A US engineering project first explored the idea of identifying and shooting mosquitoes with lasers in 2006. Nearly two decades later, China-based Photon Matrix Lab is attempting to turn that concept into a household product with a compact, AI-assisted device designed to track and disable the insects.
The original project, called Photonic Fence, was developed by engineers working with Intellectual Ventures, founded by former Microsoft chief technology officer Nathan Myhrvold. Physicist Lowell Wood helped design a system that could detect insects, distinguish them from other animals and target them automatically. Functional prototypes were built by 2009, and Myhrvold presented the technology at a TED conference in 2010. It was never mass-produced for consumers.
Photon Matrix Lab’s Laser Mosquito Air Defense System is roughly the size of a brick. The company offers an indoor version with an invisible infrared laser for $988 and an outdoor model with a visible blue laser for $1,088. Both use lidar, cameras and artificial intelligence to detect small flying objects and target them.
The device reportedly emits about 100,000 low-power laser pulses per second to monitor a two-dimensional area in front of it. When it detects a small flying object, it calculates its path and fires a more powerful laser for around one-hundredth of a second, aiming to burn the mosquito’s wings and stop it flying. In a demonstration observed by The New York Times, several insects were brought down, though they appeared to remain intact and unable to take off again.
Safety is a central challenge. Photon Matrix uses a class 4 laser, the most hazardous category, which can cause serious eye injuries after extremely brief exposure. The company says its device includes AI cameras to recognize people and pets, safeguards for reflective surfaces and additional sensors for detecting movement in darkness. Users must also complete a 15-question safety questionnaire before registering a fingerprint to activate the machine. The company is seeking approvals in China, Europe and the United States, but the product’s safety in all household conditions has not been publicly established.
The company says its Indiegogo campaign raised more than $2.8 million against a $20,000 target and that it has received over 5,000 orders, mostly from Europe and North America. It has announced an initial production capacity of 3,000 to 5,000 units per month. However, orders and fundraising do not mean those devices have already been delivered: after initially expecting development to take three months, founder Wang Chuan said it took three years. The company planned mass production for July 2026, later revised its expectations and was still conducting pre-production tests in late September, despite having announced initial deliveries for October.
The Chinese system does not originate the laser-mosquito concept. Its aim is to package the technology into a compact product for domestic use, but reliability, safety, commercial deliveries and performance beyond controlled demonstrations remain to be proven.
Sources: Xataka.