These Are Some of the Most Sinister Robots That Could Star in a Horror Movie

From animal-like machines to so human-like ones that scare custom officers, these robots are likely to haunt your dreams.

The Lethal Military Robo-Dog

The idea of robotic canine units that could help the troops during combat or various missions has been around for a long time, with U.S. Army researchers looking into the best ways of developing energy-efficient four-legged autonomous systems. Even Boston Dynamics’ famous Spot participated in military exercises in 2020. But the other robo-dog that joined it, called Vision 60, would evolve into something downright scary.

A robot that can not only run and sprint, but also fire a gun, is something to be feared. Earlier this year, Ghost Robotics’ Vision 60 was equipped with a rifle, for the first time. The SWORD Defense Systems Special Purpose Unmanned Rifle (SPUR), developed by SWORD Defense Systems, is a remotely-operated precision fire weapon, chambered in a 6.5 mm Creedmoor, able to operate day and night.

Of course, this robo-dog is not enabled to open fire on its own, and every decision is made by the human operator, but it probably won’t be long until “killer robots” gain even more power. Controversy over lethal autonomous weapons systems (LAWS) continues on an international level, and there’s a real chance that robots and drones could become more dangerous soon.

Either way, the image of robo-dogs firing in the night is a nightmarish one, for sure.

The MIT Jumping Cheetah

Another four-legged robot that could star in our nightmares is inspired by a cheetah, this time. Students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) wanted to create a robot that would be able to tackle uneven, unknown terrain, adjust its gait, and reach further than any other four-legged robot. The MIT cheetah looks cute at first glance, but did you see that thing do a backflip?

This leaping robotic feline is innovative because it combines two separate systems – one that processes the real-time data from the robot’s video camera and one that transforms that input into instructions for what the next movement should be. The result is a robot with increased speed and agility that could handle emergency response missions in the future in various types of environments, such as wooded areas.

Keep in mind that that is just the mini version of the future robotic cheetah that will be even stronger and more agile.

EVA, the Robot Head With Spooky Facial Expressions

If four-legged robots can’t get to you, then you’re likely to be spooked by this humanoid head that can mirror your facial movements, trying to express feelings. This creepy disembodied head is capable of showing anger, fear, joy, surprise, sadness, or disgust – the basic human emotions.

The funny thing is that it was designed to “build trust” between humans and robots by being more relatable than a blank-stared typical machine. Let’s hope that the final result of the researchers at Columbia Engineering is going to be better than this because, so far, EVA inspires anything but trust with those creepy facial movements.

It took five years to develop EVA, which was presented in May 2021 at the ICRA Conference. Cables and motors act as the robot’s artificial muscles that can mimic human facial expressions. To be able to respond, EVA was shown hours of video footage of its own various expressions so that it could learn to connect them with specific “muscle” motion. Then, it learned to read actual human expressions from a camera and mirror them.

Although it’s admirable that scientists are trying to make robots friendlier, something is chilling about a human-mimicking robotic head.

Ai-Da, the Humanoid Robot That Got in Trouble With Border Patrol

You might think that being the world’s first humanoid robot artist would be enough fame for one robot, but that wasn’t the case with Ai-Da, who recently made headlines for the most unexpected reason. Her eyes (with built-in cameras) and her modem made border guards in Egypt suspect her of planning to do more than paint while visiting the country, for an art exhibition. Ai-Da was seized for being a potential spy.

Created by well-known art dealer Aidan Meller, together with a company called Engineered Arts, Ai-Da uses her eyes, her artificial intelligence developed by the Oxford University, and her special arm, to draw. She also makes an impression with her “ultra-realistic” look and ability to talk. After this incident, Ai-Da will inevitably be known as the robot that was suspected of being a spy. After all, it’s not too often that an official statement says that “The Embassy is glad to see that Ai-Da the artist robot has now been cleared through customs.”

Whether just funny or hiding a deeper significance in terms of our fears and how the world is changing, this robot’s trouble with border patrol could also show the potential danger of ultra-realistic humanoid robots if they are used for evil.