Boston Dynamics employees urge company to halt role in ICE robot deal

Roughly 300 Boston Dynamics employees petitioned company leaders to end its role in a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement robotics procurement. Leadership rejected the request and said Boston Dynamics would continue participating in the $1.3 million federal deal for four modified Spot systems.

The employees objected to associating Boston Dynamics with ICE and warned that proceeding could harm the robotics company’s reputation, recruitment and retention. The full correspondence and signatory list are not public. Accounts differ on whether the petition had exactly 300 or more than 300 signatures.

The federal procurement record shows ICE awarded contract 70CMSW26P00000067 on Sept. 25 to Connecticut vendor RADeCO, not directly to Boston Dynamics. RADeCO is supplying CERBERUS SPOT AV packages built on customized Boston Dynamics Spot robots, while Boston Dynamics supplies the underlying robots and technical support.

ICE’s procurement justification lists a total value of $1,304,296. The purchase covers four robot packages with manipulation arms, thermal cameras with 30-times zoom, communications equipment, training and related accessories.

ICE says the robots will provide remote inspection, situational awareness and hazard assessment in confined, unstable or difficult-to-access environments. The agency lists potential tasks including detecting radiation, toxic gas leaks and explosive threats and supporting cross-border tunnel operations. Its justification describes possible use across public-safety, law-enforcement, immigration-enforcement, detention and investigative missions. It identifies work against cartels, gangs, smuggling and trafficking as the procurement objective.

Boston Dynamics has said the systems will go to ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations unit, which the company characterized as focused on transnational crime rather than removal operations. The public award documents do not independently establish that operational distinction. The company says Spot is designed to keep people out of dangerous environments and that this safety purpose supports the sale despite employees’ objections.

Boston Dynamics’ published ethical principles reject weaponization and autonomous targeting and condition government work on compliance with privacy and civil-rights laws. Its Spot sale terms prohibit intentional use to harm or intimidate people or animals, use as or to enable a weapon, and illegal or ultra-hazardous uses. Prohibited use can void the warranty and terminate the software license.

The award documents do not state when or where ICE will deploy the four systems, whether delivery has occurred, or what operational safeguards the agency will apply beyond its stated missions and training requirement.