Even this futuristic Boston Dynamics robot can’t make parkour cool

Somewhere, a solitary suburban teenage boy is impressed.

He’s just watched the latest YouTube video from Boston Dynamics, which shows off the Atlas robot doing some siiiiiiiick parkour moves. The robot can jump over a log (dude!), and up a few platforms (wicked!). 

It’s everything a 14-year-old in 2001 could have hoped for. 

While previous demos from the Boston Dynamics team have inspired a measure of caution in those fearing the robot uprising, this latest addition to the company’s oeuvre doesn’t quite carry the same weight. It does, however, serve to remind us just how dorky parkour is.

So hey, don’t say robots never did anything for you.