TECH

You can now worry your friends with this $9,420 flamethrower-equipped robot dog

Good news for anyone who worries there simply aren't enough flame-throwing robot dogs in the world. An Ohio-based company is now selling its 37-pound fire-spewing metal canines for the not-inconsiderable price of $9,420.

Throwflame, which is apparently the oldest flamethrower manufacturer in the US, unveiled its imaginatively-named Thermonator in 2023. It joins the list of robotic quadrupeds that have been equipped with weaponry over the years, such as this rifle-carrying machine and a rocket-launcher-carrying robot ninja dog from Russia.

The Thermonator can meet all your burning requirements thanks to the ARC flamethrower carried on its back, which can throw fiery gasoline or napalm 30 feet. It also has a one-hour battery, and is Wi-Fi and Bluetooth equipped so users can control it with a smartphone.

Some of the Thermonator's other features include Lidar mapping to help it avoid obstacles and a first-person view (FPV) for navigation. There's also laser sighting, just in case the sight of this Black Mirror-like monster isn't frightening enough.

Throwflame doesn't advertise Thermonator as a weapon, of course. The website describes its uses as wildfire control and prevention, agricultural management, ecological conservation, and snow and ice removal. It also notes the robot's potential use in the entertainment and SFX industries. No mention of setting people ablaze.

The robot itself is a Chinese-made Unitree Go2, which can be bought for $1,600 in its base configuration – a lot cheaper than the $74,500 Boston Dynamics charged for Spot when it first became available to buy. A demo video from the US Marines last year showed the Unitree Go1 predecessor carrying a rocket launcher.

The Thermonator is available to buy now, though Maryland restrictions mean a Federal Firearms License is required to own a flamethrower as they are defined as a destructive device in the state. Throwflame does ship to California, but state laws restricting the operational range of flamethrowers to 10 feet or less means the Thermonator will have a smaller nozzle.

The company, maker of the first-ever full-sized, commercially available flamethrower in 2015, notes that as flamethrowers remain federally unregulated in most cases, anyone can buy one without background checks or a waiting period, which sounds reassuring.

Back in 2021, the James Bond villain-sounding SWORD International, which makes semi-automatic rifles, partnered with Ghost Robotics on an assault-rifle carrying robodog. There was also a Russian robot dog whose cuteness earned from its ninja costume was undermined by the anti-tank rocket launcher on its back.

Reporter: Rob Thubron