Pedro Morais

staff research scientist @bostondynamics | prev @agilityrobotics | deep learning and humanoid robots | the meaning of life is being kind to strangers

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Why are they describing this as a “sophisticated recording device” that they “used their models to understand”. It was a USB stick wrapped in toilet paper with the website he bought it from written on it

[OpenAI Newsroom @OpenAINewsroom]

We discovered a sophisticated recording device that was hidden inside one of our offices. We used our models to understand the device and where it had come from, identifying that a specific employee had planted it a few days earlier. We referred the matter to the FBI, and we’re grateful to the agents and prosecutors who moved quickly to make an arrest. The FBI’s investigation is ongoing and we will continue to support their work.

At this time, we have no indications of this individual inappropriately accessing or exfiltrating model weights, source code, or customer data. The employee was terminated.

We take protecting our technology, data, and people seriously, and as a matter of national importance. Our security program is designed to protect against a wide range of threat actors, from insider risks to cybercriminals to nation states, and this case is an example of how AI can help address these sophisticated security threats.

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Noise correlation (both spatial and temporal) is very underrated in on-policy learning

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Cool idea to exploit (linear) postural synergies without restricting yourself to a linear action space by correlating just the noise

[Harsh Gupta @hgupt3]

Per-joint Gaussian noise is a terrible way to explore a 20+ DoF hand

We introduce EigenDEXplore, which explores along coordinated patterns from human hand motion, while keeping full control of every joint

Better learning, from tool use 🔨 to reorientation 🔄 to bimanual 👐

[Alberto Rodriguez @_albertorod_]

Today we give Atlas dexterous hands, with the strength to take on real work, and the simplicity for mass manufacturing. Like the body, the hands are designed with high fidelity simulation in mind, to enable sim-to-real RL. If you give dexterous hands to a robot, make them do dexterous things.

More thoughts here
Blog: https://t.co/z8xNB8KKXV
Video: https://t.co/iETKTwNIXn

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@lihanc02 @aliteracy Yeah I think this is broadly correct as an intuition for why they both work. See the MIP comparison in the Much Ado About Noising paper as well

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

I think the source of confusion is that for certain motors and applications this is an issue, particularly when dumping maxed current against a locked rotor (true stall). But humanoid standing doesn’t operate in that regime (with straight knees nominal balance torques are ~zero!)

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

I think the source of confusion is that for certain motors and applications this is an issue, particularly when dumping maxed current against a locked rotor (true stall). But humanoid standing doesn’t operate in that regime (with straight knees nominal balance torques are ~zero!)

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Again, this is not true for sinusoidally commutated motors which have balanced currents. Even for trapezoidal commutation controller oscillations amplified by the gear ratio would vary the electrical angle enough to balance the winding heat

[Sam D'Amico @sdamico]

If you don’t do this, you energize only one phase of the motor and can have thermal issues while standing still.

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@chris_j_paxton Yeah near metastable points oscillation is an inevitability. But even in general if you look at phase portraits of neural nets commanding PD set points they’re basically always oscillating even if you can’t see it because the gains are so soft and the control rate is so low

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

This is incorrect. Sway increases RMS torque (∝heat), incurs velocity dependent friction and iron losses, and deviates from minimum energy (gravity neutral/singular) posture. The arguments given don’t apply to current driven sinusoidal PMSM drives either

[Humanoid Scott @GoingBallistic5]

This human-like swaying is a necessity, not an effect

Without it, motors would stall and quickly overheat plus the battery would rapidly drain

Standing rigidly at attention requires high current that can cause systemic damage to multiple components

Walking is easier

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

If I had to guess I’d say the swaying is either an aesthetic choice or an indirect consequence of the controller gains/sim-to-real. But it’s not energetically efficient

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@chris_j_paxton @SokobanHero @GoingBallistic5 I think he got this one wrong

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

This is incorrect. Sway increases RMS torque (∝heat), incurs velocity dependent friction and iron losses, and deviates from minimum energy (gravity neutral/singular) posture. The arguments given don’t apply to current driven sinusoidal PMSM drives either

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Don’t forget that we’re all on the side of American prosperity.

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@observie Don’t know how well it holds up but I liked this design I saw at CoRL. Looked like mostly cheap plasma cut sheet metal and extrusion for the structural components with 3D printed infill.

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@1x_tech is unbelievably underrated in terms of hardware design. One of very few humanoid companies truly innovating in that space and taking risks no one else is. Huge congrats on the launch @ericjang11

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

And it isn’t because they don’t know how to btw. It’s an intentional choice to minimize cost because their market is not work it’s 30 second DeepMimic dance clips

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

Not claiming that actuator heating is a fully solved problem but cheap Chinese humanoids are at the extreme of this design space. Using outrunner motors with low gear ratios, using non-potted drone stators, not using fans or proper heat sinking etc

[CIX 🦾 @cixliv]

Overheating actuators remains the biggest challenge of fighting humanoids.

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

In Seoul for CoRL/Humanoids! Feel free to DM me if you’re in the area and you want to chat in person about the humanoid industry, RL, sim-to-real, behavior cloning, optimal control or open positions @agilityrobotics

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@maiamindel @questionableway O9A is more like satanism fan fiction writing club. Discord server that grooms mass shooters is a better description of “TCC” or “the com”

[Pedro Morais @pnwpedro]

@teortaxesTex In the US we wait weeks and pay thousands of dollars for a single CNC part, and that’s if a shop will even give you a quote. In Shenzhen people don’t bother 3D printing prototypes because it’s faster to have them milled