[Espressosaurus]

MEMS have been much quieter in their influence as it turns out. Now they're in everything with an IMU or accelerometer, especially including things like your phone; they're in disposable pressure sensors; and they're in microphones[1].

They've revolutionized some parts of how we live our daily lives, though not in the same way innovations like the car, airplane, computer, or cellphone have.

I expect microbots will be similar. After a decade or two of hard work and billions of dollars invested, they will quietly revolutionize some other small parts of our lives. Meanwhile, the rest of the world moves on.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microelectromechanical_systems...

[flyinglizard]

MEMS is also used for laser beam steering (depth sensors, projectors), oscillators and even loudspeakers. MEMS is truly a breakthrough where physics meet electronics.

Commercially MEMS is also very interesting because it’s a branch of semiconductor manufacturing which is dominated by different players compared to the regular TSMC/Samsung/Intel trifecta.

[mikeash]

Some devices use MEMS oscillators instead of crystals, which has the bizarre side effect of making them allergic to helium: https://ifixit.org/blog/11986/iphones-are-allergic-to-helium...