A new Texas-based defense startup has a plan to improve military and police dogs in the US: it’s going to genetically modify them and equip them with Anduril’s military technology. Warhound is the brainchild of Anduril’s Palmer Luckey and Ben Lamm, co-founder of Colossal Biosciences (the company that says it’s trying to resurrect extinct animals), and it’s already secured $200 million in funding from investors.
Warhound plans to use Colossal’s work in genetics, cloning, and animal biology to “produce healthier dogs with characteristics suited to demanding missions,” with Anduril then equipping them with its “advanced cybernetic Augments.” That includes eye and ear protection and EagleEye military technology to provide the dogs and their handlers with “greater awareness and protection in the field.”
“Man’s best friend deserves man’s best tech,” Luckey said in the press announcement. Bloomberg reports that despite having helped with the company’s conception, Luckey has no equity or ongoing role in Warhound.
The goal is to reduce dependency on Europe, where 80 percent of US military dogs are currently sourced, and improve the success rate of training the animals for specialist work. According to the startup’s press release, less than half of the dogs procured from overseas are typically deemed fit for service following the current three-year acquisition-and-training pipeline.
In a statement to TechCrunch, Lamm said Colossal is looking to enhance the animals by editing their genes to remove problems like poor eyesight and cancer likelihood, while adding new genes to improve performance “for things like speed and agility or enhance olfactory sensors for bomb sniffing and whatnot.” High-performance working dog breeds like the Belgian Malinois and German Shepherd are the base of their studies, but the plan is to create “a new type of dog.”
These dogs don’t exist yet, but when (or if) they do, Warhound says they’ll be deployed for elite working roles in US military forces, emergency first response teams, and law enforcement. The American Humane Society will help to guide the company and certify its training programs. Marine veteran and intelligence specialist David Spirk has been named as Warhound’s CEO, and said the company’s goal is simple: “healthier dogs, better-prepared teams, and more service members and first responders coming home safely.”
American Humane Society
ethical murder dog training programsI miss the ALF.
a dog that puts down others doesn’t get put down themselves
Lamm said Colossal is looking to enhance the animals by editing their genes to remove problems like poor eyesight and cancer likelihood
:cap-think: :honk: why do they have bad genes?
:porky-scared-flipped: :big-honk: Why do they have bad genes?!
There’s a pretty fun sci fi book Dogs of War by Adrian Tchaikovsky that runs with this idea. Rex is a genetically engineered super soldier dog with machines guns mounted on his shoulders. He just wants to be a good boy and serve his master, but has to go rogue with his squad of animal beasties when he slowly comes to understand being a good boy is the easy path, but not the morally right one. Also there’s a giant super smart bear with a cannon named Honey and she’s a sweetheart.
Ooh, I gotta read that, Tchaikovsky’s great
cant want to see the results of this and its just a bunch of methed up dog girls
I am looking respectfully 😳
The mainstreaming of Mechsplo continues apace.
Get ready to go against cyber hounds during protests.
There were a bunch of animals killed in the development of Neuralink. I wouldn’t be surprised if there is a classified government program experimenting with the same tech to create dog drones. So far all of the worst evil of dystopian fiction has been topped by these ghouls, why not go even further?
I think we know how this turns out…
Resident Evil is another example of “Don’t Create The Torment Nexus” and nerds are like OMG UMBRELLA SO COOL
As a fantasy horror universe, it’s damn cool,
but only idiots want the want Resident Evil-like things that aren’t resulting in helping society and nature. I’ve had a past EMT worker tell me how they observed cops laugh as they let go of police dogs to bite people on crotches. This is no way dogs should be utilized. They seem to just want to enslave dogs for fun to use as weapons.
This is 100% for mauling protestors, I would be concerned if this wasn’t a palmer lucky joint
Anyone else remember that horror movie Man’s Best Friend?
It’s not very good, but we have ourselves another Torment Nexus
Pit borg discourse
these ones are going to be excused because they’re sheps and malinoises
the only dogs westerners are permitted to hate are bully breeds and poodle mixes
This is how you get the millennials on board with your tech: make it usable by the heckin doggos and puppers
HEARTWARMING: Heckin’ pupperino at “please stop eating protestors” rally consumes sign-wielding child terrorist WHOLE
These dogs don’t exist yet, but when (or if) they do, Warhound says they’ll be deployed for elite working roles in US military forces
:vo-thi-thang-smile:
Fahrenheit 451 was a warning.
These monsters: Wow look at these cool robot dogs that go out with the police and firefighter demolitionists and hunt down enemies of the state! We should try to build something similar but using flesh and blood dogs since robot dogs can’t sniff that accurately yet.
We’re firmly in the “we need terror” phase of the bourgeoisie drive for total control. It’s hard to revolt when you might be shot dead but a lot fewer people will do it even in dire circumstances if they’ll be mauled limb from limb by drugged up, body-armored, enhanced anger packs of dogs. Nothing you can do against that other than shooting them and dogs are harder to hit center mass than people because they don’t stand as tall. Which also makes picking them off from a distance a problem unless you have a high point to do it from. And that’s the goal of things like this, kill-bots, etc to inspire terror in the masses.
At this point likely a grift more than a dangerous reality but it shows you their thinking and what they want and intend to do I believe.
I guess the Techbros are now getting their company names from AO3 fics instead of LOTR.
AO3?
Well I learned something new today, thanks!
I need to get around to reading We3
