Slightly off-topic but related.
BEAM robots created by Mark Tilden who later founded WowWee might be of interest to readers.
From Wikipedia[0]:
BEAM robotics (from Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics and Mechanics) is a style of robotics that primarily uses simple analogue circuits, such as comparators, instead of a microprocessor in order to produce an unusually simple design.
....
BEAM robots may use a set of the analog circuits, mimicking biological neurons, to facilitate the robot's response to its working environment.
From Wikipedia[0]: BEAM robotics (from Biology, Electronics, Aesthetics and Mechanics) is a style of robotics that primarily uses simple analogue circuits, such as comparators, instead of a microprocessor in order to produce an unusually simple design.
....
BEAM robots may use a set of the analog circuits, mimicking biological neurons, to facilitate the robot's response to its working environment.
[0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BEAM_robotics