Bug-bot video reveals swarming drones, extreme rocking

We know that you love swarming bug-bots as much as we do, so of course we were thrilled to tell you about BAE Systems' MAST project the other day. Luckily, the Army-contracted company didn't stop at mere photos to scare the living daylights out of humanity, they also created a really cheesy, yet deeply frightening video to go along with them. Enjoy a glimpse of the Skynet-controlled / shredding-guitar future of warfare after the break -- and don't say we didn't warn you.

[Sarig @ May 4th 2008 1:37PM]

That was just cool.

[Flashpoint @ May 4th 2008 1:56PM]

lol America is getting desperate.

[Sarig @ May 4th 2008 2:02PM]

What does the desperation of America have to do with coolness?

[Neebs @ May 4th 2008 2:16PM]

What does the desperation of America have to do with this story?

[Terc @ May 4th 2008 4:20PM]

Text overlays translation:

"Micro Autonomous Systems and Technology (MAST) Collaborative Technology Alliance (CTA)

Buzzword

Buzzword - Buzzword

Buzzword

Buzzword, buzzword buzzword buzzword buzzword

Buzzword - Buzzword"

[Aguiluz @ May 4th 2008 5:44PM]

I'll stomp the spider.

[X-BLADE @ May 4th 2008 5:59PM]

Im lost :S

[Aguiluz @ May 4th 2008 7:04PM]

And while I'm at it, I'll chase the flying bots with a flyswatter.

[crocodyl @ Jul 30th 2008 5:21PM]

If you look here:

http://www.crocodyl.org/wiki/bae_systems_plc

You can see some of the other technologies that this company has developed to try to improve its image. This stuff is straight out of a science fiction movie.

[Byzil Mystwing @ May 4th 2008 1:39PM]

Interesting video, I suppose.. but I couldn't tell that the bots actually -did- anything but deploy more bots.. the soldiers still walked in themselves, and then they just blew up the building with the bots inside?

..I definately missed something!

[ByronGman @ May 4th 2008 1:46PM]

I believe the bots were doing reconnaissance.

So the bots found the terrorists and after the soldiers got 7 kills in a row they called in a helicopter.

[Moo2 @ May 4th 2008 2:22PM]

"after the soldiers got 7 kills in a row"

KILLAMANJARO!
(lol halo3)

[ByronGman @ May 4th 2008 2:39PM]

Hahaha....

It was actually a CoD4 reference, but whatever floats your boat....

I won't start that war here... :-)

[Ace b @ May 4th 2008 5:37PM]

@ByronGman

I got the reference,but that totally was an airstrike.

[ByronGman @ May 4th 2008 6:16PM]

@ Ace B

No, it was totally a helicopter...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/9066281@N07/2465089601/sizes/o/

Airstrike= bombs dropped from planes

Helicopter= helicopter with missiles and nasty guns

[Jordan @ May 4th 2008 8:16PM]

So let me get this straight, the marines got a three kill streak, but instead of a UAV they got bug bots to do the reconnaissance. They later added 4 more kills to their spree, so they called in a helicopter... how wasteful, they never used an air strike.

[Ace b @ May 7th 2008 2:23AM]

@ByronGman

Technically,your right,but technically,your wrong.

Heli = chain gun

Jet = missiles

A missile is what struck the building.Not a chain gun

[ByronGman @ May 7th 2008 4:44PM]

No I am not wrong.


The Heli's in CoD4 fire rockets.


The jet's drop bombs.

Look here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QLxedc2krs

[Ace b @ May 7th 2008 8:44PM]

huh.......that's new to me.Sorry for not believing ya.

But are those missiles active in CoD4 multiplayer?

[ByronGman @ May 8th 2008 8:08PM]

Yeah they are.... but you don't see them too often since the machine gun will usually get you first.

But if you can get a back view of heli for awhile, watch it and eventual you'll see it fire a few away.

[ByronGman @ May 4th 2008 1:43PM]

Who else thinks the spider-bots are like those things the police deployed in Minority Report?

[Tim @ May 4th 2008 3:28PM]

well, joshua topolsky seemed to think so when he referenced them in the first post. I can't really remember them, but oh well.

[ByronGman @ May 4th 2008 4:00PM]

Ah!

I didn't click the link, lol.

[Vic20 @ May 4th 2008 4:11PM]

They actually remind me more of the robots in "Second Variety," also originally by Philip K. Dick.

That guy was a prophet, I'm telling ya.

[OneLove @ May 5th 2008 10:54AM]

The spiders in that movie only looked into your eyes. lol.

[theidoctor.org @ May 4th 2008 1:44PM]

i think they blew up the building with the hostage in there! any bugs i see, i throw them down the toilet

[theidoctor.org @ May 4th 2008 1:44PM]

dang... there goes 50 million dollars again, maybe i should start selling them in the black markets

[MEAT! @ May 4th 2008 1:58PM]

The only thing frightening about that video were the increasingly abstract and irrelevant buzzwords.

"Bio inspired," okay, that makes sense.
"Collaborative design:" ok, a bit more vague, but maybe they are designed to work together. But usually every product is a collaborative design. People collaborate to build products.
"Disruptive vision" as we see a robotic dragon fly go up an empty set of stairs. Wtf?
"Focused Innovation," and a robot spider goes under a door. Is innovation ever unfocused?
"Interdisciplinary partnerships." Alright, that's certainly something to stress--not like every product isn't an interdisciplinary venture of some sort.
"Rapid transition." Transition from what to what?

[Sarig @ May 4th 2008 2:01PM]

The disruptive vision probably referred to the fact that the soldiers can't easily look over stairs and such, while the flying robot can just, well, fly up and have a look around. So the the stairs were disrupting line of sight, and the robots got around that :)

[MEAT! @ May 4th 2008 2:24PM]

Then wouldn't it have made more sense to say: "Overcomes obstructed vision" or, "Improves situational awareness?" Something that is actually a description of what the robots can offer.

"Disruptive vision" sounds like they, you know, disrupt your vision. Why would you want that? Or maybe they disrupt your enemies' vision--but they show no example of it. Or perhaps it means that the vision of their creation is disruptive to warfare technology. This video is stupid.

[Sarig @ May 4th 2008 2:35PM]

Oh, I'm not disagreeing with that :)

[MEAT! @ May 4th 2008 3:05PM]

Heh heh, I see.

[UKNigel @ May 4th 2008 4:23PM]

"Rapid Transition" refers to the extreme speed with which the building in the video transitioned from existing to not existing.

[triforceOFcourage @ May 5th 2008 12:00AM]

Doesn't anyone else notice that the quality of this video is from the mid-90's? THEY HAVE AN ENDLESS POCKETBOOK AND THIS IS WHAT THEY GIVE US?

C'mon...srsly. WTF dude.

[Omar Attia @ May 4th 2008 2:04PM]

This is terrifying. I don't see how the technology can be used to benefit humanity; only warfare and domestic surveillance.

[LarryLarryLarry @ May 4th 2008 7:28PM]

I'm pretty sure your robot flies can have dogfights with real flies and shoot them down. That would be a benefit. And your robot spiders can fight and kill cockroaches. That's a benefit.

Oh, I almost forgot. Your soldiers can come home alive. But that wouldn't interest you, would it?

[Jordan @ May 4th 2008 8:19PM]

OUR soldiers would come home alive, THEIRS wouldn't... your forgetting there our humans behind both sides of the war.

[Jordan @ May 4th 2008 8:20PM]

That was @ Larry btw.

[Janizzary @ May 4th 2008 8:26PM]

Larry, you seem to have misunderstood my statement. I stated "benefit humanity" as in advancing the whole of society like the internet (another military technology) had done. Bringing soldiers home alive is a military benefit.

And, yes, I would love nothing more than to see our soldiers return safely, especially considering that they were betrayed by our government leaders who are responsible for getting so many of them killed in Iraq for reasons other than the protection of the United States of America.

[Cedric @ May 5th 2008 12:54AM]

Well, at least it'll make our opponents feel stupid.

"Hey, Bin. Tell me again why we got explosives strapped to our heads when we're fighting *these* things?"

[Munkcy @ May 5th 2008 9:57AM]

While the video doesn't show any applications that are beneficial to humanity, I definitely think that robotic insects could be useful. Bees, for instance, are responsible for much of the pollination of plants across the U.S. If something weren't to permanently happen to the worldwide bee population (the current "Colony Collapse Disorder" is an example. Hopefully not a permanent example) robotic bees could be made to carry on the pollination.

[adrian @ May 5th 2008 10:30AM]

I don't think this would work too well in warfare either, Not that I like the idea war anyway . If soldiers were in the middle of a street to street combat, by the time they set this whole lot up, a few may well be killed by sniper fire, or some other means. Top quality intelligence and soldiering is the way forward.

[Jutzuro @ May 4th 2008 2:05PM]

For the price of a bunch of these bugs (if not only one), states could help build better looking houses for these people

[creed @ May 5th 2008 5:21AM]

>OUR soldiers would come home alive, THEIRS wouldn't...

That's the whole point.

[Imran @ May 4th 2008 2:13PM]

Wow, how long do they expect to be waging war in the middle east?! Shouldn't the video be set on Mars or something?

[kyanges @ May 4th 2008 7:44PM]

...100 years if we have to...

[barry99705 @ May 4th 2008 9:45PM]

Lets see, they've been fighting over there for the past 3000 years, so, I'd say a little bit more.

[Imran @ May 5th 2008 5:43AM]

Don't worry guys, the oil will run out soon enough, then you won't HAVE to be there.

[A.Barrios @ May 4th 2008 2:18PM]

So, is Dr. Robotnik the CEO of BAE Systems?

I am amused with this concept, however, how long do we have to wait until spiders can fight our battles for us?

[Josh L @ May 4th 2008 2:34PM]

I dunno, are these robots powered by adorable bunny rabbits and birds that fly and hop safely away when the bots are destroyed?

Talk about renewable energy!