In a year filled with World War 3 threats, a terrorizing pandemic, and mailmen determining the future of our country, it appears that we have still found a bright spot in our civilization. Recently a company known as “Ghost Robotics” created a semi- autonomous ground vehicle that it popularly referred to as, “Robot Dog”. This technology has been making appearances throughout the military since 2019 and today the 325th Security Forces Squadron at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida has been named as the first unit to adopt the technology for regular operations.

“These dogs will be an extra set of eyes and ears while computing large amounts of data” stated Jiren Parikh, CEO and founder of Ghost Robotics, “They will be a huge enhancement for the defenders and allow flexibility in the posting and response of their personnel.”

The uniqueness of the dogs comes from its built-in mobile camera and sensor platform, which will allow them to patrol areas too risky for humans or vehicles to enter. The Robotic Dogs are able to receive commands through a touchscreen device, and apply this command to the best of their ability. They also possess superhuman strength, as they can carry weights up to 400 pounds on their back. Ghost Robotics made sure to improve the durability of their product, as the dogs can now consistently travel up to 20 miles on their missions. 

“We will be able to see exactly what the robot dog is detecting through its mobile camera and sensor platform” Air Force general James Chriss claimed, “We can use this to issue verbal commands to a person or people through a radio attached to the dogs.” 

Starting next week the 325th Security Force Squadron will be outlining their goals for how to utilize this new technology.  The Robot K9 units will provide the patrolling help, allowing human and military dogs to focus on security actions that require a physical presence. They will also attempt to enhance the built in speaker to be able to communicate with intruders they encounter on the patrol. Although this invention may appear as a cute gimmick implemented for laughs and giggles, its upside could provide the difference that could protect our country for centuries to come.