Futuristic dragonflies are flapping their wings in the Biomimetics Lab at the University of Auckland's Bioengineering Institute. Soon they may be lifting off their podiums and taking to the air. The research to create and develop them is led by Dr EF Markus Henke, a graduate in mechatronics from TU Dresden in Germany, who has come to Auckland to work with biomimetics expert and Biomimetics Lab director, Professor Iain Anderson.

Scientists at the University of Auckland have developed a soft, flexible, stretchable keyboard using a type of rubber known as a dielectric elastomer. The results are reported on the 25th November 2015, in the journal Smart Materials and Structures. The keyboard was made from a single laminated structure with two sensing layers oriented at 90 degrees apart.