Boston Dynamics is having a busy week, hot on the heels of its video reveals showing Atlas mastering parkour, and its four-legged Spot wandering construction sites, the company has released yet another video. This one unveils a lighter, more playful side to its robots, with Spot dropping some impressive dance moves to a cover of Uptown Funk.
The endless parade of Boston Dynamics videos illustrating its robots' ever-growing skills tend to be frequently accompanied by journalists and commentators alluding to a frightening science fiction future where robots take over the world. The science fiction anthology series Black Mirror even devoted an entire episode to a story set in a dystopian future where four-legged robots, that look suspiciously like Boston Dynamics' Spot, mercilessly hunt down humans.
Perhaps in an attempt to counterbalance these frightening nightmare visions, Boston Dynamics has released what is undoubtedly one of the cutest robot videos we've seen. In it Spot displays an impressive array of groovy dance moves, from an impressive version of the running man to some slightly disturbing twerking (proudly showing off its USB slot).
As reported earlier this week, Spot seems to be the company's most commercially orientated robot, with several videos demonstrating its ability to navigate complex construction sites. Although the company is infamously light on details, we do know the robot should be available for to buy later in 2019, making it one of the first commercial outcomes after years of impressive development.
Source: Boston Dynamics
