Toward a Gaian Synthetic Approach. Techno-Apoptosis as a Catalyst for Sustainable Robotics

In response to the ongoing ecological crisis, this paper offers a methodological and theoretical proposal for reimagining scientific and technological innovation by placing sustainability at its core—not as an external constraint, but as a generative principle for technoscientific development. We focus in particular on the potential of the synthetic approach, grounded in the epistemological principle of understanding by building, as a foundation for modelling and designing sustainable robotic systems. By tracing the development of this approach, we propose a novel trajectory for its evolution: a Gaian turn in the synthetic approach, aimed at creating robotic technologies that, by modelling natural self-regulating dynamics, can integrate into—and actively contribute to—the self-regulation of their ecological contexts. As an exploratory contribution to this Gaian synthetic approach, we introduce the framework of techno-apoptosis. Building on exploratory foundational work [11], we develop this framework as a tool to deepen the scientific understanding of apoptosis in order to inform the design of robotic systems capable of self-dismantling, modular reuse, and integration into circular techno- ecologies. This programmatic proposal outlines not only an epistemological, methodological, and theoretical architecture, but also a principled approach to reimagine synthetic modelling as a practice capable of engaging with finitude, transformation, and systemic viability in different domains – from artificial life to synthetic biology.