Boston Dynamics’ eerily man-like Atlas robot can walk, lift – and stand up to human bullies
Remember Boston Dynamics' dystopian Christmas reindeer? Now the company has unveiled its latest futuristic offering – and it's so eerily human-like, it can stand up to bullies.
A video released by Boston Dynamics showed its 5'9" Atlas robot opening a door, lifting boxes and wandering through a snow-blanketed wood, a la Snow White.
In a move its team will almost certainly come to regret when the robots finally take over, it also shows humans pushing boxes out of the robot's "hands" and shoving it over. The robot calmly recovers each time (cf. Darpa's comically drunk-looking robots…).
The new Atlas is "specialised for mobile manipulation", Boston Dynamics explained, using sensors in its body and legs to balance and stereo sensors in its head to "avoid obstacles, assess the terrain, help with navigation and manipulate objects".