A prototype designed by Fab Lab Bahrain, in collaboration with the country’s Ministry of Youth and Sports Innovation Centre, has so far been tested in industrial environments. Video footage shows the robot zooming between desks at a commercial facility in the Middle East nation while blasting out virus-killing doses of UV light.

The three companies are members of the Mohammed bin Rashid Innovation Fund (MBRIF), an initiative launched by the Ministry of Finance to promote and foster innovation in the UAE.

The wide spread of COVID-19 across the world and the resulting strong actions by governments to contain the spread will have a far more severe impact on demand than initially predicted,” said Richard Gordon, research practice vice president at Gartner.