Overview
- Company founder Alex Toussaint posted a video of an autonomous interception on July 14 that shows the 40 g prototype chasing and shredding a moth in a curtained test space.
- The system uses a LeSonar2 phased-array built from hundreds of low-power MEMS microphones plus FPGA-based signal processing and onboard AI to detect insect wingbeat signatures and guide intercepts.
- The prototype is limited to roughly three minutes of flight before it must return to a base station to recharge for about 30 minutes, which constrains continuous coverage and response time.
- Tornyol is taking preorders with a refundable $100 deposit, offering a $1,100 outright price or a $50 monthly subscription, and says it aims for a U.S. launch in 2027 as it explores mass-production cost cuts.
- Reporters and engineers flag open questions about non-target kills and wear from propeller shredding, unclear maintenance capacity per unit, and potential military or surveillance dual-use that the company has not publicly addressed.