Biomimetics: Technologies Inspired by the Optimal Solutions of Biological Evolution
Astamuse Co., Ltd. has released a comprehensive report on the technological trends in biomimetics. By analyzing their innovation database, they revealed that fields such as atmospheric water harvesting and bio-inspired robotics are entering a practical implementation phase, with China dominating both patent and research paper output.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: May 28, 2026 at 10:33
- 🔍 Collected: June 1, 2026 at 01:12 (86h 38m after Published)
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: June 1, 2026 at 23:31 (22h 19m after Collected)
Astamuse Co., Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Ayumu Nagai) has conducted a comprehensive analysis of the technological field of biomimetics using its proprietary innovation database (which includes research papers, patents, startups, and grant information) and has compiled the trends into a report.
Biomimetics is an interdisciplinary research field that draws inspiration from the forms, functions, behaviors, and systems of living organisms to apply them to a wide range of technical areas such as engineering, materials, information, and medicine. Based on the philosophy of "applying the optimal solutions created by 3.8 billion years of evolution in the natural world to engineering," it aims to create high-performance, high-function systems and materials that were difficult to achieve with conventional top-down design.
Living organisms on Earth adapt to harsh environments with limited energy and materials. The structures, functions, behaviors, and information processing mechanisms acquired during this process are surprisingly highly optimized even from the perspective of modern engineering, and contain many points that human design technology should still learn from. Biomimetics aims to systematically understand these "design philosophies" of living organisms and divert them to artificial systems.
Biomimetic approaches can be broadly classified into four categories.
Structural biomimetics is an approach that reproduces the forms, microstructures, and material compositions of organisms through engineering. Representative examples include high-toughness composite materials mimicking the nacre of seashells, superhydrophobic nanostructures of lotus leaves, fluid resistance reduction surfaces of shark skin, and anti-reflective structures of moth compound eyes, which are deeply related to materials science, surface engineering, and nanotechnology.
Behavioral biomimetics is an approach that applies the patterns of movement, migration, and collective behavior of organisms to engineering systems. Representative examples include UAVs (flapping-wing flying robots) mimicking the flapping flight of birds and insects, underwater robots mimicking the swimming mechanisms of fish, and robots reproducing the walking patterns of quadrupedal animals, which are deeply related to robotics, mechatronics, and autonomous systems.
Functional biomimetics is an approach that reproduces specific functions exhibited by organisms (catalysis, adhesion, sensing, self-healing, material transport, etc.) in artificial systems. Representative examples include nanozymes (artificial enzymes) mimicking natural enzymes, artificial membranes mimicking the selective permeability of cell membranes, and coating materials mimicking the underwater adhesion mechanism of mussels, which are deeply related to chemistry, biotechnology, and medical engineering.
Algorithmic biomimetics is an approach that applies the information processing, learning, and optimization mechanisms of organisms to software or hardware. Representative examples include neuromorphic computing and spiking neural networks (SNNs) mimicking the signal processing of brains and neural circuits, and optimization methods based on collective intelligence of organisms such as ant colony behavior principles and genetic algorithms, which are deeply related to AI, computer science, and information engineering.
These approaches often overlap, and in recent years, "multi-biomimetics" research that mimics multiple biological functions simultaneously has become active. Furthermore, with the fusion of emerging technologies such as AI and synthetic biology, the scope of application for biomimetics is expanding even further.
In this report, based on this background, we analyze the technological trends related to biomimetics in patents, papers, and grants (research projects) using Astamuse's unique database.
Analysis of Patent Trends Related to Biomimetics
From the patent database held by Astamuse, we extracted 40,095 patents that include technical elements such as "biomimetics," "bionics," and "biomimetic materials" in their summaries, and conducted a "future estimation" analysis to identify technical elements that have made progress in recent years based on the annual transition of keywords included in the literature. This is an analytical method that quantitatively evaluates technologies whose boom has passed or technologies predicted to attract attention in the future by tracking the transition of keywords, and predicts the maturity (dawn, budding, growth, implementation) of each technical element.
Figure 1 shows the annual transition of keywords in patents related to biomimetics filed since 2016.
Figure 1: Annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of biomimetics-related patents (2016-2025)
Note that the growth rate for each keyword is defined as the ratio of the number of occurrences since 2021 to the number of occurrences in the literature since 2016. Keywords with a value close to 1 indicate higher recent appearance frequency, showing that attention has been increasing in recent years.
Looking at the keywords with the highest growth rates, many keywords related to bio-inspired robotics, atmospheric water harvesting (AWH), membrane biomimetics, and engineering technologies mimicking the structures of animals such as sharks, birds, and insects appear. Below, we introduce keywords that are particularly noteworthy.
Atmospheric Water Harvesting / Fog-harvesting (AWH)
This is a material and device design technology that mimics the mechanism by which beetles living in the Namib Desert collect water from fog with the uneven structure on their backs, and the mechanism by which cactus spines guide fog to their roots. Research is progressing on achieving high-efficiency water collection by optimally arranging hydrophilic and hydrophobic patterns on the surface, and it is rapidly attracting attention as a distributed water resource security technology under climate change.
Phosphatidylated
This is a membrane biomimetic technology that uses phospholipids, which are the main components of cell membranes, for surface modification. Research is becoming active on achieving immune evasion and long-term circulation in the body by coating the surface of nanoparticles for drug delivery with phospholipids similar to cell membranes.
Moth-eye-like
This is an anti-reflective film and optical material that mimics the function of the nanoscale uneven structure with a pitch of about 200nm existing on the surface of moth compound eyes to suppress light reflection to the limit. Applications are progressing for improving the light transmittance of solar panels and preventing reflections on displays.
Sharkskin-imitating
This is a low fluid resistance and antibacterial coating technology that mimics the micro-groove structure (riblet) formed by the placoid scales covering shark skin. Patent applications assuming application to swimsuits, ship hulls, and aircraft wing surfaces are increasing, and co-occurrence with keywords related to shark scale structures is also significant.
Ray-imitated
This is an underwater robot and propulsion mechanism that mimics the flat body shape and undulating movement of the pectoral fins of rays. It has characteristics of low noise, high mobility, and energy saving compared to conventional propeller propulsion, and patent applications assuming application to ocean surveys and underwater infrastructure inspection are increasing.
Four-footed
This is a keyword related to robots that mimic the movement mechanisms of quadrupedal animals such as cheetahs, dogs, and goats. Patent applications for industrial and military use assuming movement on rough terrain and load transport have surged since 2021, backing up the acceleration of investment in bio-inspired robotics.
Ornithopters / Bird-imitating
This is a group of keywords related to UAVs (flapping-wing unmanned aerial vehicles) that mimic the flapping flight of birds and insects. Taking advantage of high mobility in low-speed ranges and quietness, which are difficult to achieve with fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft, patent applications for a wide range of uses such as reconnaissance, environmental monitoring, and pollination support are continuously growing.
The rapid rise of these keywords indicates that biomimetics is shifting to the practical implementation phase in a wide range of fields, such as the commercialization of atmospheric water harvesting materials, medical applications through membrane biomimetics, and industrial development of bio-inspired robotics.
Next, we look at the trends in the number of patent applications by country. The trends in patent applications by companies and research institutions reflect the direction of technologies that are close to social implementation or are already being implemented.
Figure 2 shows the annual transition of the number of patent applications by country related to biomimetics. Note that since there is a time lag from filing to publication of patent data, the aggregation is up to 2024.
Figure 2: Annual transition of the number of patent applications by country related to biomimetics (2016-2024)
By country, China shows an overwhelming presence, accounting for 86.7% of the total. This is followed by the United States (4.2%), international applications (3.5%), South Korea (1.7%), the EU (1.2%), and Japan (0.7%).
In China, there are many patent applications related to bio-inspired robotics and bionics, and it can be read that industrialization-oriented research and development linked to the national "Manufacturing Power" policy is active. On the other hand, in the United States and international applications, there was a tendency for relatively many medical and material-related patents such as membrane biomimetics and nanozymes (artificial enzymes).
Analysis of Research Paper Trends Related to Biomimetics
Research papers published by companies and research institutions reflect the medium- to long-term trends of technologies in the research and development stage, and it is possible to read the cutting-edge trends in areas that take time to reach social implementation compared to patents.
Similar to the patent analysis, we extracted 81,411 papers containing characteristic keywords related to biomimetics. Figure 3 shows the annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of papers published since 2016.
Figure 3: Annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of biomimetics-related papers (2016-2025)
In papers since 2016, keywords related to the following advanced technologies are on an increasing trend.
Nanozyme / Enzyme-mimicking
Keywords related to nanomaterials (nanozymes) that mimic the catalytic function of natural enzymes show the most significant growth in this field. The number of related papers has surged from 4 in 2016 to 145 in 2025, and the growth rate reaches 0.82. Application research for a wide range of uses such as cancer diagnosis and treatment, environmental sensing, and antibacterial materials is becoming active.
Neuromorphic
Keywords related to chips, circuits, and AI hardware that mimic the structure and function of brains and neural circuits. The number of related papers has increased more than 8 times from 77 in 2016 to 646 in 2025, showing the high interest in bio-inspired computing for lower power consumption and higher efficiency of AI hardware. Membrane-biomimetic / Membrane-camouflaged: This is a drug delivery technology that covers nanoparticles with cell membranes such as red blood cells, platelets, and cancer cells to deliver drugs selectively to target tissues while avoiding exclusion by the immune system. The number of related papers has increased from 1 in 2016 to 15 in 2025 for "membrane-biomimetic," and from 3 in 2016 to 23 in 2025 for "membrane-camouflaged."
Atmospheric Water Harvesting (AWH / Sorption-based)
Keywords related to materials and devices that mimic the fog collection mechanism of desert beetles and cacti, and obtain water from the atmosphere using the adsorption and desorption functions of water vapor and gas. The number of related papers has surged from 1 in 2020 to 16 in 2024 (growth rate 0.98). Attention is increasing as a technology for responding to climate change.
Ornithopters / FWAVs / AeroBat
Groups of keywords related to flapping-wing UAVs that mimic the flapping flight of insects, birds, and bats. Among them, AeroBat is a flying robot that mimics the flight of bats, and the number of related papers has surged since 2020.
GelMA (Gelatin Methacryloyl Hydrogel)
A representative example of hydrogel materials that mimic the extracellular matrix (the structural scaffold surrounding cells in the body). Application research for tissue engineering, bioprinting, and drug delivery is continuously expanding, and the number of related papers has grown about 10 times from 6 in 2016 to 61 in 2025.
Multi-bioinspired / Dual-biomimetic
Keywords related to materials and designs that draw inspiration from multiple organisms or biological functions simultaneously. This indicates that the research focus is shifting from an approach of mimicking a single biological function to the development of multifunctional materials that integrate multiple functions.
These technologies indicate that the scope of application of biomimetics is expanding dramatically, such as enzyme function substitution by nanomaterials, cancer treatment and drug delivery utilizing biomimetics, bio-inspiration of AI hardware, and water resource security by atmospheric water harvesting. In particular, the rapid growth of nanozymes and neuromorphic computing forms the core of current research trends.
Next, we look at the number of papers published by country (Figure 4).
By country, China has the most, accounting for 38.7% of the total. This is followed by the United States (15.6%), India (4.3%), Germany (3.9%), Denmark (3.7%), and Japan (3.1%). The number of papers in China has increased about 4 times from 908 in 2015 to 3,491 in 2025, and it continues to increase in recent years. The United States has maintained a certain level since 2015, but the gap with China is widening year by year. Also, it is worth noting that Denmark is in 5th place. Considering the population size, it is a remarkable presence, and it is thought to reflect the high research capability of the country in the fields of materials science and robotics.
(For subsequent information on keywords and trend analysis of grants related to biomimetics, examples of startup companies, and the overall summary, please check the relevant page on our corporate website.)
Author: Astamuse Co., Ltd. Hayato Otake, Master of Science
For further analysis...
At Astamuse, we conduct analysis in various advanced technologies/advanced fields every day, not limited to technologies related to "biomimetics," and provide them to various companies and investors.
In this report, we have published a part of the analysis results. Data sources used for analysis include research and development grant data from various countries to grasp advanced research trends from the latest government trends, startup/venture data to grasp the latest business models, and patent/paper data to support such latest trends.
Based on these analysis results, we provide in-depth analysis by combining them comprehensively from the perspectives of various time axes and players.
Biomimetics is an interdisciplinary research field that draws inspiration from the forms, functions, behaviors, and systems of living organisms to apply them to a wide range of technical areas such as engineering, materials, information, and medicine. Based on the philosophy of "applying the optimal solutions created by 3.8 billion years of evolution in the natural world to engineering," it aims to create high-performance, high-function systems and materials that were difficult to achieve with conventional top-down design.
Living organisms on Earth adapt to harsh environments with limited energy and materials. The structures, functions, behaviors, and information processing mechanisms acquired during this process are surprisingly highly optimized even from the perspective of modern engineering, and contain many points that human design technology should still learn from. Biomimetics aims to systematically understand these "design philosophies" of living organisms and divert them to artificial systems.
Biomimetic approaches can be broadly classified into four categories.
Structural biomimetics is an approach that reproduces the forms, microstructures, and material compositions of organisms through engineering. Representative examples include high-toughness composite materials mimicking the nacre of seashells, superhydrophobic nanostructures of lotus leaves, fluid resistance reduction surfaces of shark skin, and anti-reflective structures of moth compound eyes, which are deeply related to materials science, surface engineering, and nanotechnology.
Behavioral biomimetics is an approach that applies the patterns of movement, migration, and collective behavior of organisms to engineering systems. Representative examples include UAVs (flapping-wing flying robots) mimicking the flapping flight of birds and insects, underwater robots mimicking the swimming mechanisms of fish, and robots reproducing the walking patterns of quadrupedal animals, which are deeply related to robotics, mechatronics, and autonomous systems.
Functional biomimetics is an approach that reproduces specific functions exhibited by organisms (catalysis, adhesion, sensing, self-healing, material transport, etc.) in artificial systems. Representative examples include nanozymes (artificial enzymes) mimicking natural enzymes, artificial membranes mimicking the selective permeability of cell membranes, and coating materials mimicking the underwater adhesion mechanism of mussels, which are deeply related to chemistry, biotechnology, and medical engineering.
Algorithmic biomimetics is an approach that applies the information processing, learning, and optimization mechanisms of organisms to software or hardware. Representative examples include neuromorphic computing and spiking neural networks (SNNs) mimicking the signal processing of brains and neural circuits, and optimization methods based on collective intelligence of organisms such as ant colony behavior principles and genetic algorithms, which are deeply related to AI, computer science, and information engineering.
These approaches often overlap, and in recent years, "multi-biomimetics" research that mimics multiple biological functions simultaneously has become active. Furthermore, with the fusion of emerging technologies such as AI and synthetic biology, the scope of application for biomimetics is expanding even further.
In this report, based on this background, we analyze the technological trends related to biomimetics in patents, papers, and grants (research projects) using Astamuse's unique database.
Analysis of Patent Trends Related to Biomimetics
From the patent database held by Astamuse, we extracted 40,095 patents that include technical elements such as "biomimetics," "bionics," and "biomimetic materials" in their summaries, and conducted a "future estimation" analysis to identify technical elements that have made progress in recent years based on the annual transition of keywords included in the literature. This is an analytical method that quantitatively evaluates technologies whose boom has passed or technologies predicted to attract attention in the future by tracking the transition of keywords, and predicts the maturity (dawn, budding, growth, implementation) of each technical element.
Figure 1 shows the annual transition of keywords in patents related to biomimetics filed since 2016.
Figure 1: Annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of biomimetics-related patents (2016-2025)
Note that the growth rate for each keyword is defined as the ratio of the number of occurrences since 2021 to the number of occurrences in the literature since 2016. Keywords with a value close to 1 indicate higher recent appearance frequency, showing that attention has been increasing in recent years.
Looking at the keywords with the highest growth rates, many keywords related to bio-inspired robotics, atmospheric water harvesting (AWH), membrane biomimetics, and engineering technologies mimicking the structures of animals such as sharks, birds, and insects appear. Below, we introduce keywords that are particularly noteworthy.
Atmospheric Water Harvesting / Fog-harvesting (AWH)
This is a material and device design technology that mimics the mechanism by which beetles living in the Namib Desert collect water from fog with the uneven structure on their backs, and the mechanism by which cactus spines guide fog to their roots. Research is progressing on achieving high-efficiency water collection by optimally arranging hydrophilic and hydrophobic patterns on the surface, and it is rapidly attracting attention as a distributed water resource security technology under climate change.
Phosphatidylated
This is a membrane biomimetic technology that uses phospholipids, which are the main components of cell membranes, for surface modification. Research is becoming active on achieving immune evasion and long-term circulation in the body by coating the surface of nanoparticles for drug delivery with phospholipids similar to cell membranes.
Moth-eye-like
This is an anti-reflective film and optical material that mimics the function of the nanoscale uneven structure with a pitch of about 200nm existing on the surface of moth compound eyes to suppress light reflection to the limit. Applications are progressing for improving the light transmittance of solar panels and preventing reflections on displays.
Sharkskin-imitating
This is a low fluid resistance and antibacterial coating technology that mimics the micro-groove structure (riblet) formed by the placoid scales covering shark skin. Patent applications assuming application to swimsuits, ship hulls, and aircraft wing surfaces are increasing, and co-occurrence with keywords related to shark scale structures is also significant.
Ray-imitated
This is an underwater robot and propulsion mechanism that mimics the flat body shape and undulating movement of the pectoral fins of rays. It has characteristics of low noise, high mobility, and energy saving compared to conventional propeller propulsion, and patent applications assuming application to ocean surveys and underwater infrastructure inspection are increasing.
Four-footed
This is a keyword related to robots that mimic the movement mechanisms of quadrupedal animals such as cheetahs, dogs, and goats. Patent applications for industrial and military use assuming movement on rough terrain and load transport have surged since 2021, backing up the acceleration of investment in bio-inspired robotics.
Ornithopters / Bird-imitating
This is a group of keywords related to UAVs (flapping-wing unmanned aerial vehicles) that mimic the flapping flight of birds and insects. Taking advantage of high mobility in low-speed ranges and quietness, which are difficult to achieve with fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft, patent applications for a wide range of uses such as reconnaissance, environmental monitoring, and pollination support are continuously growing.
The rapid rise of these keywords indicates that biomimetics is shifting to the practical implementation phase in a wide range of fields, such as the commercialization of atmospheric water harvesting materials, medical applications through membrane biomimetics, and industrial development of bio-inspired robotics.
Next, we look at the trends in the number of patent applications by country. The trends in patent applications by companies and research institutions reflect the direction of technologies that are close to social implementation or are already being implemented.
Figure 2 shows the annual transition of the number of patent applications by country related to biomimetics. Note that since there is a time lag from filing to publication of patent data, the aggregation is up to 2024.
Figure 2: Annual transition of the number of patent applications by country related to biomimetics (2016-2024)
By country, China shows an overwhelming presence, accounting for 86.7% of the total. This is followed by the United States (4.2%), international applications (3.5%), South Korea (1.7%), the EU (1.2%), and Japan (0.7%).
In China, there are many patent applications related to bio-inspired robotics and bionics, and it can be read that industrialization-oriented research and development linked to the national "Manufacturing Power" policy is active. On the other hand, in the United States and international applications, there was a tendency for relatively many medical and material-related patents such as membrane biomimetics and nanozymes (artificial enzymes).
Analysis of Research Paper Trends Related to Biomimetics
Research papers published by companies and research institutions reflect the medium- to long-term trends of technologies in the research and development stage, and it is possible to read the cutting-edge trends in areas that take time to reach social implementation compared to patents.
Similar to the patent analysis, we extracted 81,411 papers containing characteristic keywords related to biomimetics. Figure 3 shows the annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of papers published since 2016.
Figure 3: Annual transition of keywords included in the summaries of biomimetics-related papers (2016-2025)
In papers since 2016, keywords related to the following advanced technologies are on an increasing trend.
Nanozyme / Enzyme-mimicking
Keywords related to nanomaterials (nanozymes) that mimic the catalytic function of natural enzymes show the most significant growth in this field. The number of related papers has surged from 4 in 2016 to 145 in 2025, and the growth rate reaches 0.82. Application research for a wide range of uses such as cancer diagnosis and treatment, environmental sensing, and antibacterial materials is becoming active.
Neuromorphic
Keywords related to chips, circuits, and AI hardware that mimic the structure and function of brains and neural circuits. The number of related papers has increased more than 8 times from 77 in 2016 to 646 in 2025, showing the high interest in bio-inspired computing for lower power consumption and higher efficiency of AI hardware. Membrane-biomimetic / Membrane-camouflaged: This is a drug delivery technology that covers nanoparticles with cell membranes such as red blood cells, platelets, and cancer cells to deliver drugs selectively to target tissues while avoiding exclusion by the immune system. The number of related papers has increased from 1 in 2016 to 15 in 2025 for "membrane-biomimetic," and from 3 in 2016 to 23 in 2025 for "membrane-camouflaged."
Atmospheric Water Harvesting (AWH / Sorption-based)
Keywords related to materials and devices that mimic the fog collection mechanism of desert beetles and cacti, and obtain water from the atmosphere using the adsorption and desorption functions of water vapor and gas. The number of related papers has surged from 1 in 2020 to 16 in 2024 (growth rate 0.98). Attention is increasing as a technology for responding to climate change.
Ornithopters / FWAVs / AeroBat
Groups of keywords related to flapping-wing UAVs that mimic the flapping flight of insects, birds, and bats. Among them, AeroBat is a flying robot that mimics the flight of bats, and the number of related papers has surged since 2020.
GelMA (Gelatin Methacryloyl Hydrogel)
A representative example of hydrogel materials that mimic the extracellular matrix (the structural scaffold surrounding cells in the body). Application research for tissue engineering, bioprinting, and drug delivery is continuously expanding, and the number of related papers has grown about 10 times from 6 in 2016 to 61 in 2025.
Multi-bioinspired / Dual-biomimetic
Keywords related to materials and designs that draw inspiration from multiple organisms or biological functions simultaneously. This indicates that the research focus is shifting from an approach of mimicking a single biological function to the development of multifunctional materials that integrate multiple functions.
These technologies indicate that the scope of application of biomimetics is expanding dramatically, such as enzyme function substitution by nanomaterials, cancer treatment and drug delivery utilizing biomimetics, bio-inspiration of AI hardware, and water resource security by atmospheric water harvesting. In particular, the rapid growth of nanozymes and neuromorphic computing forms the core of current research trends.
Next, we look at the number of papers published by country (Figure 4).
By country, China has the most, accounting for 38.7% of the total. This is followed by the United States (15.6%), India (4.3%), Germany (3.9%), Denmark (3.7%), and Japan (3.1%). The number of papers in China has increased about 4 times from 908 in 2015 to 3,491 in 2025, and it continues to increase in recent years. The United States has maintained a certain level since 2015, but the gap with China is widening year by year. Also, it is worth noting that Denmark is in 5th place. Considering the population size, it is a remarkable presence, and it is thought to reflect the high research capability of the country in the fields of materials science and robotics.
(For subsequent information on keywords and trend analysis of grants related to biomimetics, examples of startup companies, and the overall summary, please check the relevant page on our corporate website.)
Author: Astamuse Co., Ltd. Hayato Otake, Master of Science
For further analysis...
At Astamuse, we conduct analysis in various advanced technologies/advanced fields every day, not limited to technologies related to "biomimetics," and provide them to various companies and investors.
In this report, we have published a part of the analysis results. Data sources used for analysis include research and development grant data from various countries to grasp advanced research trends from the latest government trends, startup/venture data to grasp the latest business models, and patent/paper data to support such latest trends.
Based on these analysis results, we provide in-depth analysis by combining them comprehensively from the perspectives of various time axes and players.
FAQ
What opportunities does biomimetics offer for Taiwanese companies?
Taiwan's expertise in precision machinery and semiconductor technology provides significant potential for developing bio-inspired robotics and neuromorphic chips.