Boston Dynamics' extremely creepy robots just got even more terrifying. The "notoriously tight-lipped company" is apparently in the process of teaching its yellow "SpotMini" robo-dogs to fight off humans, Wired reports, which basically means giving them the "ability to deal with our crap." Here is what that nightmarish goal looks like in action:
Boston Dynamics explains that in the video above, man's mechanical best friend was instructed by one human to proceed through the door, while another human attempted — admittedly not with much passion — to ward off its attempts.
Not so reassuringly, a new study by 26 experts in the field claims that artificial intelligence is increasingly a threat to mankind, The Independent reports. "AI will alter the landscape of risk for citizens, organizations, and states — whether it's criminals training machines to hack or 'phish' at human levels of performance or privacy-eliminating surveillance, profiling, and repression — the full range of impacts on security is vast," Oxford University's Future of Humanity Institute research fellow Miles Brundage said.
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To anyone still concerned about Fido Prime, "this testing does not irritate or harm the robot," Boston Dynamics promises. People worried about, well, people might not be so reassured. The score is clear: Humankind 0, SpotMini 1.
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