The Chinese army unveiled a robotic dog equipped with a gun as its newest weapon. According to footage from the state broadcaster CCTV, the artificial dog—which has an automatic gun on its back—was the focal point of recent joint military drills with Cambodia.
In the drills, the dog had support from a similarly armed quadcopter. The machines were coupled with human soldiers to practice urban attacks. Chinese soldier Chen Wei stated in the video, “It can serve as a new member in our urban combat operations, replacing our human members to conduct reconnaissance, identify enemy, and strike the target.”
Killer Robots: High-Tech Yet Familiar, Featuring Unitree Robotics’ Consumer-Grade Designs
Even while the killer robots are equipped with cutting-edge technology, they don’t exactly resemble svelte military weapons; instead, the dog and drone seem to be regular consumer electronics with a traditional rifle attached. On the side, Unitree Robotics, the Chinese business that constructed the dog, is prominently displayed.
On the Unitree website, the Go2 robot dog from the company is priced starting at $1,600 (£1,300). The source of the army’s procurement remains unknown, as the company declined to sell goods to the Chinese military.
Once a Google subsidiary, Boston Dynamics created and popularized the robot dog archetype. It has long been associated with the United States military; BigDog, its first “robotic quadruped,” was created as a possible mechanical pack animal for the army. Yet the business, which Google sold to Softbank in 2017 and then Hyundai in 2020, has never deliberately weaponized its technology.
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Rise of Armed Robots: Boston Dynamics’ Decision Opens Door for Militaries
There are “around 1,500” of Boston Dynamics’ “Spot” dogs in the globe, according to Marc Raibert, the company’s creator, who spoke at the AI Seoul Summit last week. “However, there’s been a sudden emergence of other robotics companies producing really amazing robots,” he stated. “Moving from the research lab into commercialization is a really exciting experience.”
This “springing out” also means that militaries and law enforcement can now acquire armed robots of their own because Boston Dynamics has decided not to weaponize their technology. Ghost Robotics unveiled a Vision 60 robot dog equipped with a specially designed pistol manufactured by Sword International in 2021. The US Army subsequently declared in 2023 that it was actively investigating the application of this technology in combat. China showed off another robot with a weapon in 2022, this time being transported by drone and dropped off at a training facility.
Although the systems are robotic, they are usually not autonomous just yet. The Go2 dog is shown in the CCTV footage being handled by a soldier using a portable gadget. Many observers are worried about what would happen if and when the human-AI interface is compromised, as AI systems can operate more quickly and with less latency than a human operator could.
