The "machine race" was the dominant race on the planet Talvania before it mysteriously disappeared; it is mentioned in Metroid Prime: Federation Force. Archeological scans conducted by the Galactic Federation of the planet's surface made clear that no disastrous event had taken place that could have wiped out the species. The Federation concluded that it had simply abandoned the planet, leaving their technology behind to decay. There is no information on what the species itself actually looked like or where it went.
It is possible that the various robots encountered on the planet such as the Security Bot, Hover Bot, RB133 Auricrusher, and the Mainframe are actually technology that once belonged to this species, but like the other remnants, were left behind only to be discovered by the Space Pirates, who put them to use for their own operations.
Some of the facilities they built include an advanced medical Laboratory that the Space Pirates repurpose for the breeding of Metroids.
| Sentient Species in the Metroid series |
|---|
| Extant Sentients |
| Human | Space Pirate | Craftsmen | Kriken | Luminoth |
| Former Sentients |
| Reptilicus | Diamont | Elysian | Ing | Lamorn | "Ancient Bion race" |
| Unknown Status |
| Alimbic | Chozo | Enoema | N'kren | Phrygisian | Vhozon | Ylla "Elfin" | "Ceratopsid" | "Machine race" | "Simian" | "Space dragon" |