Facilitated by microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology, MEMS speakers or microspeakers have been rapidly developed during the past decade to meet the requirements of the flourishing audio market. With advantages of a small footprint, low cost, and easy assembly, MEMS speakers are drawing extensive attention for potential applications in hearing instruments, portable electronics, and the Internet of Things (IoT). MEMS speakers based on different transduction mechanisms, including piezoelectric, electrodynamic, electrostatic, and thermoacoustic actuation, have been developed and significant progresses have been made in commercialization in the last few years. In this article, the principle and modeling of each MEMS speaker type is briefly introduced first. Then, the development of MEMS speakers is reviewed with key specifications of state-of-the-art MEMS speakers summarized. The advantages and challenges of all four types of MEMS speakers are compared and discussed. New approaches to improve sound pressure levels (SPLs) of MEMS speakers are also proposed. Finally, the remaining challenges and outlook of MEMS speakers are given.

Drug carriers hold significant promise for precision medicine but face persistent challenges in balancing high encapsulation efficiency with structural preservation during active loading. In this study, we present a microelectromechanical system (MEMS)-driven platform that can generate gigahertz (GHz)-frequency acoustic streaming (1.55 GHz) to enable nondestructive, power-tunable drug encapsulation in lipid vesicles. Utilizing DSPE-PEG-modified bilayers with hydrodynamic shear forces, our method achieves transient membrane permeability that preserves membrane integrity while permitting controlled doxorubicin (DOX) influx. We developed the GHz acoustic MEMS platform and applied it to systematically investigate two drug loading strategies: (1) loading DOX into giant unilamellar vesicles (GUVs, >10 μm in diameter) prior to extrusion into small unilamellar vesicles (SUVs, 100 nm) versus (2) direct acoustic loading into pre-formed SUVs. The GUV-first approach demonstrated better performance, achieving 60.04% ± 1.55% encapsulation efficiency (EE%) at 250 mW acoustic power—a 5.93% enhancement over direct SUV loading (54.11% ± 0.72%). Structural analysis via TEM confirmed intact SUV morphology post-loading, while power-dependent EE% analysis showed a linear trend. This work bridges gaps in nanocarrier engineering by optimizing drug loading strategies, aiming to offer a potential drug carrier platform for drug delivery in biomedical treatment in future.