Spot the robot dog used by NYPD at crime scene

It's not clear how the NYPD used the robot from Boston Dynamics.
By Jennimai Nguyen  on 
Spot the robot dog used by NYPD at crime scene
Your local, not-even-a-little fluffy, police robot dog. Credit: LightRocket via Getty Images

Spot the robot dog from Boston Dynamics was seen at an active crime scene in New York City.

As reported by the New York Post, the NYPD responded to a shooting over a parking dispute in Cypress Hills in Brooklyn, New York, on Wednesday around 10 p.m. Spot was photographed by the Post with the NYPD's Emergency Services Unit.

Mashable reached out to the NYPD, and will update this story when the agency responds.

It’s unclear how Spot was used by the NYPD. According to Boston Dynamics' website, Spot is mainly an inspection robot, used to navigate terrain and capture data.

The four-legged robot weighs roughly 65 pounds and can carry up to 31 pounds of inspection equipment, such as iPads or cameras. It's generally controlled via a tablet app, but can also be programmed for autonomous missions.

The suspected shooter allegedly opened fire and accidentally struck his intended target’s wife, according to the Post. He then reportedly ran into a nearby building and barricaded himself there until later being taken into custody.

In August 2019, the Massachusetts State Police was the first law enforcement agency to use the robot dog, on loan from Boston Dynamics. WBUR reports that Spot was used as a “mobile remote observation device.”

In the past, Spot has been used to aid factory workers and help assess COVID-19 patients.

Topics Innovations

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Jennimai Nguyen

Jennimai is a tech reporter at Mashable covering digital culture, social media, and how we interact with our everyday tech. She also hosts Mashable’s Snapchat Discover channel and TikTok, so she naturally spends way too much time scrolling the FYP and thinking about iPhones.


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