Please do kick your robot

Robot abuse is now a thing.

Every time Boston Dynamics releases a startling new video of robot skill or acrobatics, they follow it up with what could best be described as robot torture porn.

The most recent example started with Boston Dynamics SpotMini robot politely opening a door for another robot. SpotMini is the tiny little brother to Boston Dynamics robot affectionately known as BigDog.

SpotMini, which looks as much like a real dog as I do The Rock, was equipped with a retractable grabber where its head should’ve been. In the video, cleverly titled, “Hey buddy, can you give me a hand?” a previous generation SpotMini approaches the door aparently unsure what to do until the second, updated SpotMini model trots in, extends its head/gripper and opens the door for the first robot.

The video does an excellent job of demonstrating Boston Dynamics’ SpotMini development progress.

We all cheered (and maybe a little freaked out).

A week later, Boston Dynamics posted a follow-up video, called “Testing Robustness,” featuring the latest SpotMini and an…