Turns out robot maker Festo did more than just dream about robot tentacle arms; they instantiated their idea, using elephant trunks as their model. Take a look at this demonstration video.
(Festo Bionic Arm)
I was also fascinated by the fabrication process, which creates lightweight, flexible and energy-efficient robotic manipulators.
Festo has been very creative in the last few years; take a look at some of their work:
Festo Aqua Ray Robot
Aqua_ray is a remote-controlled fish driven by water hydraulics, the shape and movements of which have been based on the model of a manta ray.
Robot Arm With Fluidic Muscles
The company describes it as a "combination of mechatronics and the biological model of a human being."
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'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!' - Ray Cummings, 1931.
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'If Anyone Is Watching Earth...'
'Our study of your race has convinced us that you are not fitted to leave your planet in the present state of your civilization.'
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'What strange sensitivity! What an amazing development of science was manifested in every move and act and word of this Robot!'