Cybernetics is the process of combining organic and non-organic parts into a single organism. At its most basic, cybernetics includes artificial prosthesis used to replace missing limbs. The most advanced cybernetics would seamlessly incorporate mechanical and organic elements, as the Borg do. No other culture in either the Alpha Quadrant or the Empire has approached this level of integration.

The Empire has shown expertise in replacing body parts (most notably Anthroid hands), though the Federation has had limited experience with going as far as automating portions of an organic brain. Notable uses of cybernetics in the Federation include working ocular implants (successors to the VISOR technology) that can restore sight to the blind.