Boston Dynamics' new robot SpotMini was teased in new YouTube video that has drawn more than 4 million views since Monday.
SpotMini was called a robot dog by PC Magazine, while NBC News didn't classify what the robot was mimicking. The four-legged SpotMini walks into the video frame, stares into the camera and then moves on behind a wall in what appears to be a backyard.
SpotMini is a smaller version of Boston Dynamics' larger four-legged robot called Spot, which could stand and walk, despite taking a kick from a human, PC Magazine said. The magazine said both robots use several sensors including the light detection and ranging sensors that are used in self-driving cars.
Boston Dynamics was owned by Alphabet, Inc., the parent company of Google, before being sold to the Japanese telecommunications and technology firm SoftBank earlier this year, NBC News noted.
The video ended with a "coming soon" message, but NBC News said it was not clear what the new SpotMini would be used for or if it will be sold commercially.
"We've reached out to the company for more information on the project, but BD always plays things pretty close to the vest," Tech Crunch wrote. "It also knows how to ride a good viral video for all it's worth. Meantime, what we've got to work with here is a really quick video of the updated robot doing a familiar bit of dressage across a newly mowed lawn, quickly staring down the camera and then sauntering off behind a wall."
Views of SpotMini ranged widely on social media.