Science & Technology

Creepy 'synthetic human' Protoclone is another step toward the T-800

By T.K. Randall
February 21, 2025

Image: Terminator in Madame Tussauds, London
Credit: Daniel Jurena / CC BY-SA 2.0 (adapted) In 'The Terminator' movies, Arnold Schwarzenegger's T-800 is comprised of a solid metal endoskeleton surrounded by living tissue, giving him the appearance of a normal human.

Now Polish startup Clone Robotics has come up with a prototype for a new type of robot that could easily be imagined as a stepping stone toward something very similar to the T-800.

Known as Protoclone, the robot has been described as a synthetic human that has a body that looks a lot like actual human flesh with synthetic skin and muscles that are eerily life-like.

In recently released footage, the prototype can be seen suspended from an apparatus while its limbs flail and move around in a disconcertingly realistic manner.The fact that its head is just a black visor and little else doesn't exactly help.

Described by the firm as "the world's first bipedal, musculoskeletal android," Protoclone takes a different approach to most modern robots by trying to emulate the muscles, joints and ligaments of an actual human body.

"The Protoclone is a faceless, anatomically accurate, synthetic human with over 200 degrees of freedom, over 1,000 Myofibers, and over 200 sensors," the firm wrote.

The current version is powered by pneumatics, but there are plans to switch this to hydraulics.

Whether or not Protoclone represents the future of robotics, however, remains to be seen.


Source: Mail Online

Tags: Robot, Protoclone