The Verge: The robot dog has returned to the NYPD after a two-year hiatus
Mayor new York Eric Adams has announced the return of robotic dogs to serve in the city’s police force. On this subject informed edition of The Verge.
Adams said police robots will help save citizens’ lives. City officials purchased two Spot robots from Boston Dynamics for $750,000 (about 61 million rubles). According to the report, robot dogs will only be used by police in the event of a bomb threat.
Reporters say the robots were returned to police after a two-year hiatus – in late April 2021 the robots were forced to be withdrawn after activists grew unhappy about being able to spy on people using cars . Nonetheless, activists again reacted to Mayor Adams’ decision. “New York deserves real security, not a fake RoboCop,” said members of the STOP initiative group.
There are at least two known cases of robotic dogs being used by New York police officers. In 2020, the robot was used for reconnaissance when a suspect barricaded himself in his house. In 2021, the car helped police investigate the situation inside the building in which another suspect fled.
Associated materials:
The police also announced the acquisition of the K5 ASR robot, which will help patrol officers maintain order. Also, representatives of the law enforcement agency spoke about the acquisition of the Guardian HX installation installed on patrol cars, which will allow “shooting” chased cars with GPS beacons.
At the end of 2022, the authorities San Francisco banned use robots to eliminate suspects and criminals. Also, 44 local government agencies have signed a letter against the robot law.