Robot dogs wow judges on America’s Got Talent

A group of unexpected performers took the stage on NBC’s America’s Got Talent on Tuesday night. Five Spot robots, four-legged machines developed by Boston Dynamics, a robotics subsidiary of Hyundai Motor, delivered a tightly choreographed routine that earned cheers, applause and unanimous praise from the judges.

As Queen’s hit song “Don’t Stop Me Now” played, the robots moved in unison, swaying, spinning and shifting across the stage in complex formations. One robot even mimicked lip-syncing to the lyrics, tilting its head expressively in time with the music, which drew laughter and amazement from the crowd.

About 35 seconds into the routine, one robot suddenly sat down and froze. The other four continued without missing a beat, completing the performance smoothly. The audience responded with a standing ovation.

During the judges’ feedback, a Boston Dynamics engineer came on stage. When a judge pointed to the stalled robot and asked if it could be fixed, the engineer said, “Of course. At Boston Dynamics, we believe in building, breaking and fixing.” At that moment, the motionless robot stood up and resumed dancing. The crowd responded with even louder cheers.

“I’ve never seen anything like this,” said one judge. All four gave emphatic “Yes” votes, sending the robots through to the next round. (Three “Yes” votes are required to advance.) Another judge remarked that the brief malfunction may have added to the performance, highlighting the technical complexity behind such precision.

Boston Dynamics said it used specialized software optimized for expressive movement, enabling the robots to dance with fluidity and emotion. Industry experts hailed the performance not only as entertainment but also as a preview of robotics’ future, where intelligent machines work alongside humans in real-world settings. Hyundai Motor, which acquired Boston Dynamics in 2021, plans to deploy its humanoid Atlas robot to vehicle production lines as early as the end of this year.


Jae-Hyeng Kim monami@donga.com