The Beetle employed the services of the Tinkerer to create drones to tailed the likes of Spider-Man in order to find out his secret identity and blackmail him into retirement. He also planned to use these drones against all the heroes who had wronged him, including Iron Man and the Fantastic Four, and leaked his plan to the press in order to drive all of New York's superhumans underground. After Spider-Man tracked him down, he engaged the Beetle in combat and only won by forcing him underwater, where his suit could no longer draw in additional power. He was subsequently webbed up and brought to Robbie Robertson and Diedre Segui, presumably to be incarcerated.