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Over a year after signalling its intentions to dump the robotics demonstration company Boston Dynamics, Alphabet/Google has finally found a buyer: SoftBank. SoftBank acquired ARM Holdings for around $32 billion in 2016. Google also offloaded another robotics company, Schaft:
Google's ambitions for Boston Dynamics were never really clear. Before being acquired, the robotics company was mostly funded by DARPA—the US military's research division—with the express purpose of creating militarised robots. Within a year of being picked up, though, Google announced that it would no longer pursue any DARPA contracts, presumably to focus on possible commercial uses for the bots. No commercial robots ever emerged.
SoftBank, however, has had success with commercialising robots—specifically the small humanoid robot Pepper.
Also at The Verge, The Guardian, TNW, CNN, CNBC, and TechCrunch.
Previously: Pentagon Scientists Show Off Robot And Prosthetics
Google's Noisy "BigDog" Robot Fails to Impress U.S. Marine Corps
Google's Latest Boston Dynamics Robot Takes a Stand
Boston Dynamics Produces a Wheeled Terror as Google Watches Nervously
(Score: 2) by takyon on Sunday June 11 2017, @01:55AM (2 children)
At least the lasers and railguns could actually destroy things, unlike the one-armed robot pack mules.
Railgun cost per shot could vary a lot [blogspot.com], but should beat the Advanced Gun System [arstechnica.com].
Laser cost per shot could be less than $1. [nationalinterest.org] And if it can destroy incoming missiles or drones, it could be worth a high price tag to be able to protect the ship from those threats.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2, Insightful) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday June 11 2017, @02:34AM (1 child)
The Advanced Gun System is just hilarious. The railgun, like all these other pie-in-the-sky armament systems, just may perhaps work under ideal conditions, and in the case of the lasers those conditions are maintaining a stabilized gimbaled fix on something that can't be shot down with it unless the target is the size of a $200 Wal-Mart quadcopter within 50 meters of range.
I hate to scare y'all, but the best technology we have was already developed...except that now, like Bay-area property bought in the '80's, the military industrial complex's decade-old fruits are still the best and now can be sold at a 500% markup. And we're paying for it.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday June 11 2017, @04:10AM
Raytheon has already contacted Remington about a cheaper AGS projectile: the deer slug.