Wednesday 30th June 2021

Boston Dynamics acquired by Hyundai

Company behind those weird robot dogs will assist Hyundai with "mobility experiences"

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You must have seen the videos. Those creepy, yellow robot machines that kind of look like dogs. No one's really sure why they are so gross, except maybe the impending reality that everything in our life is going to one day be taken over by robots, leaving our jobs and mere existence on Earth redundant.

Well, the company behind such machines has now been acquired by Hyundai. The reasoning is to help Hyundai develop its "robotics business" to provide "exciting mobility experiences" to customers. The brand is hoping to work on such projects to bring robotics to daily life, "enabling progress for humanity." Gimmicks aside, a team of "Spot" dogs have already been despatched to workplaces around the world, helping with progress in mines, building sites, and even monitoring radiation at Chernobyl.

Previous videos of the machines show them climbing stairs or opening doors, which have been met with an uncomfortable reaction on social media. Yeah, sure, it's very cool and isn't technology great, but it is weirdly unsettling to watch. Similar to a trypophobic's fear of holes (don't know what we mean? Google it.)

To help celebrate the acquisition, Hyundai teamed up with Korean pop-sensation BTS, resulting in the robots adopting dance moves in its latest video. Still probably better than our dancing though. Apparently this will help Hyundai explore "marketing opportunities to communicate with millennials and Gen Z", so turns out we're too old for cool robots anyway.

 

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[PhantomPH]

Stunning feats of robotic engineering. Wish the company all the luck in the world.

ETA - reportedly $1bn transaction value. Nice!

https://youtu.be/fn3KWM1kuAw

Edited by PhantomPH on Wednesday 30th June 12:11

[Mammasaid]

Reminds me of something...



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Worlds_(2...

[Oldwolf]

PhantomPH said:

https://youtu.be/fn3KWM1kuAw

Edited by PhantomPH on Wednesday 30th June 12:11

Watching that vid I kept going between non-plussed because we've seen it all in films to total disbelief when I remembered it's real

[TheOrangePeril]

Amazing tech but still frightening to see both politicians and voters who seem oblivious to the decimation of employment that has already begun... In the short term we're going to need much more confident wealth redistribution, and in the long term a complete economic reorganisation for our species.

Cool dancing though!

[spreadsheet monkey]

Mammasaid said:

Reminds me of something...



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Worlds_(2...

or this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metalhead_(Black_Mir...

[theholygrail]

I genuinely thought and believed that the dancing video was CGI. I think a lot of others did judging by YT comments. Christ. That's terrifying!

[Terminator X]

Give em 100 years of development ...



TX.

[FourWheelDrift]

PhantomPH said:

https://youtu.be/fn3KWM1kuAw

Guy upstairs at the window "Gerry, Gerry.....the robots are dancing again. Do they know something we don't?"

[thegreenhell]

I'm somewhat surprised the Americans have allowed this technology to be purchased by the Koreans. I t can only mean that DARPA have something far more terrifying and advanced already.

[take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey]

Always thought DARPA part owned them. Obvs not.

[J4CKO]

I would get all Veruca Salt in that factory "But I want a Robot Dog thing"

Sort of looks like the Scutters from Red Dwarf on legs, amazing and slightly disturbing in equal measure, hint of something from Half Life that maybe prods you with an electric thing.

[PhantomPH]

If you really wanted to blow your own mind, watch the videos from when they were testing balance etc and they push and knock the robots, trying to test the balance. You actually feel sorry for them.

As ridiculous as it sounds, it's a very, very short step for us (regular humans, I suppose!) to mentally apply 'feelings' to what is essentially a pile of plastic and wires.

[J4CKO]

PhantomPH said:

If you really wanted to blow your own mind, watch the videos from when they were testing balance etc and they push and knock the robots, trying to test the balance. You actually feel sorry for them.

As ridiculous as it sounds, it's a very, very short step for us (regular humans, I suppose!) to mentally apply 'feelings' to what is essentially a pile of plastic and wires.

Like this one ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXJZVZFRFJc

Uncanny isnt it.

[rwindmill]

spreadsheet monkey said:

Mammasaid said:

Reminds me of something...



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_the_Worlds_(2...

or this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metalhead_(Black_Mir...

Or the 'Life Hutch' episode of Love, Death & Robots

Hyundai must hate these three examples, because for a lot of people they will be the first things that spring to mind, when they see robots of this type/style.

[Limpet]

PhantomPH said:

If you really wanted to blow your own mind, watch the videos from when they were testing balance etc and they push and knock the robots, trying to test the balance. You actually feel sorry for them.

As ridiculous as it sounds, it's a very, very short step for us (regular humans, I suppose!) to mentally apply 'feelings' to what is essentially a pile of plastic and wires.

Yep I remember having the same reaction to those clips. There was the same initial mix of outrage and sympathy as I'd have felt had someone been trying to kick a dog over. Of course, realisation kicks in and you calm down, but it is hard to disassociate something that looks and behaves like a living creature from the concept of sentience. I guess this is something we are all going to have to adjust to.

[PhantomPH]

J4CKO said:

PhantomPH said:

If you really wanted to blow your own mind, watch the videos from when they were testing balance etc and they push and knock the robots, trying to test the balance. You actually feel sorry for them.

As ridiculous as it sounds, it's a very, very short step for us (regular humans, I suppose!) to mentally apply 'feelings' to what is essentially a pile of plastic and wires.

Like this one ?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXJZVZFRFJc

Uncanny isnt it.

Can't believe I clicked that...

[anonymous-user]

Comes to something when a car company can't build it's own "exciting mobility experience". I'll put this down as an expensive work from home boredom purchase.

[rodericb]

fblm said:

Comes to something when a car company can't build it's own "exciting mobility experience". I'll put this down as an expensive work from home boredom purchase.

Err what? Maybe you haven't seen the larger vehicles in the Hyundai range. If they don't give you and those around you an exciting mobility experience I don't know what will.....

The K2 Black Panther



and the K1




Let alone the goodies you can buy from your local Hyundai Wia store.... http://en.hyundai-wia.com/business/defense_future....

Edited by rodericb on Thursday 1st July 14:16

[take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey]

Isn't it Hyundai or Samsung that essentially sell the alien's sentry gun too?

[Limpet]

take-good-care-of-the-forest-dewey said:

Isn't it Hyundai or Samsung that essentially sell the alien's sentry gun too?

Samsung. There are a number of them deployed in the DMZ between North and South Korea

I worked for Samsung for a few years, and they brought one along to an internal event and gave a demo (minus ammunition obviously). It is a seriously impressive bit of kit, but more than a little disturbing. The software is very sophisticated, and can be incredibly selective about what it targets.