--- title: "Watch a Pack of MIT’s Mini Robots Cavort in Autumn Leaves" description: "In a video uploaded by MIT's Biomimetics department, nine Mini Cheetah robots can be seen rustling up some autumn leaves and doing the occasional backflip." date: "2019-11-08" modified: "2019-11-08" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/mit-mini-robots-cheetahs-field" categories: - "Robotics" - "Robots and Machines" tags: - "boston dynamics" - "mit" - "robots" - "the digest" --- # Watch a Pack of MIT’s Mini Robots Cavort in Autumn Leaves ![In a video uploaded by MIT's Biomimetics department, nine Mini Cheetah robots can be seen rustling up some autumn leaves and doing the occasional backflip.]() *\Image: Biomimetics MIT\* ## Frolick Bots Here at Futurism, we ask ourselves every day what the future looks like. And it looks like we finally found the answer: half a dozen robotics geeks from MIT standing in a circle, each remotely controlling a backflipping mini robot. https://youtu.be/G6fMV1UPzkg In a video uploaded by MIT's Biomimetics department, nine Mini Cheetah robots can be seen rustling up some autumn leaves and doing the occasional backflip. It's a wholesome autumnal moment — or perhaps the last thing you see, if you subscribe to a "Black Mirror" [vision of the future](). ## Perfect Size Each Mini Cheetah can run at 6 mph and weighs only 20 pounds, about the size and weight of a medium-sized dog. "Mini Cheetah is just about the perfect size. 20 pounds is not too small but not so big that it’s dangerous or fragile," director of MIT's Biomimetics lab Sangbae Kim [told *IEEE Spectrum*]() earlier this year. "We designed the machine to be able to absorb the impacts, jumping and landing and so on." And no, they won't murder you in your sleep — they may be mobile, but they don't have a lot of smarts, as [*The Verge* points out](). While other quadripedal robots such as [Boston Dynamics' Spot]() can [patrol]() on a predetermined route, these little guys aren't able to do much more than run in circles and do backflips. **READ MORE:** [It’s that time of year again — fall is here and packs of robot dogs are frolicking in the leaves]() **More on robot herds:** *[Watch a Pack of Boston Dynamics’ Creepy Robot Dogs Pull a Truck]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()