Nearly two decades ago, a group of American engineers had an idea that seemed straight out of science fiction: build a system capable of detecting mosquitoes in mid-flight and shooting them with laser shots. The project was successful, but it never became a consumer product. Now, from China, they’ve repurposed that idea, added artificial intelligence, and are trying to bring it to market for around $1,000.
The result looks like a miniature air defense system.
The idea was born in the United States. In 2006, Nathan Myhrvold, former Microsoft CTO and founder of Intellectual Ventures, asked a group of engineers an unusual question: Can lasers kill mosquitoes? The proposal arose out of a conversation about tackling malaria, a mosquito-borne disease that kills tens of thousands of people a year.
Among the experts involved was Lowell Wood, a physicist who worked on projects related to American strategic defense during the Cold War. Their response was to create a type of invisible barrier that could detect insects, separate them from other animals, and automatically shoot them. They called it the Photonic Fence, and by 2009 Intellectual Ventures had already built working prototypes.
A Death Star against mosquitoes. In February 2010, Myhrvold launched the technology publicly during a TED conference in California. The system uses optical sensors and cameras to detect mosquitoes, follow their movements and point a laser at them, with the possibility of distinguishing insects by characteristics such as their size and their wing beats. Demonstrations included live detection using a harmless laser and videos of killing insects with live shots.
China resumed the project. Sixteen years after that demonstration, Photon Matrix Labs, a company based in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, China, has developed its own anti-mosquito defense system. Their device, called the Laser Mosquito Air Defense System, is about the size of a brick and combines laser sensors, cameras and artificial intelligence to detect and neutralize small flying objects.
The company offers two versions: one with an invisible infrared laser, aimed primarily at indoor use, for $988, and another with a visible blue laser, aimed at outdoor use, for $1,088. Both promise the same performance. The difference with the American project is not discovering that a laser can kill mosquitoes, but rather trying to integrate all the components into a compact, production device intended for the domestic market.
One lakh pulses per second. The operation is reminiscent of a small automatic anti-aircraft system. The device uses lidar technology common in autonomous vehicles to emit about 100,000 low-power laser pulses per second and observe a two-dimensional plane located in front of the machine. When it detects a small flying object, it calculates its trajectory and activates a high-powered laser to intercept it. Each shot lasts about a hundredth of a second and is designed to burn the mosquito’s wings, preventing it from flying.
During a demonstration witnessed by The New York Times, the device shot several insects in quick succession, which fell to the ground with their bodies apparently intact, but unable to get up. They didn’t die immediately, in fact, according to company founder Wang Chuan, some could survive for hours or even days after losing their wings.
The real problem is not mosquitoes. To achieve sufficient efficiency, the Photon Matrix discards Class 3 lasers and uses a Class 4 laser, which is the most dangerous category. The reason? These devices can cause serious eye injuries with very brief exposure, which is why safety has become a major business obstacle. The company claims to have cameras with artificial intelligence to recognize people and pets, reflective surface detection systems and additional sensors capable of detecting movement even in complete darkness.
Before allowing the registration of a fingerprint to activate the machine, it must pass a 15-question security questionnaire. That said, all of these measures depend on the systems working properly, as an accidental trigger or unexpected reflection can have serious consequences. The Times reported that the company is seeking related approvals in China, Europe and the United States, although it has yet to publicly demonstrate that its product is safe under all conditions for domestic use.
A million dollar business from an experiment. Because commercial reception has exceeded initial expectations. Photon Matrix Lab launched a campaign on Indiegogo with a goal of raising $20,000 and surpassed $2.8 million, driven by videos that went viral on social networks. The company claims to have received more than 5,000 orders, mainly from Europe and North America, and announced a planned initial capacity of between 3,000 and 5,000 units per month.
However, as explained in the Times, the jump from lab to factory is proving to be a bit tricky. Wang Chuan admitted that they initially planned to develop the product in three months and it took three years. The company had hoped to begin mass production in July 2026, then scaled back its forecast and admitted in late September that it was still conducting pre-production tests. In other words, even though it announced initial deliveries for October, orders and collections do not equate to thousands of devices already delivered and working at home.
A Small War Paradox. If you will, the story summarizes a technological transition that goes beyond mosquitoes. The United States showed nearly two decades ago that it was possible to detect and kill insects using laser shots, but it has failed to convert that technology into a mass-produced domestic product. China aims to take that final step by using a supply chain capable of integrating lidar sensors, local processing and artificial intelligence into relatively compact devices.
That doesn’t mean it invented the concept or definitively won the battle, as safety, reliability, commercial distribution and efficacy beyond controlled demonstrations still need to be demonstrated. Nor is it about eradicating mosquitoes from the planet, but rather controlling their presence in certain places.
Between one thing and another there is an image that summarizes the jump: a technology that was born with the idea of ​​combating malaria using laser barriers can be installed in gardens and terraces, transformed into an automatic turret that fires against those little ones. Vampire.
Picture | Xataka
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