This Velociraptor-Like Robot Runs Much, Much Faster Than You

 By 
Stan Schroeder
 on 
This Velociraptor-Like Robot Runs Much, Much Faster Than You
A robot developed by the MSC Lab at KAIST can run as fast as 46 km/h and jump over obstacles. Credit: MSC Lab, KAIST

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a ... bipedal robot.

A team at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology created a robot that uses carbon composite legs and even has Achilles tendons, which act as springs to recapture energy from its gait. An optional tail gives it better balance, so it can handle objects in its path without even breaking stride.

The raptor has a top speed of 28.58 miles per hour -- just a little slower than Boston Dynamics' Cheetah robot, which hits 29.2 mph.

But the raptor is still faster than the fastest humans, so outrunning it is out of the question. Currently, though, you won't have the chance to: The raptor is still tethered to the lab. Eventually, though, the researchers hope to cut the cable so it can walk unassisted, in similar style to the Cheetah bot.

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