You could own Boston Dynamics remarkable robot Spot if you have loads of money lying around

Robot maker Boston Dynamics has already built quite a reputation in showing off their four-legged robot Spot that is capable of incredibly advanced movement and has a well-developed artificial intelligence that makes it a more than handy robot K9 companion. It’s also one though that people have only been able to experience through internal videos the company has released.

All that is about to change though as the company has announced that they are ready to sell their iconic robot design to businesses or wealthy individuals with far too much cash to blow. That’s right, for the cost of just $74500 (R1,2mil), you could get to own the most advanced robot on earth. And nothing will look more impressive as a status symbol whether you’re an individual or big industrial firm than having a Spot all of your own.

Not only is Spot an extremely nimble robot, but it is also incredibly handy at surveying and data collection, with the company having previously conducted trials of Spot creating 3D models of construction sites or finding machine faults in oil rigs. Having it help out in hospitals during a Covid-19 pandemic or even assisting police as part of a bomb squad are also great tasks that a robot like this can be useful. And all I would want to do with it is see if it can bet my dogs in a game of fetch.

The opportunities are essentially endless as the robot can essentially be customised and programmed to use its variety of different sensors and movements to perform whatever is required of it. As Boston Dynamics’ lead robotics engineer, Zack Jackowski explains, in an interview with The Verge:

We mostly sell the robot to industrial and commercial customers who have a sensor they want to take somewhere they don’t want a person to go. Usually, because it’s dangerous or because they need to do it so often that it would drive someone mad. Like carrying a camera around a factory 40 times a day and taking the same pictures each time.

It’s pretty cool to think that robot tech like this is getting commercialised and incredible to think that in a few years’ time we could soon be able to purchase our very own future robot overlord. What could possibly go wrong?

Last Updated: June 18, 2020