Google Has Made a Mess of Robotics

In 1982, Blade Runner introduced the world to replicants, director Ridley Scott’s term for the alarmingly lifelike robots of author Philip K. Dick’s imagination. In the past few years, there have been two buzzy follow-ups. One, a Scott-produced sequel called Blade Runner 2049, grossed a disappointing $31.5 million during its Oct. 6 opening weekend. The other, a secretive robotics division at Google named Replicant, has flopped much harder.

Andy Rubin, the Google executive who created Android, began scooping up roboticists in 2013, acquiring at least nine companies in all. The shopping spree, while a side bet next to Google’s search-driven ad revenue, seemed to establish the company as the likely leader in building an army of intelligent machines. Its acquisitions were doing some of the most exciting work in the field, and its vast reach and resources made Google an ideal place to combine those efforts into a single vision. The industry welcomed its new overlord. “People were very enthusiastic about it,” says Rosanna Myers, chief executive officer of startup Carbon Robotics.