Boston Dynamics seems like a nice company run by good people, and, yet, they bring the disturbing BigDog to the world. The BigDog is essentially a robot pack mule, built to help soldiers move gear across uneven terrain. The main problem is that the thing relentlessly stomps its feet and moves them in a disturbing, unnatural way.
So, obviously what this thing needed was a robotic arm for a head that can chuck heavy objects.
To be fair, the BigDog’s not going to win any awards for accuracy just yet:
On the other hand, the fact that it carefully picks up that cinder block before chucking it a fair distance is just… uncomfortably creepy. True, this was added because it means the BigDog can not only carry heavy loads, but also lift them, and possibly pack stuff onto itself.
Still, imagine being an enemy of America and seeing this thing stomping its way over the hill, its ostensible head out to grab you. This might be a more effective weapon than a Predator drone, just for sheer fear value.
Dynamic Robot Manipulation [Boston Dynamics YouTube Feed]