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New York The police department said Thursday that it will stop using “Digidog” on Thursday, which is occasionally deployed to recover a four-legged robot in dangerous situations. NYPD officials confirmed in a statement that the contract had ended and that the dog would be returned to the Boston Dynamics dealer. Last December, the agency rented Digidog, under the pseudonym Spot, for $ 94,000.
John Miller, Deputy Commissioner of Police Intelligence and Counter-Terrorism, tell The New York Times the contract was “dead of politics, bad information and cheap sound bites.” Miller dismissed the role of the bad press, but in many ways the actions of the NYPD were a model for how not to introduce new technology. And, for entrepreneurs, how to effectively disrupt them by banning unwanted technologies.
Actually, they weren’t the only condemned sound bite Spot. The New Yorkers didn’t want to.
In February, the NYPD used Spot to disband the hostage situation in the Bronx. When video of the device went viral, the flexible legs and head camera design terrified people. The robot is quadruple, but does not look like a dog. It’s an instant comparison. Armed robots appearing in a post-apocalyptic episode Black Mirror. This comparison quickly spread on social media. The NYPD’s secret contradicted it: there was no public comment process on the spot, and residents were unaware that they expected to see robot dogs kidnapped in response to situations.
The NYPD had this opportunity a month earlier when it had to disclose the price and regulatory policies of all surveillance devices. determined by the city Public Surveillance of Surveillance Technologies Act (POST). Instead, the agency included a temporary reference to Spot in a larger section on “state-of-the-art cameras” without images.
New York, police department it is not necessary seeking council approval for new purchases, which would normally involve a public comment phase. And throwing a robot at people has consequences.
Notably, Spot means a relatively cheap price of $ 94,000 in cities Like Sacramento or Burbank If a contract over $ 100,000 requires approval by the board, it could appear without a public review.
In New York, a follow-up to a sudden viral infamy condemned Digidog.
US Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) criticized the robot as a waste of funds that could be allocated to social services. Ben Kallos City Councilman he directed the charge banning armed robots, saying Spot was the first step in launching an “arms race”. The kidnapping incident took place in the Bronx neighborhood, where police often respond to service calls, and many residents were asked if they would start exposing the dog frequently.
It is important that Spot was not armed. Used robot cameras and microphone to explore areas that may be too dangerous for officers, such as hostage situations. They are mostly used to investigate fallen power lines or gas leaks in robots. But, the “robot dog” label was stuck because it was introduced into the police context, in the midst of a national police conversation that is used by police forces that buy new equipment without people’s approval.
Critics caught this, stressing the potential consequences of using robots without police control or public input. With no alarming technology, with video bells, for example, many ask “what could be the worst?” In Spot’s case, they warned that he was part of a larger model of police militarization.
Boston Dynamics said the company has banned weapons from entering its robots. In a statement on Thursday, the company said: “We support local communities reviewing the allocation of public funds, and we believe Spot Security is a cost-effective tool comparable to the historic robotic devices used to inspect hazardous environments.”
Kallos, a member of the council, told WIRED in March that it was time to act proactively on the dangers of mission slip and increased militarization of police departments (including more use of drones and robots in public health).
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