Google DeepMind has hired the former chief technology officer of Boston Dynamics as the company moves deeper into robotics. Aaron Saunders, the man partially responsible for giving the world backflipping and dancing machines, joined earlier this month as VP of Hardware Engineering.
The appointment is a key part of CEO Demis Hassabis’ vision of making Gemini a kind of robot operating system, in the same way Google supplies its Android software to a range of smartphone makers.
“You can think of it a bit like Android Play […] “We wanted to build an AI system, Gemini Base, that could work almost out-of-the-box in any body configuration,” Hassabis said in an interview with WIRED. “Obviously humanoid, but also non-humanoid.”
Boston Dynamics is famous for developing legged robots, including four-legged dog-sized systems and humanoid machines capable of performing impressive acrobatics. Saunders worked on an amphibious six-legged prototype before being promoted to VP of engineering in 2018. He became the CTO of Boston Dynamics in 2021.
Google DeepMind has produced significant robotics research over the years. As interest in more advanced robotic forms such as humanoids continues to grow, researchers are doubling down on developing AI models to control robotic hardware systems.
Hassabis said he is encouraged by these developments. “If I were to make a prediction, AI-powered robotics is going to have its breakthrough moment in the next few years,” he explained.
Boston Dynamics is majority-owned by South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company. Hyundai bought its stake from SoftBank, which acquired the company from Google’s parent company Alphabet in 2017.
The components and expertise required to build legged robots have become more accessible in recent years. Several US startups are now working on humanoids, including Agility Robotics, Figure AI, 1x, and of course Tesla. Elon Musk recently said that his company aims to produce one million of its Optimus humanoids over the next decade.
Chinese companies are also making advances in robotics, and, compared to the US, offer significantly cheaper legged machines. Unitri, based in Hangzhou, China, recently overtook Boston Dynamics as the largest supplier of four-legged systems for industries such as manufacturing and construction.
Hassabis admits he is influenced by Unity, but says his focus is on the software. “I am most interested in [AI] The brain is part of it,” he says, adding that the multimodal capabilities of Google DeepMind’s flagship model, Gemini, are particularly well-suited for robotics.