Tiny drone uses A.I. to learn from nature's best pilot, the hummingbird

One of nature's most remarkable creations is the hummingbird, which flaps its wings up to 80 times per second and which can hover in place and fly in any direction. Now scientists have used machine learning algorithms to study the way these birds fly in order to replicate their abilities in drones. The robot, developed by researchers at Purdue University, has artificial intelligence (A.I.) which learns from hummingbird simulations and applies its findings to the movements of its flexible flapping wings. This is useful because of limitations on how small a drone can be made. When drones are shrunk to very small sizes, they cannot generate enough lift to move their weight.