Spot to the Rescue

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g five others. New York City firefighters were able to pull the victims from the wreckage, but the department deemed the facility “very unstable.” Searching for any additional wounded people—or even simply surveying the damage—could have put firefighters at great risk. Instead, the FDNY sent in Spot to walk the site and record video footage, which was then streamed back to fire officials in real time. Spot has also h

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airports, and schools might be shut down for hours—often for false alarms. By contrast, public safety officers can typically get Spot on the scene and up and running within minutes, helping them resolve suspicious package situations quicker while minimizing disruptions to the public. Equipped with a combination of cameras, sensors, manipulator arm, and disruptors, Spot allows bomb squads to investigate, identify, and

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render safe a suspected explosive device. “I would say it will take a good 20 minutes for the other robot systems to get up a normal flight of steps in a house. Spot is up there within a few seconds.” explains Lieutenant Allen Stewart, who leads the bomb squad for the Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Sheriff Department . The Massachusetts State Police was an early adopter of Spot, using the robot to investigate suspi

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cious packages and secure areas ahead of large public events . Similarly, the Carabinieri, an Italian national police agency , brought Spot onboard in advance of the 2025 Jubilee as an additional tool to identify and mitigate risks as millions of people attended the event in Rome. In Western Australia, police introduced Spot to help respond to high-risk situations such as bomb scares and terrorist threats as part of

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t far exceeds anything that I was able to benefit from.” “Technological advancements like Spot enable us to resolve dangerous situations quickly and safely. After assessment and approval to deploy the robot, Spot can quickly remove the weapon from the scene, and deescalates the potential of responders being involved in an armed encounter.” LAPD Deputy Chief Kowalski Reducing Risk for Officers, Suspects, and Community

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Angeles Police Department deployed Spot to deescalate an incident with a barricaded suspect who had been struck by gunfire; Spot was able to provide visuals and remove a weapon from the scene so officers could approach and provide medical treatment. “Technological advancements like Spot enable us to resolve dangerous situations quickly and safely,” says LAPD Deputy Chief Kowalski. “After assessment and approval to de

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an hours-long incident blocking traffic on I-495 during rush hour. Spot has also proven extremely valuable in hostage situations, which are, of course, inherently volatile and present a real risk of imminent danger. The robot gives public safety officials a way to obtain up-close visuals of these situations, without putting officers at risk or creating alarm in suspects and causing them to panic. In 2022, Spot assis

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ark out, and the man blocked the truck’s windows with blankets. After Spot arrived on the scene, operators used the camera on the robot’s arm to look inside the window. Medics watching the video feed became worried about the condition of the child, who appeared non-responsive, and commanders ordered the SWAT team to end the standoff and apprehend the suspect. From Spot’s video feed, officers knew that the suspect was

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