Large-scale transformer-based topic graphs identify thematic links between engineering and biology

We develop an AI system that pairs engineering problems with biology-inspired solutions at a large scale, by analyzing over 101 million abstracts to identify thematic links between engineering and biology. We detect coherent themes in each domain with transformer-based embeddings and BERTopic, then link them in a topic graph that quantifies their co-occurrence. We use TRIZ (Theory of Inventive Problem Solving) analysis to show how biological principles can overcome specific engineering limitations. By integrating language models, topic modeling, and contradiction analysis, the approach highlights latent thematic overlaps. Our methodology is demonstrated in four distinct case examples-including adhesive mechanisms for robotic climbing and thermal insulation inspired by dental bonding-validating our approach. This systematic approach can accelerate the discovery of new bio-inspired innovations.