ISO: Robot Dog Walkers

PRESENTED BY SYMPHONY

Happy Thursday, Future Party. Dictionary.com has unveiled its word of the year — “maxxing.” The term has taken on plenty of wild connotations this year, but we just want you to know that we’ve been newsletter-maxxing here at TFP for almost a decade. Hopefully, that’s been fueling your insight-maxxing.

A San Francisco startup called Dimensional posted a job listing for a robot dog walker. Yes, really.

The Big Picture: Robots — whether humanoid, quadruped, or even adorable rolling food-delivery bots — need a lot of data to navigate the real world and complete assigned tasks. To gather that data, flesh-and-blood humans need to put these robots through trial and error out in the wild. For Dimensional, the most cost-effective way to do that is to hire people to take them on a stroll.

Behind The Job: If you’ve always wanted to hit the town with a dog that doesn’t bark or poop, Dimensional has the gig for you.

Last Lap: Not only were people interested in the role, but videos also poured in of people out and about with Dimensional’s robot dogs — which are actually made by Chinese startup Unitree.

NYT reports that Dimensional is developing an open-source OS for robots that would allow an AI agent to control them autonomously. While Dimensional is starting with robot dogs, it wants to apply the same principles to humanoids. People could give them prompts like “take out the trash” or “give me a shoulder massage,” and voilà, the robots could do it.

The Future: Robot dogs are already being used to patrol an apartment complex in Atlanta and Dimensional’s HQ, so maybe taking MechaFido out for a stroll is helping create a new breed of security forces and emergency responders. That seems like the most natural use case for these bots.

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People really, really dislike Liberty Mutual’s new mascot, “Liberty Biberty.”

Why It Hits: Weird mascots are making a major comeback in marketing, but Liberty’s new one is getting attention for all the wrong reasons. In fact, it might be drawing more vitriol than any mascot in recent memory… which is pretty striking for the mascot of an insurance company. Still, in today’s marketplace, any attention might be good attention.

Between The Lines: Liberty Biberty — a small, fuzzy, yellow, talking, ball-like monster— is taking a beating, according to Insider.

Closing Thoughts: Modern insurance marketing leans heavily on mascots — think Flo from Progressive, Jake from State Farm, and “Mayhem” from Allstate. Each brings a unique flavor to selling a product that’s about as dry as it gets. Despite people’s preference for Liberty Mutual’s other mascots, LiMu Emu & Doug, Liberty CMO Jenna Lebel said the company is “encouraged by how strongly people are engaging with him, whether they love him or feel differently.” Apparently, the mascot is “performing above average on attention and brand attribution.”

In other words, the mascot is doing its job. Who said all press isn’t good press?

Prediction: Liberty Mutual may decide to lean into the hate and build marketing around people’s negative reactions to the mascot. That’s the kind of bold, culturally tapped-in move that could get people to switch over… you know, for the lols.

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37.9% of you voted Sometimes in yesterday’s poll: How often do you go to art museums, operas, or ballets?

“Art museums, often; opera, sometimes; ballet, rarely. We have a parkwide pass to all the museums in San Diego’s Balboa Park, which is great for quick visits to the local art museum whenever a new exhibit opens.”

“Museums are almost always on my travel itinerary. They offer such insight into the cities I visit. Where I live, we have a yearly arts festival, and I attend ballets, plays, and/or operas.”

“When I lived in LA and the Bay Area, I went often, but now that I live in a rural area near the sea, there’s only one museum within driving distance.”

“I love going to any of them when they come to my small Alaskan town.”

“I grew up in the EU and was a pro ballet dancer, so I feel grounded and at home when I experience classical art. Don’t get me wrong, contemporary art and all music genres are necessary too, but it’s that balance that keeps me feeling whole. Without the quiet, luxurious sounds of classical music and the elegant, graceful flow of ballet, the hard, rough sounds and visuals of today seem off balance.”

Let’s keep the conversation going. Join Poll Of The Day, so your opinions can shine. Discover how your views line up with your peers’, check out cool insights, and have some fun. It’s data with personality.

🏆 Former Lucasfilm head Kathleen Kennedy is succeeding Netflix’s new chief content officer Peter Rice as Head of Ceremonies and Content for the 2028 LA Olympics.

📺 Netflix is among the first streamers to redesign its app for the iPhone Duo’s foldable screens.

🎮 Prepare your devices: GTA VI will reportedly require a whopping 210 GB download.

💻 Apple unveiled its first touchscreen laptop… and it’s not cheap.

🥡 Could Olo’s new food-delivery app put an end to inflated menu prices?

👨‍💻 Google wants more developers to build apps that can plug directly into Search and Gemini.

🏃🏿 iShowSpeed hosted an epic game of hide-and-seek across NYC yesterday… with $250,000 up for grabs.

🍝 TikTok launched a new in-app restaurant guide called “Must Eat.”

📱 Reddit finally caved and introduced an algorithm-driven “For You” feed.