Chinese tech giant, Xiaomi has unveiled the CyberDog, a quadruped robot, which functions much like Boston Dynamic’s Spot Robot Dog. The NVIDIA Jetson Xavier NX platform powers the CyberDog. It is described as “an AI Supercomputer for Embedded and Edge Systems, which includes 384 CUDA Cores, 48 Tensor Cores, a 6 Carmel ARM CPU, and 2 deep learning acceleration engines.” Feeding the AI is a system of 11 “high-precision sensors.” They provide instant feedback for movement. Xiaomi also wanted “fully” modeled biological systems. The Xiaomi CyberDog arrives with a number of cameras, GPS, microphones, and sensors on the head of the robot that gives it spatial perception comparable to the human eye. It also features various features like voice control and can even be controlled via a smartphone as well.
Xiaomi manufactures not only phones, tablets, and PCs, but it has also developed an entire ecosystem of smart devices for the home as well. On top of that, it manufactures scooters and announced a few months ago that it is making electric cars as well. That is probably Xiaomi’s purpose with the CyberDog — the company is exploring this particular type of technology and figuring out whether it could be an addition to your home. So, what can Xiaomi’s CyberDog do? First of all, this artificial beast can move up to 7.16 miles per hour. It is capable of walking and running as well as advanced movements like turning left and right, rolling, jumping, leaning forward, doing a backflip, and standing on its rear legs.
Thanks to the camera array, the CyberDog can track objects, locate and map locations, avoid obstacles, and navigate surroundings. This means that CyberDog can analyze its surroundings in real-time, create navigational maps, plot its destination, and avoid obstacles. Coupled with human posture and face recognition tracking, CyberDog is capable of following its owner and darting around obstructions. The robot will respond to voice commands, and a companion app will also let you control your Xiaomi pet.