Boston Dynamics workers revolt over $1.3 million ICE robot dog deal
The robotics giant faces an internal backlash over immigration enforcement.
Boston Dynamics Robot Dog and ICE vehicle.
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- More than 300 Boston Dynamics employees signed a petition opposing support for an ICE robot dog deal.
- DHS awarded Radeco a $1.3 million contract for four modified Spot robots called Cerberus.
- The robots can inspect dangerous areas, detect hazards, and help monitor suspected cross-border tunnels.
- Boston Dynamics says its terms ban using Spot robots to harm, intimidate, or enable weapons.
More than 300 employees at robotics company Boston Dynamics have signed a petition urging executives to halt a deal with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The employees warned that the deal could damage the company’s reputation, writing in the petition that “the risk for Boston Dynamics is simply too great to continue with this deal.”
The petition was signed anonymously by half of the opponents, with the 300 signatures representing a significant chunk of the 1400-strong workforce at Boston Dynamics.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded Connecticut-based Radeco a contract worth approximately $1.3 million on September 25th for 4 modified Spot robots marketed as Cerberus, with Boston Dynamics providing technical support.
What can the robots do?
The robot dogs are not expressly being bought as armed machines, but rather to inspect dangerous environments, collect visual information, and detect hazardous substances.
The Cerberus dog can include a robotic arm, enabling it to open stubborn doors, and its state-of-the-art tracking system means that it can undertake “counter-illicit cross-border tunnel operations.”
The robots also feature 360-degree cameras, infrared thermal imaging, an oxygen sensor, and a camera with up to 30-times zoom, which allows operators to assess the robots’ findings remotely.
The DHS justified the deal by referencing illegal cross-border tunnels and human-smuggling networks, but Boston Dynamics employees are concerned about ICE’s wider immigrant deportation operations.
Many of us have gotten messages from friends and family, asking us in disbelief and horror if this news is true, and how we can live with ourselves if it is,read the Boston Dynamics staff petition against the contract with ICE.
The bigger picture
Hyundai acquired Boston Dynamics in 2021, and employees cited a 2025 ICE raid at Hyundai's Georgia factory, in which 475 workers were detained, as a reason to oppose the robot dog deal.
Boston Dynamics’ management team has stood by the deal, and as reported by The Boston Globe, former interim CEO Amanda McMaster told employees by email that the venture was in the best interests of “ethically advancing intelligent machines in service of humanity.”
The company’s Spot sales terms prohibit using the robots to harm or intimidate people, deploying them as weapons, or enabling weapons, and Boston Dynamics says it has not found violations of these conditions.
Boston Dynamics technically has the right to revoke warranties, stop software updates, terminate licenses, and take legal action if a customer misuses Spot.
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