In "Metalhead," an episode from the fourth season of Netflix's futurist dystopian nightmare Black Mirror, bands of muderous robotic dogs guard private property and will do anything, including kill, to protect their wares.
Turns out, they already exist, as this rapidly spreading video from maker Boston Dynamics illustrates:
According an interview with Black Mirror creator Charlie Brooker in Entertainment Weekly, these metal dogs were, indeed, the inspiration for the episode.
"It was from watching Boston Dynamics videos, but crossed with — have you seen the film All Is Lost?," Brooker said. "I wanted to do a story where there was almost no dialogue. And with those videos, there’s something very creepy watching them where they get knocked over, and they look sort of pathetic laying there, but then they slowly manage to get back up." At which point, they either deliver groceries for old folks or bore drill bits into your skull. The future has arrived, folks! But will we control the dogs, or will they control us?