Robot dogs Sparkles (in blue) and Spot dancing in the video.
A video of a robot dog released by a US-based robotics company has shocked the internet. The clip shows Sparkles, the robot dog created by Boston Dynamics, dancing with another machine named Spot and showing off some killer moves. The video was released on International Dance Day, but it failed to appeal to the social media users who called the robot "fuel for nightmares". Boston Dynamics is known for its mobile robots, including Atlas, a humanoid. In 2022, Hyundai acquired the company.
Boston Dynamics posted the video of the robotic dog on its YouTube channel. "Spot is meeting another strange dog and making friends through the power of dance. Meet Sparkles! Sparkles is a custom costume designed just for Spot," it said in the caption of the clip, which amassed over 1.1 million views in a week.
While Sparkles is wearing a blue dog costume, Spot is without any add-on and joins its robotic cousin and performing a complex dance routine.
The video also shows one robotic dog teaching another some new tricks.
The company promoted its video, calling it an "intersection of robotics, art, and entertainment". But social media users were not impressed.
"Boston dynamics is having its creepy nightmare fuel phase and I'm all for it," said one user. "The animatronics do get a bit quirky at night," another one commented on the YouTube video.
A third user wrote, "Everybody wants to pet the dog until its neck extends 4 feet."
However, some users found the dancing dog adorable.
"Sparkles and Spot, robo dogs dancing... cute!" read one of the comments.
"When Spot twirls with Sparkles, it's a waltz of wonder - our hearts leap, tech sings, as metal meets magic in the dance of dreams, bridging worlds with every whimsical whirl!" said another.
Sparkles is the company's second robotic dog becoming famous after Spot, which was launched in 2016. It has been tasked with doing everything from fighting fires with the New York City Fire Department to "peeing" beer on command.