Google has asked US regulators for permission to release up to 32 million sterile mosquitoes in California and Florida as part of efforts to combat mosquito-borne diseases.
According to documents under review by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the tech giant is seeking approval to release up to 16 million mosquitoes annually over a two-year period. The agency is currently assessing the request and is expected to make a decision following a public comment period that ends on June 5.
The initiative forms part of Google’s “Debug” programme, which aims to reduce populations of disease-carrying mosquitoes through the use of sterile male insects. Male mosquitoes do not bite humans or transmit diseases.
The programme uses a naturally occurring bacterium known as Wolbachia to sterilise male mosquitoes. When these males mate with wild female mosquitoes, the eggs produced fail to hatch, leading to a gradual decline in mosquito populations over successive generations.
Google says the project is focused on the Aedes aegypti mosquito, a species responsible for spreading diseases such as dengue fever, Zika virus, yellow fever and chikungunya.
The company argues that traditional mosquito-control methods, including pesticides and habitat removal, have limitations and can become less effective over time.
The Debug project originated within Verily Health, a life sciences company under Google’s parent company, Alphabet. Google fully acquired the programme in 2024 and has since expanded its mosquito-control efforts.
The technology has already been tested in Singapore, where authorities reported an 80 to 90 percent reduction in Aedes aegypti populations and a significant decline in dengue cases following the release of Wolbachia-infected male mosquitoes.
Google says it is using artificial intelligence, data analytics and automated systems to rear and sort mosquitoes before releasing them into targeted areas.
