bostondynamics1.jpg

When Google bought Boston Dynamics, they said that they weren't interested in becoming a military contractor. Today's rumor seems to confirm that, according to PopSci, Google is allegedly withdrawing its team from the DARPA Robotics Challenge.

PopSci quotes an unnamed source involved in the DARPA Robotics Challenge with the news, which Google so far hasn't confirmed.

But why wouldn't Google want to participate? Brian Gerkey of the Open Source Robotics Foundations tells PopSci that compared to Google's current revenue streams, the military robotics business isn't big enough to interest the company.

"Even the companies these days that are selling robots to the Defense Department are looking for other markets to sell robots to. You only ever need so many military robots in the world, and the size of that market pales in comparison to the consumer market," Gerkey told PopSci.