We have all seen robots (if not in reality, then at least in movies) cleaning rooms, serving food in restaurants making cars in manufacturing units. And talking about robotics, American engineering and robotics design company, Boston Dynamics is definitely one of the best in the domain. All the robots that the company has ever created have become extremely popular.
The company has taken robotics to a whole new level —from doing backflips to opening doors to roaming around on the lawn to pulling a heavy truck, Boston Dynamics’ robots today are everywhere. They are even hanging out with Jeff Bezos.
But recently a video went viral (that most of you have probably already seen on social media) and might make you experience what happens when a robot reaches its threshold of tolerance and gets sick and tired of working under extreme conditions in the name of robustness testing. The video shows a replica of Boston Dynamics’ Atlas, doing all the human activity on a complete high level and also resisting attack from humans and towards the end of the video, the robot fights back.
Behind The Scene
After watching the video, if you think that it’s real, you are mistaken. The viral video “Bosstown Dynamics” is nothing but a parody of Boston Dynamics. It was created by an LA production company named Corridor Digital that also has a YouTube channel. The prime technology that has made the video look so realistic is Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI). It basically requires the rendering of a 3D model of a scene, object or person in a computer and it determines the lighting and colouring of the situation. The graphics artist can alter the model and translate it into the final product of the video.
Speaking of how the video went viral, the credit goes to the low-res versions of the video that people shared on the internet. The low-res video mitigated the chances of the video getting detected as a graphical. Also, the other reason is that the ending where the robot takes charge and fights back, that part was trimmed.
The Evolution Is Real
According to a source, by 2021, digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home may be able to predict our love lives — these devices will be able to tell us whether our relationship or marriage is doomed with 75% accuracy. That is not all, by 2025, they will also be able to combine genetic coding with information from activity trackers and predict the sexual chemistry between partners. Don’t you think they are already getting a bit more personal on our lives?
Another example of AI’s advancement is AlphaGo. In October 2015, AlphaGo became the first computer Go program to defeat a human professional Go player. In March 2016, the program beat Lee Sedol in a five-game match, and it was the first time that a computer program has beaten a 9-dan professional without handicaps.
You can imagine how far we have come. These technologies today play a significant role in our life and are advancing, understanding humans rapidly. While there are people who think that the advancements who beneficial for the human race, there are people who believe that it would make “Bosstown Dynamics” parody a reality.
Bottom Line
There are instances when Boston Dynamics really does stress-test its robots by kicking and poking them with sticks. And if these robots are advancing at a rapid rate, what if they turn violent and fight back for real? Through the years, as we have seen, there is nothing called robot empathy and, in the future, also, it is going to be a mess. Therefore, be glad the video is fake, and we are just witnessing a CGI parody.
