Page 24 - ARUBA TODAY

A24 TECHNOLOGY
Wednesday 6 June 2018
Maker of fearsome animal robots is edging into the light

By MATT O'BRIEN bots wander through a
BOSTON (AP) —It's never variety of locales — in and
been clear whether robot- around the company's sin-
ics company Boston Dy- gle-story headquarters, at
namics is making killing ma- a New Hampshire ski lodge
chines, household helpers, and across the secluded
or something else entirely. meadows and woodlands
For nine years, the secre- near Raibert's home. In
tive firm — which got its some videos, humans kick
start with U.S. military fund- the robots or jab them with
ing — has unnerved peo- hockey sticks to test their
ple around the world with balance.
YouTube videos of experi- The company's robot vid-
mental robots resembling eos have not been inde-
animal predators. pendently verified.
In one, a life-size robotic The defense contracts be-
wildcat sprints across a gan winding down in 2013
parking lot at almost 20 when Google bought Bos-
miles an hour. In another, ton Dynamics and made
a small wheeled rover nick- clear it wanted no part in
named SandFlea abruptly military work. Initially, some
flings itself onto rooftops — In this Thursday, May 24, 2018, photo, a Boston Dynamics SpotMini robot is walks through a employees felt a sense of
and back down again. A conference room during a robotics summit in Boston. relief and cautious opti-
more recent effort features Associated Press mism after a pep talk by
a slender dog-like robot Andy Rubin, then Google's
that climbs stairs, holds its the machine that will be part, it's just that people Agency, known as DARPA. chief robotics executive
own in a tug-of-war with a the company's first com- are scary. I don't think the A federal contracting da- and architect of the acqui-
human and opens a door mercial robot in its 26-year robots by themselves are tabase lists more than $150 sition.
to let another robot pass. history: the dog-like, door- scary." million in defense funding "He was talking about re-
Boston Dynamics has opening SpotMini, which The bigger question of just to Boston Dynamics since ally ambitious goals," said
demonstrated little inter- Boston Dynamics plans what Boston Dynamics 1994. one former employee, who
est in elaborating on these to sell to businesses as a hopes to accomplish re- Boston Dynamics said only asked not to be identified
glimpses into a possible camera-equipped security mains murky. Interviews with it believes a quarter-cen- because of concerns it
future of fast, strong and guard next year. eight former Boston Dynam- tury of work on robots will could hurt career opportu-
sometimes intimidating ro- Speculation about Boston ics employees and some of "unlock a very high com- nities in the small and tight-
bots. For months, the com- Dynamics' intentions — Raibert's former academic mercial value." It did not knit U.S. robotics commu-
pany and its parent, Soft- weapons or servants? — collaborators suggest that answer when asked if it nity. "A robot that might be
Bank, rebuffed numerous spikes every time it releases that the company has long ever entertained proposals able to help the elderly and
requests seeking informa- a new video. Raibert told brushed aside commercial to weaponize them. infirm. Robots that work in
tion about its work. When the AP that he doesn't rule demands, not to mention Building robots that can grocery stores. Robots that
a reporter visited company out future military applica- outsiders' moral or ethical jump, gallop or prowl like deliver packages."
headquarters in the Boston tions. But he played down concerns, in single-minded animals was a fringe field But Rubin left the company
suburb of Waltham, Mas- popular fears that his com- pursuit of machines that of engineering when Raib- the following year and his
sachusetts, he was turned pany's robots could one mimic animal locomotion. ert and his colleagues be- replacements overseeing
away. day be used to kill. Former employees say the gan studying kangaroo Boston Dynamics grew in-
But after The Associated "We think about that, but company has operated and ostrich videos in their creasingly frustrated with
Press spoke with 10 people that's also true for cars, air- more as a well-funded Carnegie Mellon Univer- Raibert's approach, ac-
who have worked with Bos- planes, computers, lasers," research lab than a busi- sity research lab nearly 40 cording to several people
ton Dynamics or its 68-year- Raibert said, clad in his om- ness. Raibert's vision was years ago. familiar with the transition.
old founder, Marc Raibert, nipresent Hawaiian shirt. kept alive for years through But agile robots aren't so Among the concerns: Bos-
the CEO agreed to a brief "Every technology you can military contracts, espe- sci-fi anymore, even if they ton Dynamics' lack of fo-
interview in late May. Raib- imagine has multiple ways cially from the Defense Ad- can still seem that way. In cus on building a sellable
ert had just demonstrated of using it. If there's a scary vanced Research Projects videos, the company's ro- product.q