NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A new robot dog being used by the NYPD was deemed “creepy” by Twitter users this week, as they renewed privacy concerns regarding the four-legged machine.
Video posted on Twitter Monday showed the NYPD’s “Digidog” walking out of a building along with several officers before heading down a set of stairs as bystanders look on.
“I never seen nothing like this before in my life,” a woman can be heard saying in the video.
The user who posted the footage to Twitter said seeing the robot dog on video was “wild.”
“It looks like the creepy half-organic and half-mechanized aliens in ‘War of the Worlds,’” one user replied.
While most were shocked by the sight of the robotic dog – which was last seen being used by the NYPD in February – others were more concerned.
Some said the technology is helping to increase police militarization and have called for the use of the robotic dogs to be banned in the five boroughs.
“We need to begin forming [legislation] BANNING the use of MILITARIZED AI. This is seriously terrifying,” one Twitter user wrote.
Months ago, the New York Times reported on the “Digidog” and noted that some New Yorkers were fearful that the use of the technology would lead to increase surveillance as the robot comes with equipment capable of collecting “limitless data.”
The NYPD has already defended the robot, saying the department has been using similar technology “since the 1970's to save lives in hostage situations & hazmat incidents.”
However, some – like Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez – have said that the robotic technology is a waste of resources, noting that each “Digidog” produced by Boston Dynamics can cost upwards of $74,000.
“Shout out to everyone who fought against community advocates who demanded these resources go to investments like school counseling instead. Now robotic surveillance ground drones are being deployed for testing on low-income communities of color with under-resourced schools,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in February.
Another Twitter user renewed those same criticisms this week, retweeting the latest video of the robot with the caption: “413,000 New York City residents lost their jobs in the pandemic. 19% of New York City residents live below the poverty line. 80,000 New Yorkers do not have a home or stable housing. But the NYPD has money for $75,000 toys.”
It remains unclear how many “Digidogs” the NYPD currently has in its fleet. According to the New York Times, the department is just one of three in the nation currently testing out the technology.
The robot dog was first deployed by the NYPD in October at a shooting in Brooklyn, according to the New York Post.