MA's Robot Dog Is Enforcing Social Distancing At A Shanghai Park

WALTHAM, MA — A robot dog patrolling parks to enforce human social distancing? The future sure is wild.

But that's the scene in at least one Shanghai park, where government officials are using a robot dog created at Waltham's Boston Dynamics to keep an eye on and remind visitors about keeping a safe distance, as first reported by CNN.

The Singapore government said the four-legged robot, named Spot, has been deployed to Bishan-Ang Mo Kio Park. Spot is equipped with a recorded message that reminds visitors of social distancing and cameras to estimate how many people are at the park. The government said in a release the cameras cannot track or recognize specific people and no personal data will be collected.

Spot will be controlled remotely, cutting down on the need for manpower and mitigating the risk of spreading the new coronavirus. The robot is also being used at an isolation facility in Singapore, where it is bringing patients medicine.

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