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I am a huge fan of spartan-like no-bullshit brutalist approach towards their marketing/PR: - No studio setup, just their lab - No artificial lighting - N

I am a huge fan of spartan-like no-bullshit brutalist approach towards their marketing/PR: - No studio setup, just their lab - No artificial lighting - No fucks given about hiding the mess - Robots going through surgery in the background - Song is classy af IMO - Can see the camera man - Can see the engineers/employees - Framing/cinematography isn't as polished (this is a feature, not a bug) - Chipped paint, beaten up fairings Generally, I love BD Branding/Marketing/PR: - Logo is on point. It's Da Vinci level stuff. Humanist It is totally opposite of what they build, such an amazing contrast and deeply thought out [1] - One or two videos per year - No twitter drama like a lot of SV companies (Hey, Elon) - No excessive trying to get their word out. Their products speak for themselves - No purple/gradient bullshit and design trends - Their job descriptions actually make sense of what they need from you - Their CEO, Marc Raibert, exudes wisdom, calm and has a persona of composure (seriously, watch his interviews) [2] - No AI hype Literally the opposite of Silicon Valley. May be I've had too much coffee and making lofty generalizations, but this is what I see! I also see the DNA of East coast/MIT/Boston rigor vs Silicon Valley cowboys - thoughts? :-) I live and work in SV btw. I can't get over how amazing this video is. I hope it takes over the top spot on Youtube. It's got everything - music/tech/memes. The people behind BD marketing are geniuses IMO, although building an explosively-cool tech that appeals to all humans helps a lot. Outstanding. [1] https://www.bostondynamics.com/ https://www.bostondynamics.com/ [2] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiNSPRKHyvo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiNSPRKHyvo

deleted 6y ago
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cma 6y ago
They had pretty heavy studio lighting in this: https://youtu.be/wlkCQXHEgjA https://youtu.be/wlkCQXHEgjA
- platelets2020 6y ago
  Heavy study lighting? That's very clearly CGI. I bet you believe all the vehicles racing around in automobile TV ads are real too.
  - gamblor956 6y ago
    They are real cars. You can watch them filming those commercials all the time in LA.
    - deleted 6y ago
      [deleted]
platelets2020 6y ago
Impressive rant, but you realize this ad is CGI right? The opposite of everything you're praising. Or do you believe the cars in car ads are real too? [0] https://www.businessinsider.com/cinematographer-reveals-one-thing-you-dont-know-about-car-commercials-2019-5 https://www.businessinsider.com/cinematographer-reveals-one-...
- neilpanchal 6y ago
  This is the best compliment for BD.
  - avmich 6y ago
    Yeah, flattering and also annoying and sad. Marvin (HHGG) definitely had a point, we might see that rather soon.
- gamblor956 6y ago
  You understand that CGI is only used for the very high end cars? That comes from the article you cited...
Kiro 6y ago
> I hope it takes over the top spot on Youtube. It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. I tried showing it to my girlfriend twice and she was extremely unimpressed and uninterested.
- high_byte 6y ago
  Sorry for your failed relationship and also I disagree because their backflip video was a hit.
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- Nicksil 6y ago
  > It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. What a bizarre thing to say. Surely "non-techies" are able to extract some value from the video. > I tried showing it to my girlfriend twice and she was extremely unimpressed and uninterested. Oh, well, if your girlfriend was unimpressed and uninterested, we'll just extrapolate from that and presume the same for everyone else (at least everyone else's girlfriend).
  - mkl 6y ago
    >> It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. > What a bizarre thing to say. Surely "non-techies" are able to extract some value from the video. Movies and TV have stolen most of that value and wonder by showing fake robots moving like this for years. My thought watching the video was "this looks like CGI", not because I think it is CGI (or the lighting or background or anything), but because the only robots I have seen move that fluidly have been fake computer animated ones. Because I believe it's not CGI, I was amazed, but that takes a little domain knowledge. I suspect a lot of people already think robots moving this well are fairly normal, and not impressive.
- pierrec 6y ago
  >It won't Well, looks like it did.
lacker 6y ago
It's a cool ad, but it doesn't seem to be "spartan / brutalist" marketing to me. The point of the ad is to show you how their technology makes robots dance. But, clearly their real product isn't just dancing robots. They put a lot of work into making this functionality, and all that work is just for marketing! To me, a real spartan approach to marketing is spending very little money on marketing, and just focusing on your product. That seems like the opposite of what Boston Dynamic is doing, because they put so much work specifically into creating these PR/marketing videos. Many of their robot models don't seem to exist for actual products, they just exist for marketing.
- neilpanchal 6y ago
  One thing that's different is that BD doesn't have the pressure to sell to the masses, and they've been traded off from one giant to another (Google, Softbank and now Hyundai). I think they can afford to be spartan and truthful, I suspect a lot of big-corp marketing is based on metrics and data which drives you to doing unspartan things. My guess anyways, perhaps others can shed light.
- avmich 6y ago
  > Many of their robot models don't seem to exist for actual products, they just exist for marketing. Wow :) I was under impression that, while Atlas is a flagship model with broad purposes, the other two are rather optimized transporting (and some other miscellaneous functions) robots, for specific applications. Why do you think they couldn't find use as products?
  - high_byte 6y ago
    I think most of their robots are more research than product, except maybe most recent models like spot. It's first and foremost an amazing engineering for the sake of engineering.
    - 2muchcoffeeman 6y ago
      BD is basic research. Figuring out what can be done and what the potential applications are. I’m surprised BD has gone through so many sales. Whoever owns them in the end is going to make a ton of money I reckon.
kortilla 6y ago
All of this is trivially explained by the fact that they are not a consumer oriented company so they don’t have to sell hype. Their customers aren’t average people chasing trends and reading Twitter. Nearly every b2b business markets in a similar way. When you’re competing in a vicious field for consumer mindshare it leads to the marketing and self aggrandizing because you’re literally trying to capture the attention of stupid people.
- neilpanchal 6y ago
  100%. Metrics/data driven marketing for the masses leads to a lot of unspartan marketing. I can think of few brutalist marketing/branding - Berkshire Hathaway (https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/) is one, although their product is abstract - financial services. Any others you can cite? Edit: MIT branding is pretty cool too: https://web.mit.edu/ https://web.mit.edu/ and always have been, although this is B2C.
- high_byte 6y ago
  And maybe even more because they didn't even have customers at all until recently. In fact nobody wanted to even buy their business. Who's laughing now? (probably the robots)
TaylorAlexander 6y ago
It’s all very cool looking. However when I watched this video my first thought was “my god they’re going to bring the drone wars to the ground.” I am a robotics engineer and have been focused on robotics my whole life. I worked at Google X on a robotics team with some great ex-Boston Dynamics people, and some of my friends have since gone to work for them. So I do understand what they have achieved. It’s fantastic from a technological perspective. And I know they have non military funders now. There’s a great many labor applications for machines like this if they can sell them for under half a million dollars and get them to do real work. I understand all that. But I fear that if the US military orders some, the company would happily oblige. Maybe they’ve committed to only peaceful non military use. But these extremely agile and capable machines to me seem like some military strategists dream come true. So when I watch all of this achievement from a company that for so long survived off of military funding, I am deeply saddened by the implications. Delivery robots and warehouse workers would be great. But these seem like in ten or 20 years time they’ll be another extension of the US global killing machine. I dream of a world where we can use robotics to make the world better, and the potential military use here leaves me uneasy. I cannot celebrate what I fear will be the dawn of ever more inhuman military conflict.
- fermienrico 6y ago
  It's weird to pick one point in the abstraction chain of human technological progress and create a threshold of unethical behavior. Technological progress will gaurantee this scenario of military use. If not BD, it will be another company. If not now, it will. If not the US, it will be someone else - China, Russia, etc. I don't see anypoint in feeling sad about just some geeks making robots as much as we didn't become sad when we saw the transistor being invented. The future is in our hands and tech has always been at the center of military warfare. Focus should be on government policy, electing good leaders and engaging in diplomacy over warfare.
  - TaylorAlexander 6y ago
    I think it’s important to talk about the concerns related to military robots well before they reach deployment so the public is primed to criticize leaders who would claim their use will be justified. When should we talk about it if not on the release of amazing new capabilities sure to catch the eye of military officials?
high_byte 6y ago
Thank you very much, love this comment. Watching Marc right now!
kostarelo 6y ago
It doesn’t look like they’re marketing their brand to me, more like they’re having fun.
tdaltonc 6y ago
You are the target audience for this marketing. It was made for you. This is recruitment marketing. The goal isn't to sell the robots, it to sell the experience of working on the robots so that they have basically every need on earth lusting to work there.
- kortex 6y ago
  My first thought was, "it sure would be neat to work for BD". Even though I'm pretty sure engineers have been driven to tears trying to get a robot to do the mashed potato. Worth it. Nerd lust: confirmed.
- devchix 6y ago
  > The goal isn't to sell the robots Their website has a tab called "Shop". I clicked, thinking one could buy t-shirts, perhaps a Spot plushie, but for $75K and change you can get your own robot dog. The "Buy Now" button is kinda crazy, like some user just happened on the site and Add-to-cart and in a week one could have this delivered in a box. It's only a smidge more than the Mac Pro.
the_cat_kittles 6y ago
this is maybe a mean sounding comment, but its what i would have appreciated hearing in response to my own thinking along your lines- you sound like a total mark. i have this single comment to go on, so obviously im extrapolating. but don't let a company's marketing ever fool you into thinking you know anything about them.

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cma 6y ago

They had pretty heavy studio lighting in this: https://youtu.be/wlkCQXHEgjA https://youtu.be/wlkCQXHEgjA

platelets2020 6y ago
Heavy study lighting? That's very clearly CGI. I bet you believe all the vehicles racing around in automobile TV ads are real too.
- gamblor956 6y ago
  They are real cars. You can watch them filming those commercials all the time in LA.
  - deleted 6y ago
    [deleted]

platelets2020 6y ago

Impressive rant, but you realize this ad is CGI right? The opposite of everything you're praising. Or do you believe the cars in car ads are real too? [0] https://www.businessinsider.com/cinematographer-reveals-one-thing-you-dont-know-about-car-commercials-2019-5 https://www.businessinsider.com/cinematographer-reveals-one-...

neilpanchal 6y ago
This is the best compliment for BD.
- avmich 6y ago
  Yeah, flattering and also annoying and sad. Marvin (HHGG) definitely had a point, we might see that rather soon.
gamblor956 6y ago
You understand that CGI is only used for the very high end cars? That comes from the article you cited...

Kiro 6y ago

> I hope it takes over the top spot on Youtube. It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. I tried showing it to my girlfriend twice and she was extremely unimpressed and uninterested.

high_byte 6y ago
Sorry for your failed relationship and also I disagree because their backflip video was a hit.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
Nicksil 6y ago
> It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. What a bizarre thing to say. Surely "non-techies" are able to extract some value from the video. > I tried showing it to my girlfriend twice and she was extremely unimpressed and uninterested. Oh, well, if your girlfriend was unimpressed and uninterested, we'll just extrapolate from that and presume the same for everyone else (at least everyone else's girlfriend).
- mkl 6y ago
  >> It won't because for non-techies it's just a random video without any significance. > What a bizarre thing to say. Surely "non-techies" are able to extract some value from the video. Movies and TV have stolen most of that value and wonder by showing fake robots moving like this for years. My thought watching the video was "this looks like CGI", not because I think it is CGI (or the lighting or background or anything), but because the only robots I have seen move that fluidly have been fake computer animated ones. Because I believe it's not CGI, I was amazed, but that takes a little domain knowledge. I suspect a lot of people already think robots moving this well are fairly normal, and not impressive.
pierrec 6y ago
>It won't Well, looks like it did.

lacker 6y ago

It's a cool ad, but it doesn't seem to be "spartan / brutalist" marketing to me. The point of the ad is to show you how their technology makes robots dance. But, clearly their real product isn't just dancing robots. They put a lot of work into making this functionality, and all that work is just for marketing! To me, a real spartan approach to marketing is spending very little money on marketing, and just focusing on your product. That seems like the opposite of what Boston Dynamic is doing, because they put so much work specifically into creating these PR/marketing videos. Many of their robot models don't seem to exist for actual products, they just exist for marketing.

neilpanchal 6y ago
One thing that's different is that BD doesn't have the pressure to sell to the masses, and they've been traded off from one giant to another (Google, Softbank and now Hyundai). I think they can afford to be spartan and truthful, I suspect a lot of big-corp marketing is based on metrics and data which drives you to doing unspartan things. My guess anyways, perhaps others can shed light.
avmich 6y ago
> Many of their robot models don't seem to exist for actual products, they just exist for marketing. Wow :) I was under impression that, while Atlas is a flagship model with broad purposes, the other two are rather optimized transporting (and some other miscellaneous functions) robots, for specific applications. Why do you think they couldn't find use as products?
- high_byte 6y ago
  I think most of their robots are more research than product, except maybe most recent models like spot. It's first and foremost an amazing engineering for the sake of engineering.
  - 2muchcoffeeman 6y ago
    BD is basic research. Figuring out what can be done and what the potential applications are. I’m surprised BD has gone through so many sales. Whoever owns them in the end is going to make a ton of money I reckon.

kortilla 6y ago

All of this is trivially explained by the fact that they are not a consumer oriented company so they don’t have to sell hype. Their customers aren’t average people chasing trends and reading Twitter. Nearly every b2b business markets in a similar way. When you’re competing in a vicious field for consumer mindshare it leads to the marketing and self aggrandizing because you’re literally trying to capture the attention of stupid people.

neilpanchal 6y ago
100%. Metrics/data driven marketing for the masses leads to a lot of unspartan marketing. I can think of few brutalist marketing/branding - Berkshire Hathaway (https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ https://www.berkshirehathaway.com/) is one, although their product is abstract - financial services. Any others you can cite? Edit: MIT branding is pretty cool too: https://web.mit.edu/ https://web.mit.edu/ and always have been, although this is B2C.
high_byte 6y ago
And maybe even more because they didn't even have customers at all until recently. In fact nobody wanted to even buy their business. Who's laughing now? (probably the robots)

TaylorAlexander 6y ago

It’s all very cool looking. However when I watched this video my first thought was “my god they’re going to bring the drone wars to the ground.” I am a robotics engineer and have been focused on robotics my whole life. I worked at Google X on a robotics team with some great ex-Boston Dynamics people, and some of my friends have since gone to work for them. So I do understand what they have achieved. It’s fantastic from a technological perspective. And I know they have non military funders now. There’s a great many labor applications for machines like this if they can sell them for under half a million dollars and get them to do real work. I understand all that. But I fear that if the US military orders some, the company would happily oblige. Maybe they’ve committed to only peaceful non military use. But these extremely agile and capable machines to me seem like some military strategists dream come true. So when I watch all of this achievement from a company that for so long survived off of military funding, I am deeply saddened by the implications. Delivery robots and warehouse workers would be great. But these seem like in ten or 20 years time they’ll be another extension of the US global killing machine. I dream of a world where we can use robotics to make the world better, and the potential military use here leaves me uneasy. I cannot celebrate what I fear will be the dawn of ever more inhuman military conflict.

fermienrico 6y ago
It's weird to pick one point in the abstraction chain of human technological progress and create a threshold of unethical behavior. Technological progress will gaurantee this scenario of military use. If not BD, it will be another company. If not now, it will. If not the US, it will be someone else - China, Russia, etc. I don't see anypoint in feeling sad about just some geeks making robots as much as we didn't become sad when we saw the transistor being invented. The future is in our hands and tech has always been at the center of military warfare. Focus should be on government policy, electing good leaders and engaging in diplomacy over warfare.
- TaylorAlexander 6y ago
  I think it’s important to talk about the concerns related to military robots well before they reach deployment so the public is primed to criticize leaders who would claim their use will be justified. When should we talk about it if not on the release of amazing new capabilities sure to catch the eye of military officials?

high_byte 6y ago

Thank you very much, love this comment. Watching Marc right now!

kostarelo 6y ago

It doesn’t look like they’re marketing their brand to me, more like they’re having fun.

tdaltonc 6y ago

You are the target audience for this marketing. It was made for you. This is recruitment marketing. The goal isn't to sell the robots, it to sell the experience of working on the robots so that they have basically every need on earth lusting to work there.

kortex 6y ago
My first thought was, "it sure would be neat to work for BD". Even though I'm pretty sure engineers have been driven to tears trying to get a robot to do the mashed potato. Worth it. Nerd lust: confirmed.
devchix 6y ago
> The goal isn't to sell the robots Their website has a tab called "Shop". I clicked, thinking one could buy t-shirts, perhaps a Spot plushie, but for $75K and change you can get your own robot dog. The "Buy Now" button is kinda crazy, like some user just happened on the site and Add-to-cart and in a week one could have this delivered in a box. It's only a smidge more than the Mac Pro.

the_cat_kittles 6y ago

this is maybe a mean sounding comment, but its what i would have appreciated hearing in response to my own thinking along your lines- you sound like a total mark. i have this single comment to go on, so obviously im extrapolating. but don't let a company's marketing ever fool you into thinking you know anything about them.