring and pollution management.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59889-7
spellingShingle Dai Owaki
Max Austin
Shuhei Ikeda
Kazuya Okuizumi
Kohei Nakajima
Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
Nature Communications
title Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
title_full Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
title_fullStr Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
title_full_unstemmed Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
title_short Harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
title_sort harnessing natural embodied intelligence for spontaneous jellyfish cyborgs
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-59889-7
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