Last time we saw Ghost Robotics’ Minitaur (which was also the first time we saw Ghost Robotics’ Minitaur), it was getting around mostly by using a sort of hopping or bounding gait. Minitaur can move fairly quickly like this, but one of the advantages that it has as a quadruped is the potential to use a variety of different gaits to help it adapt to different conditions.

In a new video just posted today, Minitaur demonstrates how it’s able to handle all kinds of terrain by dynamically adjusting its gait. And it can climb. And jump. And walk on ice. And walk on two legs. And lots of other things!

Ghost Robotics, a leader in fast and lightweight direct-drive (gearless) legged robots, announced today that its patent-pending Ghost Minitaur™ has been updated with advanced reactive behaviors for navigating grass, rock, sand, snow and ice fields, urban objects and debris, and vertical terrain.

The latest gaits adapt reactively to unstructured and dynamic environments to maintain balance, ascend steep inclines (up to 35º), handle curb-sized steps in stride (up to 15cm), crouch to fit under crawl spaces (as low as 27cm), and operate at variable speeds and turning rates. Minitaur’s high-force capabilities enable it to leap onto ledges (up to 40cm) and across gaps (up to 80cm). Its high control bandwidth allows it to actively balance on two legs, and high speed operation allows its legs to manipulate the world faster than the blink of an eye, while deftly reacting to unexpected contact.

Imagine you are a newly promoted principal, replacing a principal who’d left the job after only one year. Right before your first staff meeting you are confronted with a challenge with which you have no experience: a teacher comes to you in great distress because she is being bullied by a fellow teacher. If you are uncertain how to proceed, you’re not alone.

A startup called Exyn Technologies Inc. today revealed AI software that enables drones to fly autonomously, even in dark, obstacle-filled environments or beyond the reaches of GPS. A spin-out of the University of Pennsylvania’s GRASP Labs, Exyn uses sensor fusion to give drones situational awareness much like a human’s.

In a demo video shared by the company with TechCrunch, a drone using Exyn’s AI can be seen waking up and taking in its surroundings. It then navigates from a launch point in a populated office to the nearest identified exit without human intervention. The route is not pre-programmed, and pilots did not manipulate controls to influence the path that the drone takes. They simply tell it to find and go to the nearest door.