Michael Yip’s research focus is on developing high-performance robotics that achieve dexterous and agile behaviors. This falls into three categories: (i) flexible robotics, (ii) surgical robotics, and (iii) robotic actuators and biomimetics. He investigates the design and control of flexible robotics, or snake-like robotics, for a broad range of medical, industrial, and military applications. Another significant research effort is in designing surgical robots to treat diseases such as heart disease and prostate cancer, including image-guidance and augmented reality for surgeons to guide them during an operation. A third area of research involves the design of robotic actuators and robotic limbs that mimic natural movement; this includes low-cost artificial muscles that have been used to design robot prostheses or animatronics limbs, and could be used for human augmentation.