In that’s just wonderful news, the Google-owned Boston Dynamics is now testing its ATLAS humanoid robot outdoors, which led to this incredibly creepy footage:
No, ATLAS isn’t particularly agile – yet. But the way it ambles along, like a drunk, homicidal toddler, is more than a little unnerving.
That’s a Google-owned robot that can pretty much ruin your camping trip.
According to Boston Dynamics, ATLAS is “a high mobility, humanoid robot designed to negotiate outdoor, rough terrain. Atlas can walk bipedally leaving the upper limbs free to lift, carry, and manipulate the environment. In extremely challenging terrain, Atlas is strong and coordinated enough to climb using hands and feet, to pick its way through congested spaces.” It’s meant to be a rescue bot.
It’s partially funded by the US military (DARPA) and includes “28 hydraulically-actuated degrees of freedom, two hands, arms, legs, feet and a torso.”
Boston Dynamics was acquired by Google in 2013 and put under its X labs. With the new restructuring efforts, it’s unclear if this robotics division will remain under Google or be put under Alphabet.