Boston Dynamics has been quite the successful company over the past few
years. Ever since Google bought the company, Boston Dynamics has made great
advances in the world of robotics. That partnership has come to an end, though,
as Google sold the company to SoftBank. It is unclear what this means for
Google’s robotics plans, though.
SOFTBANK WANTS TO BUILD MORE ROBOTS NOW?
It is quite unusual to think of a company such as SoftBank to show an
interest in robotics. Then again, the world of technology is filled with
opportunities and surprises. The Japanese tech company is quite confident
acquiring Boston Dynamics is a smart business decision, even though no one knows
for sure what they will do with the company or its staffers. We have seen quite
a few intriguing robotics being designed by the US company, that much is
evident.
In fact, it appeared Boston Dynamics was making some major progress with
their animal robots. Their Cheetah, for example, has taken the internet by
storm. Unfortunately, it remains unclear if these projects will be continued or
put on ice indefinitely. It would be rather sad to see these plans scrapped
altogether, though. Then again, a new parent company often comes with a new set
of plans.
The terms of this new acquisition remain unclear to this very day as well.
It is a big mystery how much SoftBank paid for this acquisition, albeit it seems
safe to assume it will come with quite the price tag. SoftBank will also pick up
Schaft, a smaller humanoid robotics group acquired by Google right before they
took over Boston Dynamics. To some people, this seems as if Google is killing
off its entire robotics division.
It is not the first time the name Boston Dynamics comes up in relation to
an acquisition, though. Despite Google acquiring the company, they have been
looking to sell it off since March of 2016. At that time, the parent company was
struggling to commercialize the robots, while costs for research and development
continued to mount. One can only throw so much money at a project before it
needs to start paying off. As results remained unachievable, selling the company
to another party seems to be the best idea.
Moreover, one has to keep in mind the objective of Google’s robotics
decision was mere speculation rather than a clear business plan. Ever since they
acquired Schaft and Boston Dynamics, it has never been clear what the goal was.
While robots are a great technology and one of the most exciting branches of
technological innovation right now, it will take many years until such projects
and products come to market on a global scale.
The bigger question is where Google and Alphabet will go from here. Many
people and tech enthusiasts were quite excited about their venture into the
world of robotics. Now that this dream has come to a premature end, it is
evident a new plan of attack needs to be forged. Additionally, the plan for
SoftBank is very mysterious as well. The company has acquired ARM and Sprint in
recent years. These are exciting times we live in, that much is certain.