They will apparently fight terrorists and rioters — but only on flat surfaces
China has unveiled a robotic crime fighter known as the AnBot. Developed by the National Defense University, this 1.49-m, 78-kg droid patrols at a leisurely 1 km/h (albeit with a touted top speed of 18 km/h) and “will play an important role in enhancing the country’s anti-terrorism and anti-riot measures,” the state mouthpiece People’s Daily reported Tuesday.
Lauding “sensors that mimic the human brain, eyes and ears,” the article explains that when people nearby face security threats, “the robot’s control personnel can remotely deploy AnBot’s electrically charged riot control tool.”
The AnBot was debuted at the 12th Chongqing Hi-Tech Fair on April 21. It is apparently “capable of eight hours of continuous work,” says the People’s Daily, without specifying how long it takes for a recharge. Also conspicuously absent from the report is any mention of a feature that may prove useful to Chinese terrorists or rioters striving to outwit an indignant AnBot — its inability to climb stairs.