Roadmap for animate matter

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Volpe, Giorgio and Araujo, Nuno A M and Guix, Maria and Miodownik, Mark and Martin, Nicolas and Alvarez, Laura and Simmchen, Juliane and di Leonardo, Roberto and Pellicciotta, Nicola and Martinet, Quentin and Palacci, Jérémie and Ng, Wai Kit and Saxena, Dhruv and Sapienza, Riccardo and Nadine, Sara and Mano, João and Mahdavi, Reza and Beck Adiels, Caroline and Forth, Joe and Santangelo, Christian and Palagi, Stefano and Seok, Ji Min and Webster-Wood, Victoria A and Wang, Shuhong and Yao, Lining and Aghakhani, Amirreza and Barois, Thomas and Kellay, Hamid and Coulais, Corentin and van Hecke, Martin and Pierce, Christopher J and Wang, Tianyu and Chong, Baxi and Goldman, Daniel I and Reina, Andreagiovanni and Trianni, Vito and Volpe, Giovanni and Beckett, Richard and Nair, Sean P and Armstrong, Rachel (2025) Roadmap for animate matter. Journal of Physics: Condensed Matter, 37 (33). 333501. ISSN 0953-8984 (https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-648X/adebd3)

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Abstract

Humanity has long sought inspiration from nature to innovate materials and devices. As science advances, nature-inspired materials are becoming part of our lives. Animate materials, characterized by their activity, adaptability, and autonomy, emulate properties of living systems. While only biological materials fully embody these principles, artificial versions are advancing rapidly, promising transformative impacts in the circular economy, health and climate resilience within a generation. This roadmap presents authoritative perspectives on animate materials across different disciplines and scales, highlighting their interdisciplinary nature and potential applications in diverse fields including nanotechnology, robotics and the built environment. It underscores the need for concerted efforts to address shared challenges such as complexity management, scalability, evolvability, interdisciplinary collaboration, and ethical and environmental considerations. The framework defined by classifying materials based on their level of animacy can guide this emerging field to encourage cooperation and responsible development. By unravelling the mysteries of living matter and leveraging its principles, we can design materials and systems that will transform our world in a more sustainable manner.

ORCID iDs

Volpe, Giorgio, Araujo, Nuno A M, Guix, Maria, Miodownik, Mark, Martin, Nicolas, Alvarez, Laura, Simmchen, Juliane ORCID logoORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9073-9770, di Leonardo, Roberto, Pellicciotta, Nicola, Martinet, Quentin, Palacci, Jérémie, Ng, Wai Kit, Saxena, Dhruv, Sapienza, Riccardo, Nadine, Sara, Mano, João, Mahdavi, Reza, Beck Adiels, Caroline, Forth, Joe, Santangelo, Christian, Palagi, Stefano, Seok, Ji Min, Webster-Wood, Victoria A, Wang, Shuhong, Yao, Lining, Aghakhani, Amirreza, Barois, Thomas, Kellay, Hamid, Coulais, Corentin, van Hecke, Martin, Pierce, Christopher J, Wang, Tianyu, Chong, Baxi, Goldman, Daniel I, Reina, Andreagiovanni, Trianni, Vito, Volpe, Giovanni, Beckett, Richard, Nair, Sean P and Armstrong, Rachel;
  • Item type:Article
    ID code:93608
    Dates:
    Date
    Event
    18 August 2025
    Published
    3 July 2025
    Published Online
    3 July 2025
    Accepted
    Subjects:Science > Physics
    Department:Faculty of Science > Pure and Applied Chemistry
    Depositing user: Pure Administrator
    Date deposited:30 Jul 2025 20:44
    Last modified:28 Oct 2025 18:40
    URI:https://strathprints.strath.ac.uk/id/eprint/93608
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