Boston Dynamics

Boston Dynamic's first "BigDog" robot may have been the stuff of robotic nightmares, but its smaller Spot has received mixed feedback both from people and companies. The quadruped's more streamlined appearance still doesn't easily remind one of a dog (or any living creature for that matter), but it has become more approachable and a teeny bit more affordable to the point that companies, hospitals, and even governments have put it to some use. The latest to join that list of clientele is the Hyundai Motor Group, employing Spot as a late-night safety officer.

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Boston Dynamics may have new owners, but that hasn't slowed the robotics' teams work at teaching Atlas new skills: this time on a custom parkour course. The bipedal 'bot has been showing off its human-like talents for half a decade now, but while recreating the sort of gymnastics that goes viral on TikTok might seem like an odd focus for Boston Dynamics, in fact the company argues it has plenty of real-world applications.

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Hyundai has welcomed Boston Dynamics into the fold, though while the robot dogs may be able to keep up with superband BTS' dance moves it's all still a little creepy. The South Korean automaker inked a deal with SoftBank to take majority ownership of Boston Dynamics earlier this year, and given Hyundai's existing promo deals with the band it was only a matter of time before a mashup.

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Hyundai has finalized its acquisition of Boston Dynamics, taking a controlling stake in the robotics company and revealing some of its plans for the company's robo-dogs and two-legged 'bots. The deal - first announced in December last year - is part of what Hyundai is describing as "its strategic transformation into a Smart Mobility Solution Provider" rather than simply an automaker.

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The New York Police Department had a contract in place with Boston Dynamics for a quadruped robot known as "Digidog." The robot came under fire by representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez after a video of the robot being used on patrol in a Manhattan housing project went viral. The video sparked backlash, with some comparing it to the TV series "Black Mirror."

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Boston Dynamics has a new robot to simultaneously wow and terrify, with Stretch moving away from the human or animal body style of the company's other 'bots with a far more practical design instead. Unlike Spot, Boston Dynamics' robot dog, which has been designed to be as flexible as possible in how it can be deployed, Stretch is focused on warehouse automation, and specifically for moving boxes around at speed.

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Among all the robots designed by Boston Dynamics, Spot is perhaps the only one so far that borders on being considered "cute" to some degree. Its relatively smaller size and agility have definitely caught the attention of sectors outside the robotics industry, from law enforcement to hospitals to basically anyone with money to burn to buy or build one. The latter is apparently the case with MSCHF, notorious for its viral stunts, who just bought a Spot "dog" robot to create art in the most eccentric and controversial way possible.

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Boston Dynamic's first commercial robot, Spot, has had an upgrade, with the new version of the charmingly-terrifying robot dog now adding a robot arm and the ability to self-charge. Smallest of Boston Dynamics' models - and a quadruped, unlike the weirdly agile bipedal robots that arguably helped cement the company's reputation as a heavyweight in the segment - Spot has been on sale to businesses since June 2020.

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The days of a clunky robot lumbering slowly on stiff legs, its head tethered to a bundle of cables, are officially behind us. Boston Dynamics has published its latest robot demonstration video, this one showing multiple robots independently dancing -- quite well -- to the song 'Do You Love Me' by The Contours.

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Kicking off as a Massachusetts Institute of Technology spinoff way back in 1992, Boston Dynamics founded by Marc Raibert, professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at MIT, has come a long way ever since. Google bought the company in 2013 as a part of its X research and development wing. Then later sold it to Softbank in 2017 for an undisclosed amount.

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Automaker Hyundai Motor Group has announced it has completed a deal to acquire a controlling interest in robotics manufacturer Boston Dynamics. The deal is costing Hyundai $1.1 billion and gives the automaker group approximately an 80 percent stake in Boston Dynamics. SoftBank retains a roughly 20 percent stake in Boston Dynamics after the deal's close through one of its affiliates.

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Although robots and robotics have become hot topics in recent years, the actual robots that make it to the news aren't exactly like the robots of Hollywood. Flying drones, delivery bots, concierge bots, and even waiter bots all share in the same basic nature but are quite far removed from the robots of imagination and fiction. Boston Dynamics is probably both famous and infamous for robots that almost induce nightmares and the company is reportedly being sold off to a car maker where its future robotics ventures remain unknown.

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