The 4D printing concept draws inspiration from nature which already has the ability to self-replicate.

BBC: TED 2013: 4D printed objects 'make themselves'

Grown in a petri dish, the synthetic bacterium looks almost identical to the natural version and can similarly self-replicate.

FORBES: 'Artificial Cells' May Provide Souce Of Algal Fuel

Now, researchers say they've come up with primitive robots that can self-replicate.

NPR: Birds Do It, Bees Do It�� Now Robots Do, Too

Unlike traditional automation, self-learning autonomic tools are able to understand and replicate complex decision making processes and behave in a similar way to the human cognitive process by constantly learning new ways of handling IT problems.

FORBES: Outage Prevention: Taking Humans Out Of The IT Equation