--- title: Watch Google's Robotic Dog Spot, By Boston Dynamics description: Google-owned Boston Dynamics built this adorable, yet terrifying, creation canonical: https://time.com/3703243/google-boston-dynamics-robot-dog/ author: Laura Stampler article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-02-10T17:03:01.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-05-11T04:48:03.313Z og:title: Google's Robot Dog Brings Us One Step Closer to the End of Humanity og:description: Google-owned Boston Dynamics built this adorable, yet terrifying, creation og:url: https://time.com/3703243/google-boston-dynamics-robot-dog/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd49b85fd38189451/69877e73524fc08358dec65f/screen-shot-2015-02-10-at-11-59-51-am.png?branch=production&width=743&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 743 og:image:height: 418 og:image:alt: Boston Dynamics og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Google's Robot Dog Brings Us One Step Closer to the End of Humanity twitter:description: Google-owned Boston Dynamics built this adorable, yet terrifying, creation twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltd49b85fd38189451/69877e73524fc08358dec65f/screen-shot-2015-02-10-at-11-59-51-am.png?branch=production&width=743&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Google's Robot Dog Brings Us One Step Closer to the End of Humanity > Sponsored content. 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The Brief is available free at time.com/newsletters, where readers can select it along with any of TIME's other six newsletters. There is no subscription required to receive it. #### Is The Brief free? Yes. The Brief is a free daily email newsletter from TIME. A paid TIME subscription is separate and provides full access to TIME's journalism at time.com/subscribe-agent. #### Who writes The Brief? The Brief is led by editor Richard Hall and draws on reporting from TIME's newsroom. Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Feb 10, 2015 5:03 PM UTC  Boston Dynamics' 'Spot' Boston Dynamics' 'Spot' Boston Dynamics by [Laura Stampler](https://time.com/author/laura-stampler/) ## Laura Stampler Feb 10, 2015 5:03 PM UTC We have met the leader of the Rise of the Machines, and his name is Spot. [Google-owned Boston Dynamics](http://www.nytimes.com/2013/12/14/technology/google-adds-to-its-menagerie-of-robots.html?%5Fr=0) released a [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8YjvHYbZ9w) video of its latest robotic endeavor Thursday, and the four-legged, 160 pound, mechanical canine is both borderline adorable and borderline terrifying. Spot — a smaller version of the company’s aptly named [Big Dog](http://www.bostondynamics.com/robot%5Fbigdog.html) — is capable of gracefully (for a robot) running up hills, maneuvering through rough terrain and climbing stairs. And he’s quiet, so you might not see him coming. The robot also has the ability to self-stabilize, which Boston Dynamics illustrates by video taping employees kicking him in the side. Come _on_ guys, I know you’ve seen enough movies to know you shouldn’t taunt the robots! This is how it all starts! Granted, if Spot proves to be less vengeful and more benevolent, [The Verge](http://www.theverge.com/2015/2/9/8008885/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-walking-bigdog) points out that he could be useful to assist with search and rescue missions and accessing disaster zones. ### These Robots Have Their Own World Cup  Humanoid robots are seen at the Institute for Computer Science at the University of Bonn in Bonn July 3, 2014. Ina Fassbender—Reuters  Research associates Larry Vadakedathu and Qin He work with one of their RoboCup entries, a 5-foot-tall metal humanoid named THOR (Tactical Hazardous Operations Robot), in the adult-size league at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia on July 7, 2014. Matt Rourke—AP  Robocup Junior teams in RoboCup Robot Soccer Championship on July 21, 2014. Lorena Travassos—Fotoarena/Corbis  Members of the Rhoban project's team check functions of a humanoid robot at the LaBRI workshop in Talence, France on July 7, 2014. Regis Devignau—Reuters  People work on the software of humanoid robots during a photo opportunity at the Institute for Computer Science at the University of Bonn in Bonn, Germany on July 3, 2014. Ina Fassbender—Reuters  Students at the University of Pennsylvania work with one of their RoboCup entries known as Nao in Philadelphia on July 7, 2014. Matt Rourke—AP  The first day of the RoboCup Robot Soccer Championship in João Pessoa, Brazil on July 21, 2014. Lorena Travassos—Fotoarena/Corbis  A participant from the Netherlands prepares his humanoid robot for a soccer match in the international robotics competition in Tehran, Iran on April 10, 2014. Vahid Salemi—AP  Humanoid robots play during a soccer match while visitors follow the competition in the international robotics competition, RoboCup Iran Open 2014, in Tehran, Iran on April 10, 2014. Vahid Salemi—AP  Trophies won by humanoid robots at competitions are seen during a photo opportunity at the Institute for Computer Science at the University of Bonn in Bonn, Germany on July 3, 2014. 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