Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
It sounds like an illusion from a Las Vegas magic show.
Watch as we pull water out of thin air.
But it’s not a trick. Las Vegas-based WAVR Technologies can actually turn air into water.
The deep tech startup that spun out of UNLV is commercializing atmospheric water harvesting systems that extract water directly from the air — even in desert environments at humidity levels as low as 10 percent.
The biomimetic inspiration for the technology came from an Australian tree frog that stays hydrated by absorbing water and moisture directly through its skin.
“Like the tree frog is able to drink from the air by attracting moisture through its skin into its salty body, we have developed a synthetic version of the frog skin,” WAVR co-founder and CEO Rich Sloan said at the company’s lab at Roseman (University) Bioventures in Summerlin. “And it performs just like the frog, and we can absorb ambient moisture through the membrane into the body of our product.
“But we continue to evolve the technology. Every few months, we have a new generation of technology. These guys are truly brilliant. So we’ve moved past this.”
Read the full article at vegasbusiness.com.
It sounds like an illusion from a Las Vegas magic show.
Watch as we pull water out of thin air.
But it’s not a trick. Las Vegas-based WAVR Technologies can actually turn air into water.
The deep tech startup that spun out of UNLV is commercializing atmospheric water harvesting systems that extract water directly from the air — even in desert environments at humidity levels as low as 10 percent.
The biomimetic inspiration for the technology came from an Australian tree frog that stays hydrated by absorbing water and moisture directly through its skin.
“Like the tree frog is able to drink from the air by attracting moisture through its skin into its salty body, we have developed a synthetic version of the frog skin,” WAVR co-founder and CEO Rich Sloan said at the company’s lab at Roseman (University) Bioventures in Summerlin. “And it performs just like the frog, and we can absorb ambient moisture through the membrane into the body of our product.
“But we continue to evolve the technology. Every few months, we have a new generation of technology. These guys are truly brilliant. So we’ve moved past this.”
Read the full article at vegasbusiness.com.
