Definition
Xenobot
A xenobot is a synthetic biological machine created from the skin and heart cells of the Xenopus Laevis, from which they get their name. They were created by Michael Levin’s lab to prove that DNA does not rigidly determine form.
Scale-Free Cognition
They are prime example of Michael Levin’s work on scale-free cognition and agential material because Xenobots demonstrate that cells possess an inherent plasticity and goal-directedness that exists independent of their typical role in a specific organism (like being part of a frog’s skin).