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takyon [soylentnews.org] writes:

Boston Dynamics has produced a hybrid wheeled-legged robot called "Handle" [theverge.com]:

The company's new wheeled, upright robot is named Handle [youtu.be] ("because it's supposed to handle objects") and looks like a cross between a Segway and the two-legged Atlas bot [theverge.com]. Handle hasn't been officially unveiled, but was shown off by company founder Marc Raibert in a presentation to investors. Footage of the presentation was uploaded to YouTube by venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson [twitter.com].

Raibert describes Handle as an "experiment in combining wheels with legs, with a very dynamic system that is balancing itself all the time and has a lot of knowledge of how to throw its weight around." He adds that using wheels is more efficient than legs, although there's obviously a trade-off in terms of maneuvering over uneven ground. "This is the debut presentation of what I think will be a nightmare-inducing robot," says Raibert

Boston Dynamics has yet to become profitable, and the Alphabet/Google complex looks to distance itself from "terrifying" and "nightmare-inducing" robots [qz.com] that may ultimately end up being sold to military customers (as long as they forget past disappointments [soylentnews.org]):

While the robot's extreme sports skills were impressive, it's unlikely that Raibert's "nightmare-inducing" comment will be well-received at Alphabet. The company has been looking for a buyer for Boston Dynamics for months, reportedly after its last robot launch video [qz.com] went viral, and amid what Alphabet perceived to be "some negative threads about it being terrifying." The company was apparently in talks [engadget.com] with Toyota about a takeover, but that has not as of yet materialized. Boston Dynamics is reportedly struggling to make money [qz.com], especially after the US Navy said it would not be purchasing [qz.com] its robots.

So this is what Ethanol-fueled has been up to. Also at TechCrunch [techcrunch.com].

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