Coded Creepiness (Part 3/4): Robotic Animals Gone Wild

Welcome to this week’s Deep-Fried Dive with Fry Guy! In these long-form articles, Fry Guy conducts in-depth analyses of cutting-edge artificial intelligence (AI) developments and developers. Today, Fry Guy dives into two super bizarre robotic animals. We hope you enjoy!

*Notice: We do not receive any monetary compensation from the people and projects we feature in the Sunday Deep-Fried Dives with Fry Guy. We explore these projects and developers solely to showcase interesting and cutting-edge AI developments and uses.*

Let’s face it—AI stories are everywhere, like confetti at a tech parade. Some make you cheer, like AI advancing medical diagnostics. Others make you pause, like AI in military defense systems. And then there are the stories that make you wonder if the sci-fi section of your bookshelf just came to life.

In this series, we are diving into the weird and wild corners of AI innovation—the tales that might ignite your curiosity or haunt your dreams. Buckle up; things are about to get bizarre.

THE RISE OF ROBOTIC ANIMALS

As technology advances, robotic animals have been steadily rising from science fiction curiosity to real-world innovation. What started as novelty gadgets has evolved into a diverse field of engineering, aimed at replicating animal behaviors and capabilities. From robotic dogs that mimic the loyalty and agility of their biological counterparts to underwater drones that swim like fish, animal-inspired machines are now part of fields ranging from rescue operations to research.

Companies like Boston Dynamics have popularized robotic quadrupeds, showing off their abilities to navigate rough terrain, perform acrobatic moves, and even assist in industrial tasks. Meanwhile, universities and research institutions have developed robotic bees capable of pollination and reconnaissance, robotic birds for environmental monitoring, and even robot cheetahs that can sprint at impressive speeds.

The appeal of these machines isn’t just in their cool factor—it’s in their versatility. By mimicking animal locomotion, robotic animals can tackle environments too complex for traditional machines. These animal robots have been deployed to explore disaster zones, inspect underwater structures, and assist soldiers in remote missions. The military, agriculture, and healthcare industries have all taken note.

As technology becomes more accessible and affordable, the potential uses for robotic animals are expanding. But with that expansion comes questions: how far should we let these machines evolve? When does “helpful” cross into “hazardous”? This debate continues to heat up with every new innovation. But whether these robotic animals are solving problems or causing them, they are crawling into the spotlight—and they’re here to stay.

Let’s take a look at two robotic animals that are dropping jaws and causing a little bit of unsettledness in the tech world: a dog that barks fire and a spider that crawls under your skin.

A FIRE-BREATHING DOG

Have you seen those robotic dogs walking around? The ones that are controlled by some tech nerd operating a remote? They are able to perform commands such as sitting, rolling over, jumping, and more. Although they can be super cool, they can also be a bit creepy. Even normal dogs are scared to interact with them.

Robotic dogs are nothing new to the tech world. In fact, the first known robotic dog was Sparko, created by Westinghouse in 1940. It debuted at the World’s Fair in New York. Of course, they have gotten much more technical since then, and with this advanced technology they have gotten a bit more … bizarre. We’re no longer dealing with cute, crawling robot dogs. No, we are now dealing with fire-breathing canines.

Just when you thought robot dogs couldn’t get any more intimidating, along comes the Thermonator. Created by Throwflame, an Ohio-based company, this quadruped robot combines the mobility of a robotic dog with the ability to shoot flames up to 30 feet—talk about an intimidating bark! The technical specifications are impressive, if not slightly terrifying. The 37-pound Thermonator comes equipped with lidar mapping for advanced navigation, first-person-view capabilities, obstacle avoidance technology, and laser sighting for precise targeting. The Thermonator has a one-hour battery life and can be controlled remotely via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, making it a highly sophisticated piece of machinery.

The company markets this robotic dog for practical applications like wildfire prevention and management, agricultural burns, snow removal, and even entertainment purposes. It’s possible that the Thermonator could be useful to navigate areas where it is unsafe for humans to go, such as near wildfires or into dangerous terrain. Nevertheless, the combination of advanced autonomous capabilities and powerful fire projection features in a consumer product presents obvious concerns about potential misuse or accidents.

WHAT COULD GO WRONG?

Robotic dogs breathing fire—what could possibly go wrong? Well, for one thing, these dogs have a tendency to disobey their owners. In one viral video, internet personality iShowSpeed was attacked by his robotic dog, which barked fire at him and chased him into his pool. The dog had to be shut down by one of his friends, or else it would have continued to come after him. The public was scared to death of this video, pointing out that what had started out as a cute little stunt quickly went haywire. Could it be that this is what the world of AI and robotics comes to? If it remains uncontrolled, will cute little image generators and funny chatbots get out of hand? Only time will tell.

We can only imagine more incidents like this happening if these dogs become more popular. What makes these dogs particularly concerning is the regulatory environment surrounding them. In the United States, flamethrowers are largely unregulated and aren’t even classified as firearms by the ATF (only Maryland has made them illegal, and California only allows modified versions with a range of less than 10 feet). This means that this robotic dog that can shoot fire up to 30 feet is completely legal in 48 states—almost anyone can get their hands on these fire-breathing canines.

Fortunately, the Thermonator currently checks out at $9,420. That means crazy uncle Vic probably can’t afford one yet. However, as this technology becomes easier and cheaper to assemble, it is likely these dogs will drop in price. It might not be too long before your neighbors are walking them down the street. Be polite, or they may set your grass on fire.

AN INSECT THAT PERFORMS SURGERY?

Robotic creepiness is not only limited to fire-breathing dogs. It is no secret that AI-powered robotics is transforming the medical field. From helping to detect cancers to streamlining operations, advanced technology is changing the way doctors treat patients. There are also ongoing rumors that AI-powered robots may eventually perform surgeries. If AI-powered robots are involved, the surgeries may be more stable and consistent, and the robots might be less likely to mess up procedures or make mistakes. It’s also worth emphasizing that robots often have a steadier hand than humans, able to be more precise with their movements. One group of researchers is taking this idea to the extreme, by designing a robotic insect that might eventually be able to crawl inside your body to perform sensitive procedures.

mCLARI (Mini Compliant Legged Articulated Robot Insect) is a spider-like robot that can manipulate its body to navigate difficult and dangerous terrain. The spider-bot is only 2 centimeters in length, weighs less than a gram, and can travel 6 centimeters per second. According to LiveScience, its legs hinge to its body through passive joints, enabling mCLARI to alter its body shape based on the environment it encounters. For instance, its legs can stretch up to 50% in certain spaces. This makes the spider-bot ideal for crawling into areas that we cannot normally access and handle those areas with precision.

The researchers behind mCLARI believe the robot has potential to positively impact various sectors. These include disaster response, high-value asset inspection, environmental monitoring, and precision medicine. The researchers imagine the spider-bot crawling through the rubble of a collapsed building to search for lost items, or climbing into a person in order to perform a very detailed surgical procedure. Kaushik Jayaram, the lead author of the study and a mechanical engineering professor at the University of Colorado, stated, “In the long term, we envision such robots to be effective at navigating through human bodies and performing automated surgery such as clearing an artery clog or removing a tumor.”

As of now, mCLARI has to be controlled by a human using a remote. However, in the near future, the researchers envision the robot being able to navigate its own environment through computer vision and machine learning. This would allow the robot more freedom in navigating its surroundings and allow it to react quicker to changes in its environment.

So in the future, if you find yourself going into surgery, you might end up with a spider-bot doctor crawling around inside your body. But I guess it’s your own fault for buying a robotic dog that went berserk! Creeped out yet?