Hyundai Teases Plans For ‘Coexisting’ Humans & Bots After Buying Boston Dynamics

By Mikelle Leow, 23 Jun 2021

Video screenshot via Hyundai

Hyundai announced this month that it has acquired Boston Dynamics, the company responsible for Spot, the robot dog villainized by Black Mirror, and humanoid-slash-pro dancer Atlas. But don’t just expect to see the Transformers with this merger—the automaker is dreaming of so much more with this “new chapter of mobility,” which it believes will pave the way for the “harmonious coexistence of humankind and robots.”

Combining its knowledge on mobility with Boston Dynamics’ robotics, Hyundai is convinced it can extend its vision for “Progress for Humanity” with “fun, capable and visible companions for humankind that will take our current mobility services to new heights,” it describes in a press release. Apart from autonomous cars, it hopes to further logistics and Urban Air Mobility with the merger.

A new promotional film illustrates some of Hyundai’s aspirations for co-existing humans and robots. It includes South Korean National Team para-archer Jun-beom Park strapped with ‘S-MEX’, an upcoming robotic harness designed to help people with disabilities stand up and walk.

Spot the robot dog also appears in the advertisement, showing off a few new tricks. It is seen working as a guide dog to a blind man, and conducts contact-free assessments on behalf of a human doctor at a hospital with a touchscreen “head.”

Hyundai details its new technological toolset of “[going] from steel to car, and back to steel… from water to Hydrogen and back to water… from feet to wheels and back to feet” as a stepping stone for a robotics-driven future.

It also says the coexistence of humanity and robots could come sooner than you think. “Soon, Spot could become an assistant for visually impaired people and robots will become friends with whom we can share life’s beautiful moments,” the company teases.