It’s the pupper singularity.
Dog Days
The internet is flooded with videos of AI-powered robot dogs meeting real furry puppies, who often seem horrified to have come across what they seem to perceive as a canine abomination.
In one clip recently posted to X-formerly-Twitter, a large unlucky dog encounters what seems to be Unitree’s Go2 robot. It walks around using LiDAR, and it can flip, stretch, and roll partly thanks to AI-fueled simulation training. Adding up all this technology, we get a creature that looks like a tin can, but moves with a natural spontaneity.
But the big dog wasn’t impressed by science. It began barking at Go2, which made a freakish pounce in reply, causing the real hound to skitter backwards.
This tense interaction is pretty much replicated in every viral robodog clip online — real dogs growl, bark, and lunge at their impersonator while their human companions film on their phones and smile. Animals don’t find the whole robot thing amusing at all — though it’s possible that soon, they won’t have a choice.
Robots’ Ark
Robotics researchers often try to imitate wildlife for all kinds of human purposes, like more effortlessly exploring the seafloor or flying things up into the air.
In recent years, robot technology has improved enough from the early days of Boston Dynamics’ chunky robodog Spot to make things like Unitree’s Go2 more ubiquitous (though this particular critter’s viral videos seem more like guerilla advertising.)
You can now find robot dogs being forced to do things like run marathons, perpetuate war, and defend Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago from potential assassins, which are generally more depressing activities than playing fetch.
But if fanboy and investor clamoring for Tesla’s humanoid bot Optimus is any indication, it seems likely that people will continue their attempts to subjugate nature in this way for their own benefit. Just don’t expect any chihuahuas to take it lightly.
More on robots: Amazon Robots Struggling to Keep Up With Human Workers
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