🌊 This wave-powered machine produces drinking water from the sea

Plus: MightyFly’s giant autonomous cargo drones, a tiny shape-shifting robot for disaster rescue missions, hydrogel “muscles” that flex in response to electricity. As countries grapple with growing water scarcity, a Canadian company has developed a sustainable solution harnessing the power of ocean waves. Oneka Technologies’ floating desalination machines use renewable wave energy to turn seawater into drinking water. Anchored offshore, these eco-friendly devices pump and filter thousands of liters daily without any energy input. Oneka's approach provides clean water while protecting marine life through proper brine discharge. With the technology set to launch commercially next year, wave-powered desalination promises a scalable path for expanding water security across the globe. Discover more about how the motion of waves could quench communities in an energy-efficient, sustainable manner in today’s [Must Read](. Good morning. I’m Tim, newsletter editor at IE. This is the Blueprint. 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Must Read [🌊 This wave-powered machine produces drinking water from the sea]( A Canadian startup called Oneka Technologies has developed a novel desalination system that runs entirely on power harnessed from ocean waves. Their floating machines anchor to the seafloor and use the motion of passing waves to pump seawater through filters, producing drinking water. This renewable approach eliminates the high energy demands and emissions of conventional desalination plants. Oneka's desalination devices are modular, with the largest machine capable of generating 49,000 liters of freshwater daily from 3-foot waves. The wildlife-friendly system properly dilutes its salt discharge to avoid harming marine life. Oneka plans to make the technology commercially available next year, providing a sustainable water source that helps address growing demand. The wave-powered desalination system offers countries a way to expand clean water access without relying on fossil fuels or electricity. Oneka aims to deploy the technology at coastal cities and resorts first, and there are potential humanitarian applications, like converting seawater into safe drinking water in disaster relief scenarios. [[Read More]( [Science]( [🦾 Hydrogel ‘muscles’ flex in response to electricity]( Scientists developed hydrogels that swell and stretch when exposed to low-voltage electricity. Combining cellulose and carbon nanotubes, these electrochemical hydrogels expand up to 300 percent while powered on. Remarkably, they maintain their stretched state after the electricity stops. This electronic control enables applications like membranes where permeability can change on demand. The researchers say these artificial muscle hydrogels could also be integrated into soft robotics. Learn more about the electricity-controlled hydrogels. [[Read More]( [Innovation]( [🕷 Tiny shape-shifting spider robot with disaster rescue potential]( Engineers created a remarkable shape-changing robot inspired by spiders and origami. At just two centimeters long, the agile microbot can compress its body to rapidly maneuver through narrow spaces. This passive morphing enables omnidirectional movement ideal for search missions after disasters. Despite its tiny size, the quadruped robot can carry loads heavier than itself. The researchers believe their innovation brings insect-scale robots closer to reality. Discover more about the shape-shifting spider robot. [[Read More]( [Transportation]( [✈️ MightyFly’s cargo drones to assist US Air Force logistics]( The startup MightyFly received a $1.25 million US Air Force contract to further develop its autonomous aerial logistics technology. The funding will advance MightyFly's Autonomous Load Mastering System tht can independently load, unload, and deliver payloads. The technology aims to optimize delivery speed and efficiency for military and commercial operators. Learn more about the future of autonomous cargo drones. [[Read More]( job alert In this section you’ll find the latest jobs as featured on: [jobs.interestingengineering.com]( [Sr. R&D Medical Device Engineer]( at Carl Zeiss Meditec Cataract Technology Inc. Reno(US) [EUV Tech Support Engineer]( at ASML Phoenix(US) [Quality Engineer]( at Hunter Engineering Company Raymond(US) [System Engineer]( at Addition Financial Lake Mary(US) [Senior Embedded Software Engineer]( at rf IDEAS, Inc. 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[Humanitarian potential]( [Modular, scalable design]( [Reduced impact on marine life]( [Sustainable clean drinking water]( YESTERDAY'S RESULTS Only 21 percent of you have signed up to try xAI’s Grok chatbot or plan to soon. 45 percent say they definitely will not use it, and a further third do not use any chatbot. 45% I don't use X, won't use xAI 34% I don't use AI chatbots 15% I'll sign up soon 6% I'm already on the list “We are fundamentally interested in understanding why animals are the way they are and move the way they do, and how we can build bioinspired robots that can address social needs, like search and rescue.” Kaushik Jayaram, University of Colorado Boulder AMAZON AMAZERS [DEEBOT X2 Robot Vacuum]( [$1,199.99]( [DualBrew Drip Maker]( [$127.49]( [Jabra Elite Wireless Earbuds]( [$224.99]( [Kobra Plus 3D Printer]( [$286.98]( AND ANOTHER THING - [Doritos introduces world’s first quiet snacking AI software]( - [Bulava: Russia’s new nuclear submarine tests intercontinental missile]( - [Scientists create the first wireless map of a worm's nervous system]( - [Snake bite spell protects this 6th century BC tomb in Egypt]( - [China: Shamanic doctor performed complex skull surgery 2,700 years ago]( - [US scientists simulate heartbeats to recharge pacemaker battery]( - [AI-chip cousins? 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