Roughly two and a half years after them The patent war beganBoston Dynamics and Ghost Robotics have settled the dispute on reasonably amicable terms. The robotics companies issued a joint release announcing the end of the dispute on Wednesday.
“We are pleased to resolve this dispute on mutually beneficial terms,” noted Boston Dynamics Chief Legal Officer Jason Fiorillo. “We look forward to collaborating on common ground issues where our two companies can collaborate in the future, to advance the state of robotics in the United States and around the world.”
The dispute arose out of alleged infringement of Boston Dynamics' patent on legged robots. Precipitating the war was Ghost's apparent agnosticism regarding military-mounted weapons. A month ago, Boston Dynamics was one of a handful of robotics firms that contributed to an open letter condemning the weaponization of “general purpose” robots.
That letter appears to have been inspired — at least in part — by the image of an autonomous rifle mounted on top of a demon-generated robot dog that recently made waves on social media.
Ghost co-founder and current CEO Gavin Kennelly responded to the recent resolution by emphasizing a possible future collaboration with Boston Dynamics.
“This resolution allows us to focus on innovation in robotics,” Kennelly said. “This agreement underscores our shared commitment to advancing the advancement of legged robots while fostering new opportunities for collaboration on key policy and technological initiatives.”
Boston Dynamics has its roots in military contractors. DARPA was a key supporter of the Hyundai-owned company early on. Notably, however, those first Boston Dynamics dogs were designed to transport payloads rather than mount weapons.
“Currently, the United States has no national robotics strategy,” Fiorillo added. “Countries like China are investing heavily in robotics and AI and setting aggressive technology acceleration goals at the national level. Without more direct interest and engagement from policymakers, the United States risks falling behind.”
The two companies announced plans to meet earlier this year “to discuss further policy proposals that could benefit both the company and the industry at large.”