That’s why Texas A&M University researchers are taking steps to capture lithium in a greener and surprising way — with small, fish-like robots. By using fish-like swimming nanorobots that the university says capture lithium ions from seawater. “Seawater lithium recovery could provide a stable alternative source to address the growing global demand for lithium,” Qiu said. “Our goal is to develop a technology that supports a more reliable domestic lithium supply chain while reducing the environmental footprint associated with traditional extraction methods.” Research is ongoingResearchers at the university say they will focus on improving the small robot’s performance, testing lithium recovery efficiency and developing methods to bring the technology to a larger scale.