New Delhi: A robot dog with a realistic head of the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, was spotted on the streets of San Francisco, California, on Wednesday, wandering, moving, and raising one of its legs while gesturing as if saying hello.
The robot dog, with an eerily realistic face of Musk, is part of an art installation titled ‘Regular Animals’ by digital artist Mike Winkelmann, globally recognised and professionally known as Beeple. The installation, showcased at Art Basel in Miami in December last year, also features robot dogs with silicone heads of other billionaires, including Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Similar robots have also been modeled after artists such as Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, and Beeple too.
The robot dog with Musk’s face has been walking on the streets to promote an upcoming art show in Palo Alto, which is scheduled to be held on 18 April.
Besides raising its leg, following people, squatting, and attempting to interact with real dogs, the robot dog also captures pictures before “pooping” out a printed copy.
This marks the first time that Beeple’s robotic creations have been deployed in the public.
Beeple has been creating digital art since 2007, when he began posting a new piece every day as part of his ongoing project titled ‘Everydays.’
In 2021, Beeple sold his digital artwork consisting of 5,000 images he made as a NFT for $69.3 million. It is the second most expensive NFT to be ever sold.
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Musk dog meets real dog
Several videos posted on X show people on the streets of San Francisco stopping to watch the Elon Musk robot dog, taking photos, and, in some cases, patting it.
In one of the videos, two pet dogs, on a walk with their owner, begin to bark upon noticing their robotic sibling.
However, reactions online were mixed. While some people found it amusing, others described it as unsettling and scary.
“Tbh I’d freak out if I saw the Elon dog wandering at night when I’m in the middle of a walk,” a comment read.
Another user said, “Who made this Elon dog. So disgusting”.
One person was surprised to see “robot dogs making friends now”.
(Edited by Aamaan Alam Khan)