Setback
New York City police ended their $94,000 contract for a Spot robot (nicknamed "Digidog") early, after public criticism.
A delay, pause or setback
What the source says
“The $94,000 contract was initially due to run until August.”
What it means
Spot, from Boston Dynamics, is at stage 4 of 5 on our ladder: paying customers. A setback stays on the record next to the milestones; the stage moves down only when the rules say so.
Human help: The maker hasn't said whether people help it remotely.
More on Spot
- Wichita, Kansas, city council approved buying one Spot robot for police bomb-squad work, at an estimated cost of about $330,000.
- Boston Dynamics said it had deployed more than 2,000 Spot and Stretch (warehouse) robots in total, and released a software update that adds security patrols.
- Hyundai Motor Group completed its purchase of an 80% stake in Boston Dynamics from SoftBank, in a deal that valued the company at $1.1 billion.
- Spot went on general sale to US businesses at $74,500. Before that, more than 150 had been placed with companies and labs through a lease-only early program.
- Boston Dynamics began offering Spot to a small group of chosen early business customers, picked for having a practical use for it.