Hyundai recently bought the American engineering company Boston Dynamics, famous for its "Spot" robot dog venture, which became an internet and meme sensation because of its design, for $921 million. The South Korean carmaker was known to recently venture into massive robotics projects, including its "walking car" design called the "Ultimate Mobility Vehicle."
One of the largest South Korean car manufacturers and international tech companies, Hyundai, recently made a massive purchase of the 28-year-old American robotics company, Boston Dynamics, on a massive $921 million buyout. Hyundai has not yet revealed its reason for acquiring the company, but speculations are now looking into autonomous driving vehicles.
Boston Dynamics is a subsidiary of the Japanese conglomerate, SoftBank, which was acquired in 2017; however, all that is changing because of Hyundai's recent purchase this December 2020. The company is known for its different robotic designs that aids cargo handling and mobility.
The "Spot" robot dogs were initially sold for $74,500, which is almost the same price as a full-sized Tesla Model S's introductory offers and package. The robot dog is essential for a business that needs to transport heavy objects from one place to another, featuring an automatically responding "dog" machine rushing to aid.
According to CNet, the acquisition and sale of Boston Dynamics happened last Wednesday, December 9, for the $921 million total buyouts of the engineering and robotics company from the SoftBank Group. This acquisition would be the first deal of Chung Euisun, Hyundai's recently appointed chairman of the company.
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Hyundai's Acquisition: UMV's Development or Self-Driving Venture?
Towards the end of September 2020, Hyundai unveiled its artist renders of the next-generation driving and walking vehicle called the "Ultimate Mobility Vehicle" or UMV. The car somehow resembles the way Hasbro's Transformers change to sentient robot-alien mode and back to its car appearance.
Hyundai's UMV also resembles Star War's AT-AT Walker look, which showed itself on "Episode V: Empire Strikes Back," particularly on the Battle of Hoth. The acquisition brings two of the similarly looking robots from both companies, the UMV from Hyundai and Boston Dynamic's Spot robot dog.
The South Korean car manufacturer's acquisition may be intended for the Ultimate Mobility Vehicle's development and a working prototype in the coming years. Notably, the uncanny resemblance of the two may complement the creation of the new vehicle that can transport humans and carry cargo more than Spot, the robot dog.
Hyundai's Boston Dynamics Acquisition: Half comes from Hyundai Mobis Co.
The acquisition was only partly carried out by Hyundai's primary division because half of the buyout fee would come from Hyundai Mobis Co., a partner company and auto parts maker. According to the Korean Economic Daily's report, the venture is relative to both companies as their technology and future ventures closely resemble the other.
Related Article: Hyundai's 'Ultimate Mobility Vehicle' Aims to Make Cars Walk!-Is This AT-AT Walker from Star Wars?
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Written by Isaiah Alonzo
