Google’s parent company is looking to sell Boston Dynamics, the company behind its humanoid robots…and Amazon could be in the frame. Despite impressive breakthroughs from Boston Dynamics, Google’s parent company Alphabet is understood to be looking to offload it. It comes after the boss of Alphabet’s robotics division said in a memo: “We as a […]
Google’s parent company is looking to sell Boston Dynamics, the company behind its humanoid robots…and Amazon could be in the frame.
Despite impressive breakthroughs from Boston Dynamics, Google’s parent company Alphabet is understood to be looking to offload it.
It comes after the boss of Alphabet’s robotics division said in a memo: “We as a startup cannot spend 30% of our resources on things that take 10 years.”
Boston Dynamics – bought by Google in last 2013 – is best-known for its human-sized robot Atlas, and its four-legged dog robot.
Leaked emails had shown that Alphabet was concerned that humanoid robots could lead to bad media coverage, if they were able to replace humans in some jobs.
Atlas also struggled at a recent robotics competition – when it fell over and needed a crane to get back up.
But a more recent video showed an improved Atlas being pushed over and getting up again, as well as navigating rough terrain, with ease.
It was also shown loading up boxes onto shelves, a function that may have caught the eye of online retailer Amazon.
Several financial websites have quoted unnamed Amazon sources saying they would potentially be interested in buying the division.
While Google started off as a search engine, the business has become a sprawling organisation with interests in fields from self-driving cars to healthcare.
Last year Google created a new parent company called Alphabet to oversee the various divisions, of which Google’s search business is now one.
