Dogs and law enforcement have worked alongside one another for generations.

In addition, robots have been used by police and other agencies for bomb detonations and the like, which is certainly far preferable to sending in your human expert and hoping for the best.

We’re breaking new ground here with a combination of the two; namely, it’s Boston Dynamics’ dog-like Spot robot, which has terrified those who worry that artificial intelligence will one day rule us all, working with the Massachusetts State Police.

Documents seen by the Washington Post indicates that the police department leased Spot from Boston Dynamics for 90 days ending on November 5, 2019:

The purpose of the loan, according to the records, was to evaluate “the robot’s capabilities in law enforcement applications, particularly remote inspection of potentially dangerous environments which may contain suspects and [ordnance].”

Boston Dynamics did not respond to a request for comment, but the Massachusetts State Police confirmed that the agency leased Spot for a three-month stretch and attached the robot to its bomb squad.

I don’t care how effective that bomb squad is, it can’t hold a candle to the power of the Springboks off the bench.

Sorry, these tenuous links to stories that mention our World Cup-winning side should subside in the next 200 weeks or so.

Back to the pesky robot dog:

Police said Spot was “used operationally” on two occasions, though specific details about the robot’s use were not divulged.

“The Massachusetts State Police have used robots to assist in responses to hazardous situations for many years, deploying them to examine suspicious items and to clear high-risk locations where armed suspects may be present,” the agency said in a statement, adding that the robot was tasked with “providing remote inspection of potentially hazardous objects and dangerous environments that might contain criminal suspects or explosive devices.”

The only footage we’ve been able to find shows Spot opening a door, and then venturing inside, while a second robot stands awkwardly behind it:

At least there are only two of them, unlike the squad of MIT robots that had a kickaround in the park recently.

I’m all for protecting human life, and I wouldn’t have the guts to charge through a door like that into the unknown, but there has been some understandable pushback to the news of the police using Spot.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Massachusetts raises some good points:

[They] released a statement saying the public knows little about how robotic systems like Spot are being used

“All too often, the deployment of these technologies happens faster than our social, political, or legal systems react,” the statement said. “We urgently need more transparency from government agencies, who should be upfront with the public about their plans to test and deploy new technologies. We also need statewide regulations to protect civil liberties, civil rights, and racial justice in the age of artificial intelligence.”

“Massachusetts must do more to ensure safeguards keep pace with technological innovation, and the ACLU is happy to partner with officials at the local and state levels to find and implement solutions to ensure our law keeps pace with technology.”

Hey, would you like your very own Spot robot? Seriously, you can now own one:

That launch video from September says “Spot is an agile mobile robot that you can customise for a wide range of applications [and] you can customize Spot by adding specialised sensors, software and other payloads”.

I’m sure that will end swimmingly for all concerned. What could go wrong?

[source:washpost]