Boston Dynamics' Atlas Robot Showcases Advanced Mobility and AI-Driven Movements

Humanoid robots are breakdancing, with mixed results

Is the Boston Dynamics Atlas robot a better dancer than you? It's time to find out. The newest iteration of Boston Dynamics' Atlas humanoid robot is already disconcertingly nimble, with its ability to run, perform backflips, and toss around heavy objects. So maybe there's some comfort to be had in knowing that, if nothing else, it might take a bit before the bipedal bot surpasses human breakdancing capabilities. At least that's what it seems like after seeing Atlas' new moves. In a one-minute video posted to YouTube on March 19, the slimmed-down robot can be seen walking and running easily enough, but it's a different story once it gets down on all fours. It can now crawl like a frog on its nub-hands and knee joints (although its overall movement remains somewhat stiff and awkward). Its "helicopter" leg sweeping and rolling techniques, however, could use some work. According to Boston Dynamics, the new physicalities are "demonstrating policies developed using reinforcement learning with references from human motion capture and animation." These come about a month after the company announced a partnership with the Robotics & AI Institute focused specifically on reinforcement learning projects to level up the humanoid robot. The collaboration is specifically aimed at translating mobility-based simulations to physical performance, improving whole body loco-manipulation, and advancing ways to utilize the Atlas robot's entire body. At the time, Boston Dynamics said it would "periodically release updates on this collaborative work, including publications and demonstrations with Atlas." The "Walk, Run, Crawl, RL Fun" video appears to be the first entry in this series, which to be fair, is pretty impressive since it's only been a few weeks since the collaboration began. It might not win any breakdancing competitions just yet, but it's already definitely better than a lot of people can manage. It remains to be seen what pastime Atlas will learn next -- maybe a waltz?

Watch the Atlas robot bust a move in Boston Dynamics' latest video

To view this content, you'll need to update your privacy settings. Please click here and view the "Content and social-media partners" setting to do so. Boston Dynamics has treated us to a lot of impressive videos over the years and the company is back today with the latest example of its robotics mastery. In the clip above, its Atlas robot demonstrates several types of full-body movement, starting with a walk and advancing to a cartwheel and even a spot of break dancing. The different actions were developed using reinforcement learning that used motion capture and animation as source materials. At this rate, our future robot overlords will be able to out-dance and out-tumble us humans as well as out-think us one day. The video is part of Boston Dynamics' research with the Robotics and AI Institute, but it has multiple partners aiding its work. For instance, NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang touched on the company's GR00T model for robotics during the earlier this week. Yesterday, Boston Dynamics announced that it is deepening its collaboration with the company focused on AI in robotics. It is using NVIDIA's Jetson Thor computing platform to run "complex, multimodal AI models that work seamlessly with Boston Dynamics' whole-body and manipulation controllers."

Boston Dynamics shows off another major leap in humanoid mobility

The running motion is by far the smoothest and most natural we've seen Chinese humanoids are starting to move with extraordinary grace and agility, but Boston Dynamics is the OG in this field, and fresh video of its swivel-jointed Atlas robot running, cartwheeling and breakdancing shows it's still at the bleeding edge. Before we get going, let's acknowledge the elephant in the room here: companies like Tesla, Figure, Sanctuary, Agility and many others couldn't care less if their robots can do backflips or cartwheels, or how smooth and human-like their movements are. These companies are focused on putting robots to work as quickly as possible, so they're much more interested in how well they can pick things up, do something with them and put them where they belong. This is nowhere near as much fun to watch, but it's these kinds of boring, practical use cases that actually threaten to radically change the world as we know it - not feats of athleticism. On the other hand, watching these incredible AI-driven machines emerge from their wobbly toddler phase into smooth, confident navigators of the human world... It's mind-blowing stuff. And as compelling as it is to watch humans master movement through dance and gymnastics, it's incredible to see how quickly these robots are picking things up. Chinese company Unitree has been doing some incredible work lately with its short, lightweight G1 humanoid. You may remember this little fella from its remarkable US$16,000 starting price tag, or from recent footage in which it danced alongside humans, or from its predecessor, the H1, which was the first humanoid in its class to perform a backflip using electric motors instead of hydraulics. Here's the latest, though: the G1 is now capable of doing side flips: It's also one of the first humanoids we've seen that walks with a bit of swagger instead of looking like it's soiled itself. And as shown in the video below, it can also jog thanks to a recent "agile upgrade." It's impressive stuff, but lest we forget who's been at the forefront of humanoid research for more than a decade, Boston Dynamics has just released new footage of its stunning Atlas robot taking natural-looking motion to yet another level. Check it out: Now let's get this out of the way: that's not crawling, buddy. But look at that walk! A little stiff-armed, maybe, but it really does look like it's walking rather than taking a bunch of steps. Look at the way it initiates a run, leaning forward to launch and pulling its torso back to decelerate. The sheer sure-footedness on display here is something the Boston team must be very proud of. The rolls and tumbles are starting to look less forced, too, and it's very cool to see how Atlas uses its freely swiveling hips to turn a handstand into a roundoff, and stand up with its head on backwards. This, of course, is one of the most fascinating things about Atlas; it's got 360-degree swiveling capability at the hips, waist, arm and neck, so it doesn't have to turn around all at once. The breakdancing move and the cartwheel are the icing on the cake here, and they are indeed pretty crazy to watch. But it's the confidence with which the AI is learning to drive these bodies in the world that fascinates me. As humans learn to walk, run and move in the world, we start anticipating little elements of balance, planning ahead on the fly in a dynamic and changing situation. That's what we're watching the AIs learn to master here. The current explosion in humanoid robotics is still at a very early stage. But watching Atlas and its contemporaries do with the physical world what GPT and other language models are doing with the world of information - this is sci-fi come to life. Atlas is already moving much more smoothly than Kryten. These things will be confined to factories for the most part as they begin entering the workforce en masse, but it's looking clearer than ever that humans and androids will be interacting regularly in daily life sooner than most of us ever imagined.

Watch: Boston Dynamics' Atlas robot breakdances using motion capture

Combining top-tier robotics engineering with cutting-edge AI research, Atlas is now equipped to operate in unpredictable environments. In demonstration footage, Atlas can be seen moving confidently, correcting its posture mid-motion, and maintaining balance through quick adjustments. This adaptability opens doors for real-world applications -- robots that can assist in search-and-rescue operations, navigate industrial sites, handle logistics in environments too dangerous for humans, or join humans in impromptu dance battles. Unlike traditional robots that depend on rigid programming, Atlas is continuously learning from its environment and improving its responses. This makes it more than a machine that executes tasks; it becomes a responsive system capable of interpreting and reacting to real-world challenges. While motion capture has long been used in the film industry to bring animated characters to life, its role in robotics is now equally transformative. By mapping human movement with extreme accuracy, motion capture data allows robots like Atlas to develop an understanding of natural motion -- fluid transitions, subtle weight shifts, and fast corrective actions that are difficult to code manually.

This robot can do a cartwheel better than me and now I'm freaking out - but in a good way

Atlas looks a lot more like C-3PO now and moves a lot more like a human I get it, Blue, the adorable robot collaboration between Nvidia, Google, and Disney, captivated hearts, but I've seen something better and more practical from Boston Dynamics that's based on many of the same Nvidia foundational models. Further, it's a better indicator of the next big step - or cartwheel - in humanoid robotics. Boston Dynamics was an early adopter of Nvidia's Project GROOT, and now it has deepened the partnership by tapping into multiple Nvidia platforms, including the Jetson Thor computing platform and Isaac Lab, which uses Nvidia's Isaac Sim and Omiversion technologies to help drive its stunning, all-electric Atlas humanoid robot. Jetson Thor is paired with Atlas's body and manipulation controllers to tap into multimodal AIs, and the Isaac Lab framework is used to help the robot learn in virtual environments. All of this helps with motion and adapting to unforeseen or at least unexpected environments, which can also improve the safety of a humanoid robot that might one day work alongside you. It would be hard to conceptualize the benefits of all that deep technology if it weren't for this video. In the latest Atlas demonstration, the 6-foot tall, 330-pound all-electric humanoid robot crawls, runs, rolls, performs a can opener move (ask your break-dancing parents), and cartwheels. The series of moves was so shocking that I had to ask if the video had been sped up to make everything look smoother. Representatives for Boston Dynamics confirmed the video is running at normal speed. As I watched the video and imagined all the virtual training necessary to pull off the live moves, it occurred to me that we've reached a tipping point. Sure, the hydraulic Atlas could do parkour and backflips, but it didn't look much like us. The electric Atlas is a different story. Its physiology is decidedly human. The head lacks a true face, but it's clearly a head, and the body proportions are all normal if a bit beefed up to body-builder size. Remember, it's 330 pounds. In other words, Atlas is finally looking a lot more like C-3PO. Now, there are a lot of new humanoid robots from Tesla (Optimus), Figure AI (Figure 01), x1 (Neo Gama), and Unitree (Unitree G1). With the exception of G1, these robots are mobile disappointments. None of them move in truly fluid and convincing ways. Their steps are halting, their motions stutter, and sometimes there are significant pauses between actions that humans usually strand together like many shiny pearls. Most, in fact, move like C-3PO. To be fair, that Star Wars protocol droid was Actor Anthony Daniels in a stiff plastic suit, gamely trying not to succumb to the African desert heat. Even so, the robot became an icon and the template for our nearly five decades of humanoid robot dreams. Perhaps that's why people are so excited about all those other robots, even if they shouldn't be. Atlas is different, and I think it's the combination of Boston Dynamic's decades in robotics engineering (the company's robots were competing in robotics challenges years before most of these other companies entered the space) and Nvidia's powerful silicon and foundational models that are making the difference. It's not enough to build a robot that can move and perform basic tasks. Most of the other robot competitors know this and have partnered with Google and OpenAI to gain access to their AI multi-modal models, but I think they're playing catchup. If humanoid robotic development were a horse race, I'd put my money on Boston Dynamics and Nvidia. Together, they'll likely bring us a legion of factory and, eventually, home robots that all do literal cartwheels around us and make us wonder what we saw in C-3PO in the first place.

Humanoid robots now have a move to celebrate the takeover

The tech wizards at Boston Dynamics have been hard at work, according to an astonishing new video released by the Massachussetts-based company on Wednesday. "In this video, Atlas is demonstrating policies developed using reinforcement learning with references from human motion capture and animation," reads the somewhat dry description accompanying the footage. Instead of "demonstrating policies," a more accurate account would surely be, " ... busting a slew of jaw-dropping moves that'll have you sitting straight up in your seat hollering, 'Woah, did that robot really just do that?!?" Atlas has been impressing us for years. Who can forget the first time we saw it performing a backflip, or doing parkour -- all very impressive stuff. But since last year, when Atlas was relaunched as a fully electric humanoid robot with AI and machine-learning tools, the team of engineers at Boston Dynamics has taken its capabilities up a notch, to the point where it's moving just like a human, in a totally natural way. But that's not all. The footage also shows Atlas doing a spot of breakdancing, which, let's be honest, if most of us tried would likely end with a slipped disc, a scream of pain, and a trip to the hospital. But Atlas performs like a pro. But it's the finale that really impresses. Not even bothering with a run-up, Atlas does a perfect cartwheel. It's the kind of gleeful move that you can imagine them making after subjugating the masses. This latest work was done as part of a research partnership between Boston Dynamics and the Robotics and the Massachussetts-based AI Institute (RAI Institute), the company said. Boston Dynamics has described the latest iteration of Atlas as "one of the most advanced humanoid robots ever built," adding that it's now stronger, more dexterous, and more agile, and "able to move in ways that exceed human capabilities." The goal is to make Atlas fit for manufacturing scenarios, helping to perform mundane tasks in a more efficient manner, freeing up human workers for more meaningful jobs. And we're kind of hoping that's all it does.

Bonkers Video Shows Boston Dynamics Robot Breakdancing

Robotics company Boston Dynamics has shared a new video of its latest-generation humanoid robot, Atlas, doing forward rolls, cartwheels, and army crawls. In a particularly made-to-go-viral moment, the lanky robot throws in a flashy breakdancing move known as the coffee grinder, effortlessly spinning one of its legs below its torso like a slick street performer. It's an impressive show, demonstrating Atlas' considerable agility -- and how far humanoid robotics have come. But Boston Dynamics isn't operating in a vacuum anymore, as the competition is really starting to heat up when it comes to light-footed bipedal robots. Case in point, Chinese robotics company Unitree recently showed off its G1 robot pulling some gnarly kung fu moves in a video last month. Earlier this week, Unitree followed up with a video of G1 performing a standing side flip. The latest stunt involving Atlas was the result of a collaboration between Boston Dynamics and the Robotics and AI Institute (RAI), which, as its name suggests, aims to solve robotics problems through machine learning. The breakdancing skills were the result of "reinforcement learning policies developed using a motion capture suit," according to a Boston Dynamics tweet. In other words, a human breakdancer seems to have taught Atlas how to pull off the coffee grinder. (Futurism has reached out to the company for clarification). The robotics company's collaboration with the RAI also allowed its Spot robot dog to learn how to run three times as fast. A video shared by the institute last month shows Spot speeding up as it runs on a track. The news comes just under a year after Boston Dynamics announced the latest iteration of its bipedal Atlas robot. The now fully-electric version (the previous one was hydraulic and electric) was designed from the ground up for real-world applications, per the company's website, boasting a stronger, and broader range of motion than previous generations. That kind of flexibility can land the robot right in the middle of the uncanny valley. In April, the company showed off the robot slowly standing up by flipping its legs over and onto itself in an unnervingly inhuman fashion. It's not just flashy dance moves and horror movie contortions that Atlas has been working on. A video shared in February shows the robot placing auto parts in cabinets, suggesting a future of being employed in a warehouse. However, whether Atlas will ever make it into mass production remains to be seen. As the Boston Globe reported in December, the company laid off five percent of its human workforce, with CEO Robert Player admitting that the company is "burning through cash at a rate that exceeds our commercial progress to date."