Y Combinator-backed Tornyol builds sonar mosquito-hunting microdrones

French startup Tornyol is developing a roughly 40-gram autonomous drone that patrols a defined area, detects flying insects with ultrasonic sonar, and destroys mosquitoes mid-air with its propellers, New Atlas reported. The Y Combinator-backed company says the system is meant as an active alternative to insecticides, traps, and genetic approaches. The latest model, LeSonar2, uses 32 ultrasonic emitters and 380 smartphone microphones feeding an Artix-7 FPGA that builds a real-time 3D map. The firm says insects are classified by wingbeat frequency and harmonic structure so the drone can target mosquitoes while avoiding other insects, and it cites collision avoidance, enclosed propellers, and light weight as safety features around people and pets. Tornyol plans a US$1,100 purchase option or a $50 monthly subscription with a $100 early-adopter reservation fee, and says a single unit should cover areas up to 5 acres. The company also claims large cost advantages versus fixed traps and mosquito nets, alongside a goal of sharp malaria mortality reduction in dense areas. New Atlas notes practical limits: flight time of about three minutes against a roughly 30-minute recharge, electricity dependence, noise concerns at night, and pricing that may not fit the regions hardest hit by mosquito-borne disease. A University of Lagos genetics researcher quoted in the piece called the concept promising for some settings but impractical where power and cost constraints dominate. Demos so far include eliminating a moth mid-air; the product remains in development.