Scientists found the optimal robot body, and it has 20 legs ‪—‬ watch it scale walls and move through trees

A 20-legged robot rolls down a dirt path in the woods.

A weird 20-legged machine could change how scientists think about the ideal robot form.

For decades, roboticists have been inspired by the natural world, building machines that resemble humans, dogs, insects and even horses. But new research suggests that the most useful robot body may look less like a human and more like a sea urchin.