Spooky tech — From levitating light bulbs to collars that gi…

Technology continues to advance rapidly with artificial intelligence-based robots and brain implants that could allow paralyzed individuals to control tech with their thoughts.

While many of these technologies as encouraging and beneficial to humankind, others are spooky or downright terrifying.

There are several technologies with potentially frightening uses, from flying and skateboarding robots to the science of freezing humans and biological structures to resuscitate them once medical technology is advanced enough.

Some of these technologies are listed and described below.


Leonardo: the flying robot

Researchers at Caltech have developed a bipedal robot that combines drone technology with skeletal robotics to bridge the gap between walking and flying.

LEONARDO (LEgs ONboARD drOne, or LEO for short) is agile and capable of complex movements — able to walk a slackline, hop, hover, and even skateboard, at which LEO is far more capable than the average person.

“Because of its propellers, you can poke or prod LEO with a lot of force without actually knocking the robot over,” says Elena-Sorina Lupu, a Caltech graduate student and co-author of LEO’s research.

While LEO itself may not look intimidating, the concept of a bipedal flying robot sounds like something out of the Terminator franchise, and the research team is already working on making the robot more robust.


Cryonics

Cryonics is the science of preserving life by suspending the process of death using subzero temperatures with the intent of resurrecting a person once medical technology is able.

The practice is based on the theory that death is a process and not instantaneous and that life can be stopped and restarted, provided that the fundamental structures of life are preserved.

Companies such as the Alcor Life Extension Foundation and the Cryonics Institute in Michigan are improving current cryonics technology, with Alcor already boasting a membership of 1,379 people.


Petpuls dog collars

A South Korean startup — Petpuls — uses artificial intelligence technology to help people better understand their dogs.

Their technology uses a proprietary algorithm and a database of more than 10,000 bark samples from 50 breeds of dogs across four different size classifications to determine how your dog feels.

“This device gives a dog a voice so that humans can understand,” Andrew Gil, Petpuls Lab’s director of global marketing, told Reuters.


The levitating light bulb

A team of designers and engineers has developed a levitating light bulb powered wirelessly through the air — dubbed FLYTE.

The team developed FLYTE to provide a sustainable alternative to lightbulbs that require electricity or solar power to illuminate space.

The bulb is suspended in mid-air above a magnetic base that keeps it centred while it hovers and rotates, using very little energy.


Neuralink

Elon Musk’s Neuralink is advancing brain-computer interface technology to allow people to control their phones and computers with their thoughts.

Already demonstrated in animals, Musk has hinted that human trials may start as early as the end of 2021.

Musk has an aggressive approach to managing his tech companies, with one of his ex-employees was quoted as saying:

“They are building a medical device and a surgical approach to implant that medical device and they’re approaching it with the use of a high tech company — move fast and break things.”


Now read: Elon Musk says Starlink will exit beta in October

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