In this special episode of Tank Talks Asia, timed to coincide with World Dengue Day, Manisha Tank and Andrew Clark go behind the scenes at a mosquito factory in Singapore. They talk to Yanni Yoong from Debug, a Google-backed team that produces more than 10 million mosquitos a week to help combat dengue.

Yanni explains exactly how disease-carrying mosquito populations are being suppressed and discusses how Singapore’s approach could help protect millions of people across Asia, the region that bears the majority of the world’s dengue burden.

Featured Voices

Hosts: Manisha Tank and Andrew Clark

Guest: Yanni Yoong, Senior Program Manager, Debug

• Yanni explains how Wolbachia-infected male mosquitoes can help to dramatically reduce populations of disease-carrying Aedes aegypti mosquitoes without the use of pesticides.
• She says Debug’s Singapore facility now produces more than 10 million mosquitoes a week to support large-scale suppression efforts.
• Yanni outlines how AI and machine learning are used to identify and sort male mosquitoes with a level of speed and accuracy that would be impossible for humans.
• She believes Singapore’s unique urban environment has helped shape a mosquito-control model that could be adapted across Asia, where 70% of the global dengue burden exists.
• Yanni argues that climate change and urbanisation will increase the need for innovative, scalable approaches to controlling mosquito-borne diseases.

1:20

Welcome to the Mosquito Factory

Andrew and Manisha get exclusive access to one of Singapore’s most unusual production facilities, where millions of mosquitoes are bred every week.

2:33

Why Google Is Making Mosquitoes

Yanni explains how Debug emerged and why technology is being applied to one of the world’s biggest public health challenges.

5:18

The Science Behind Wolbachia

She outlines how a naturally occurring bacterium creates incompatible mosquito mating and helps drive down disease-carrying populations.

7:24

From Google Maps to Mosquitoes

Yanni shares her unconventional career journey and why she chose to work on dengue prevention.

9:18

How AI Learns to Spot a Mosquito

She explains how technology can distinguish male and female mosquitoes in just a fraction of a second.

13:25

The Last Line of Quality Control

Yanni details how humans work with AI to ensure only male mosquitoes are released.

17:45

Protecting Asia from Dengue

The conversation turns to the scale of the dengue challenge and why Southeast Asia sits at the centre of the fight.

19:11

Can This Model Work Beyond Singapore?

Yanni discusses how different Wolbachia strategies could be adapted for countries with varying resources and public health needs.

21:54

Climate Change and the Future of Disease Control

The episode concludes with a discussion about urbanisation, rising temperatures, and the growing importance of innovative vector-control solutions.

24:20

Don’t Put Away the Repellent Yet

Manisha and Andrew finish by reflecting on the life-saving potential of the project, Singapore’s role in scaling innovation, and the importance of staying vigilant against mosquito-borne diseases.

Useful links

https://debug.com/

https://www.dengue.com/worlddengueday

https://www.worldmosquitoprogram.org/en/work/wolbachia-method

https://www.nea.gov.sg/corporate-functions/resources/research/environmental_health_institute/wolbachia-aedes-mosquito-suppression-strategy/project-wolbachia-only-targets-aedes-aegypti

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/dengue-and-severe-dengue

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/vector-borne-diseases

https://www.worldmosquitoprogram.org/en/news-stories/news/world-mosquito-program-and-debug-join-forces

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/health/google-subsidiary-expands-mosquito-facility-here-to-strengthen-anti-dengue-efforts

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Tank Talks Asia is an AsiaWorks production.