“First piloted as small trials in 2016, Singapore’s method is the most expensive version of a technique that’s gaining the widest traction when it comes to mosquitoes. The insects are infected with a bacteria named Wolbachia, which is found in most insect species but not in the Aedes aegypti breed of mosquitoes that carries dengue. The bacteria either ensures that their offspring don’t survive, or becomes established in future generations of mosquitoes so they carry fewer pathogens.

To win over a population that may not quickly warm to being swarmed by Wolbachia-infected mosquitoes, Singapore has used artificial intelligence to sort female from male mosquitoes in laboratories — releasing only male ones because they don’t bite. The hope is essentially that the dengue epidemic fades away without anyone noticing.

Pilot trials in certain neighborhoods showed that the mosquito population dropped anywhere between 80-90%, and the country wants the Wolbachia mosquitoes to reach half of all households by 2026.”

From Bloomberg.