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谷歌DeepMind聘请波士顿动力前CTO,加码机器人领域布局。

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谷歌DeepMind聘请波士顿动力前CTO,加码机器人领域布局。

内容来源:https://www.wired.com/story/google-hires-cto-boston-dynamics-demis-hassabis-android/

内容总结:

谷歌旗下人工智能公司DeepMind近日宣布,已聘请波士顿动力公司前首席技术官亚伦·桑德斯担任硬件工程副总裁。这位曾参与研发后空翻机器人的技术专家加盟,标志着谷歌正加速推进机器人领域战略布局。

DeepMind首席执行官德米斯·哈萨比斯在接受《连线》杂志专访时透露,公司计划将新一代AI模型Gemini打造为"机器人版安卓系统"。他表示:"我们致力于开发能适配各类机器人硬件的Gemini基础系统,使其具备开箱即用的跨平台能力,不仅支持人形机器人,也适用于其他形态。"

波士顿动力以研发具备惊人运动能力的腿式机器人闻名业界。桑德斯在该公司任职期间曾主导六足两栖机器人原型开发,2018年升任工程副总裁,2021年出任首席技术官。其加盟将强化DeepMind在机器人硬件领域的专业实力。

当前全球机器人产业竞争日趋激烈。美国涌现包括Agility Robotics、Figure AI及特斯拉在内的多家人形机器人初创企业,马斯克更宣称未来十年计划量产百万台Optimus人形机器人。与此同时,中国机器人企业表现亮眼——总部位于杭州的宇树科技已在四足机器人细分领域超越波士顿动力,成为工业制造领域最大供应商。

哈萨比斯特别提到对中国企业宇树科技的认可,但强调DeepMind将专注于人工智能软件系统开发。他指出:"Gemini模型的多模态特性特别适合机器人控制领域",并预测"AI驱动机器人技术将在未来几年迎来突破性进展"。

值得注意的是,波士顿动力目前由韩国现代汽车集团控股,该集团于2021年从软银集团收购其控股权,而软银早在2017年就从谷歌母公司Alphabet手中接盘了这家机器人公司。

中文翻译:

谷歌深度思维公司已聘请波士顿动力公司前首席技术官亚伦·桑德斯担任硬件工程副总裁,此举标志着该公司正加速拓展机器人领域布局。这位曾参与研发后空翻机器人与舞蹈机器人的专家于本月正式入职。

此次人才引进是首席执行官德米斯·哈萨比斯实现"双子座"战略构想的关键举措——旨在打造通用机器人操作系统,其商业模式类似于谷歌向众多智能手机厂商授权安卓系统。哈萨比斯在接受《连线》采访时阐释:"这类似于安卓系统的推广路径......我们致力于构建能适配各类机器人构型、即装即用的人工智能系统与双子座基础平台,既涵盖仿人机器人,也包含非人形机器人。"

波士顿动力以开发足式机器人闻名业界,其产品线包括四足机器犬与仿人机器人,均能完成高难度特技动作。桑德斯在2018年升任工程副总裁前,曾主导水陆两用六足机器人原型研发,并于2021年出任首席技术官。

谷歌深度思维长期深耕机器人前沿研究。随着市场对仿人机器人等高端形态的关注度攀升,其研究团队正集中资源开发控制机器人硬件系统的人工智能模型。哈萨比斯对此领域进展充满期待,他预测:"人工智能驱动的机器人技术将在未来两三年迎来突破性发展。"

目前波士顿动力由韩国现代汽车集团控股,后者从软银集团收购其股权,而软银早在2017年就从谷歌母公司阿尔法特手中购得该公司。

近年来足式机器人核心部件与技术门槛持续降低,美国涌现多家仿人机器人初创企业,包括Agility Robotics、Figure AI、1X以及特斯拉公司。埃隆·马斯克近期宣称,其企业计划在未来十年内量产百万台"擎天柱"仿人机器人。

中国企业在机器人领域同样进展迅猛,其足式机器人产品较美国同类产品具有显著价格优势。总部位于杭州的宇树科技已超越波士顿动力,成为制造业与建筑业四足机器人系统最大供应商。哈萨比斯坦言宇树科技令人印象深刻,但强调其战略重点聚焦软件层面:"我最关注人工智能'大脑'的研发",并指出谷歌深度思维旗舰模型"双子座"的多模态特性与机器人技术具有高度适配性。

英文来源:

Google DeepMind has hired the former Chief Technology Officer of Boston Dynamics as the company pushes deeper into robotics. Aaron Saunders, who is partly responsible for giving the world backflipping and dancing machines, joined as the VP of hardware engineering earlier this month.
The hire is a key part of CEO Demis Hassabis’ vision for Gemini to become a sort of robot operating system, similar to how Google supplies its Android software to an array of smartphone manufacturers.
“You can sort of think of it as a bit like an Android play [...] We want to build an AI system, a Gemini base, that can work almost out-of-the-box, across any body configuration,” Hassabis said in an interview with WIRED. “Obviously humanoids, but non-humanoids too.”
Boston Dynamics is famous for developing legged robots, including four-legged dog-sized systems and humanoid machines, capable of impressive acrobatic feats. Saunders worked on an amphibious six-legged prototype before he was promoted to VP of engineering in 2018. He became the CTO of Boston Dynamics in 2021.
Google DeepMind has produced important robotics research for years. As interest in more advanced robotic forms like humanoids grows, its researchers are doubling down on developing AI models to control robotic hardware systems.
Hassabis said he is excited about these advances. AI-powered robotics “is going to have its breakthrough moment in the next couple of years, if I was to predict,” he explained.
Boston Dynamics is majority owned by the South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Company. Hyundai purchased its stake from SoftBank, which acquired the company from Google's parent company Alphabet in 2017.
The components and expertise required to build legged robots have become more accessible in recent years. A number of US startups are now working on humanoids, including Agility Robotics, Figure AI, 1x, and of course Tesla. Elon Musk recently said that his company aims to produce a million of its Optimus humanoids over the next decade.
Chinese companies are also making strides in robotics, and, compared to the US, offer remarkably cheap legged machines. Unitree, which is based in Hangzhou, China, has recently overtaken Boston Dynamics as the largest supplier of four-legged systems for industries like manufacturing and construction.
Hassabis admits that he’s impressed with Unitree, but says his focus is on software. “I'm most interested in the [AI] brain part of it,” he says, adding that the multimodal capabilities of Google DeepMind’s flagship model Gemini are particularly well suited to robotics.

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