Big Dog, a four-legged robot that can climb muddy hills, and Cheetah, a robot which can outrun the fastest human, are among the robots that now belong to Google Inc. The world's largest Internet search company acquired Boston Dynamics, a privately held company best known for building robots that look as if they belong in a science-fiction movie and which are often co-developed or funded by the U.S. military.The acquisition is the latest by Google's secretive robotics division, led by Andy Rubin, the former boss of the company's Android mobile operating system. Google's new robotics division has acquired more than a half-dozen other robotics companies.Google failed to comment and Boston Dynamics did not return requests for comment. A person familiar with the matter confirmed the deal, which was first reported by the New York Times on Saturday, and said that Google will honor Boston Dynamics' military contracts.The financial terms of the deal could not be learned.
Google Inc. (Google) is a global technology company. Shares of GOOG traded higher by 1.22% or $12.9299/share to $1073.72. In the past year, the shares have traded as low as $695.52 and as high as $1092.31. On average, 1823380 shares of GOOG exchange hands on a given day and today's volume is recorded at 1076025.
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