The story of two research institutes

If You are lucky, once A year You get has put together A sign built on pure kismet. Coupling Gil Pratt with Mark Raibert was Exactly that For Me. THE two go back several decades, has THE salad days of MIT Leg Laboratory.

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Raibert based THE laboratory has Carnegie Melon University (CMU) In 1980, Before moving operations has MIT. THE team was concentrate on robot locomotion research that would be pave THE path For Boston Dynamic' work.

"When We First of all obtained begin, all robots that had legs were very slow moving, crab-like things that would be cuddly THE ground And SO temporarily take A stage And hope that things doesn't to spill on And SO move as A slow movement spider," said Raibert. "I was interested In how animals work, And I look at has that And said, 'Wow, This East about as far Since RIGHT as You can get.' I went THE other path has see if We can TO DO something Or THE dynamic And THE energy In THE machine [were] part of THE history, And springs And bounce were part of THE history. My laboratory work on that. We built pogo stick robots. »

Raibert ran THE laboratory For 15 years. A number of future robotics lighting fixtures would be TO DO their path through THE program, including AI ethics teacher Jane Brison, research scientist Jerry Pratt, WobbleWorks co-founder Rock Dilworth, artist Daniel Paluska And CSAIL teacher/Toyota Research Institute (SORTING) Vice-president Russian Tedrake. And Agility Robotics co-founder Jonathan Hurst was A to visit student Since CMU A summer.

Raibert And Pratt First of all crossed paths When THE last was A student has MIT. Raibert would be find Boston Dynamic In 1992, discount THE Leg Laboratory keys on has Pratt three years later.

“Mark was A incredibly generous teacher," Pratt said of their early days. "A of THE wonderful things about MIT has THE time And Mark In particular East that I was This young child, And both as A diploma student And SO A young teacher, he welcomed Me. For A while, both of We were functioning In THE Leg Laboratory has THE even time, And Mark had do This extraordinary work on robots that run. I decided that maybe I would be work on robots that to walk. It is how We recut SO, And SO When he went disabled has form Boston Dynamic, he was very kind And basically gave Me THE laboratory And all THE thing that was there. »

Pratt stayed In academia For THE following two decades, transfer Since MIT has Olin In 2001. Nine years later, he became A program director has DARPA. He was there THE two crossed paths Again Again. Boston Dynamic designed Atlas For DARPA. THE humanoid robot do his beginnings In 2013 and has Since become A pillar In robotics challenges.

Three years later, Pratt was appointed TRIs CEO. Raibert continued as Boston Dynamic' CEO until 2019, discount THE reins on has long duration employee Rob Player, WHO managed THE the company change has more commercial prosecutions. Last year, Raibert (WHO always serves as comics president) based THE Boston Dynamic AI Institute. THE organization has A plot In common with SORTING. Both are dedicated has pure research, with THE support of two major Car manufacturers (Toyota And Hyundai).

I recognize that "pure research" East A little of A charge term. THE concept East certainly A optimistic A: discovery A method that can sustain research out of THE pressures of academia And business R&D.

Request if there East pressure Since Toyota has produce, Pratt said, "There In fact East not, And I am not saying that just has be Good. I think A of THE great things about companies that to have existed For long times East that This is not it THE First of all time that they have do R&D. Certainly most of THE R&D budget inside of Toyota East spent to understand out how has TO DO THE following car Or maybe THE car five years Since NOW. But There is This notion — And I am Of course Hyundai actions This — that were has THE once a century time For transformation In THE car industry. Battery electric Vehicles are a lot simpler has TO DO that cars to have has been In THE pass — No engine, No transmission, etc. SO, were going has to have has compete In A a lot more fierce path In cars. But Also, can We to use THE SKILLS, THE dreams And THE hope of THE business has go beyond cars? TRIs job East has In fact think about [what is] following. What is this following After cars, as GOOD a few fantasy thing on cars. »

For SORTING, a lot of THE "what is this following" concentrates on proof aging populations. THE organization invests A GOOD portion of It is resources has building out technology designed has assistant older ...