<div dir="ltr"><p id="gmail-qDHSVv" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px 0px 1.2rem;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)">"Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has unveiled a <a href="https://blog.mi.com/en/2021/08/10/xiaomi-launches-cyberdog-an-open-source-quadruped-robot-companion/" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">quadrupedal robot named CyberDog</a>: an experimental, open-source machine that the firm says “holds unforetold possibilities.”</p><p id="gmail-BEiU8y" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px 0px 1.2rem;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)">CyberDog is the latest example of tech companies embracing the quadrupedal form factor in robotics. The most notable example of the trend is Spot, a machine built by US firm Boston Dynamics. Spot <a href="https://www.theverge.com/21292684/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-on-sale-price" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">went on sale last year</a> for $74,500 and has been put to a range of uses, from <a href="https://youtu.be/GbcDK7E9rVQ" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">surveying dangerous mines</a> to helping doctors <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2020/4/23/21231855/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-covid-19-coronavirus-telemedicine" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">connect with patients remotely</a>. It’s also been tested by <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/2/24/22299140/nypd-boston-dynamics-spot-robot-dog" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">both law enforcement</a> <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/4/7/22371590/boston-dynamics-spot-robot-military-exercises-french-army" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;background-color:transparent;color:rgb(226,18,122);border-bottom:1px solid currentcolor">and the military</a>, though not as a weapon.</p><div class="gmail-c-float-right" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px 0px 0px 36.9844px;padding:0px;float:right;width:332.953px;color:rgb(66,66,66)"><q style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Heroic,"Arial Narrow",Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:2em;font-style:italic;line-height:1;margin:0px 0px 1.2rem;padding:1rem 1.25rem 0px 0px;font-weight:600;letter-spacing:0.02em;text-transform:uppercase;color:rgb(226,18,122);display:block">XIAOMI SAYS CYBERDOG HAS A “PET-LIKE NATURE”</q></div><p id="gmail-sl2YTv" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px 0px 1.2rem;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)">It’s not clear what purpose Xiaomi envisions for CyberDog. In a press release, the company stressed the open-source nature of the machine’s design and that it would release only 1,000 units initially for “Xiaomi Fans, engineers, and robotic enthusiasts.” The company says it hopes these first users will “propel the development and potential of quadruped robots” and is pricing the robot to sell. The first 1,000 units will cost just 9,999 Yuan, or roughly $1,540 (though it’s not clear if this price will be the same for any future releases).</p><p id="gmail-F1Tb6J" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px 0px 1.2rem;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)">The same press release highlights CyberDog’s “pet-like nature,” including its ability to respond to voice commands and follow its owner like a real dog. Looking at pictures of CyberDog, though, it’s clear Xiaomi isn’t pitching the machine as a rival to Aibo, Sony’s own robot canine. While Aibo is small and cute, CyberDog is sleek and futuristic — even a little menacing. Renders of the machine make it look like the protagonist in a sci-fi TV show, pacing up stairs and appearing silhouetted in doorways. Inevitable comparisons to <em style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px">Black Mirror</em>’s “Metalhead” episode will be made, as they always are."</p><div id="gmail-MRgGwN" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)"><div class="gmail-c-image-gallery__body" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px"><a href="https://www.theverge.com/2021/8/10/22618043/xiaomi-cyberdog-robot-dog-quadruped-specs-price">https://www.theverge.com/2021/8/10/22618043/xiaomi-cyberdog-robot-dog-quadruped-specs-price</a><br class="gmail-Apple-interchange-newline"></div></div><div id="gmail-MRgGwN" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)"><div class="gmail-c-image-gallery__body" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px"><br class="gmail-Apple-interchange-newline"></div></div><div id="gmail-MRgGwN" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:Helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:18px;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px;color:rgb(66,66,66)"><div class="gmail-c-image-gallery__body" style="box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration:inherit;vertical-align:inherit;font-family:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-style:inherit;line-height:inherit;margin:0px;padding:0px"><br class="gmail-Apple-interchange-newline"></div></div></div>