Transformers in the real world#2

Given that UK TV ‘E4’ has started re-running ‘The Goldbergs’, you may find that a few phrases leak into some of my writing, and apologies in advance for that!

“Back in the 80s”, when the first wave of Transformers were released (in 1984), the excitement was with the idea that the robots were based on everyday household objects and vehicles.

Vehicles such as a Porsche 935, Lamborghini Countach, F-15 Eagle jet fighter, and everyday objects such as a Sony Walkman and Walther P-38 handgun (remember the phrases “household objects”, “back in the 80s”, etc.).

Transformers as a franchise has adapted over the years and modernised many of the alternative forms (‘alt-modes’ as they’re called by fans), and recent additions include characters that are based upon commercial drones.

Twitch is a character from the latest cartoon series, changing into a bright red, very commercial-looking drone.

Meanwhile, the recent computer-animated film Transformers: One included the character Airachnid, with an alt-mode with hints to a design of a military bicopter drone. Which, to be honest, didn’t make much sense as the Transformers: One film was set on the Transformers’ homeworld in the distant past and did not connect at all with modern Earth. Plus, as might be understood by the name and her form, Airachnid as a character has origins in a spider-like appearance, though has never had a toy alt-mode of a spider (spider alt-modes do exist as characters, but the likelihood I write an article about the development of realistic spider alt-mode Transformers is low. Ugh).

Autobot Terran Twitch

Drones are becoming increasingly commonplace in our modern life, with two applications I saw recently catching my attention:

With the Winter Olympics in full swing, video footage of skiers descending down a slope or imagery of Olympians on sleds in the luge and skeleton clearly being conducted by drone, I was impressed at the speed and agility the drone (and operator) had to be able to follow the action (though not without some question of risk to athletes)

Another drone use was flagged by a recent BBC News article whereby drones are being used to transport drugs into UK prisons. I was quite shocked by a segment with the reporter saying, “I just need to stand here and wait a few minutes and you’ll see it happen” (and thus it was so).

Delivery services, notably Amazon, have flagged their intent to utilise drones for package delivery. Not something that occurs here in Switzerland, but maybe wherever you’re reading this (availability in select regions of the US with trials in the UK).

In her recent speech to the Munich Safety Conference, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen noted the requirement for Europe to close the capability gaps in drone production with increased innovation and production, stating that 80% of battlefield damages with the war in Ukraine are caused by drones- on both sides.

The question has to be whether there’s value for an airborne drone to have the potential for a second form? A Caltech press release from summer 2025 flagged a device they are working on where the drone will indeed transform to have a vehicular mode. One can imagine such a possibility for delivery whereby the drone flies from a warehouse to a region, then completes its route by road.

As noted in my first newsletter, and will continue to review and reassess in future newsletter articles, there seems little value to change into a bipedal form. The only time I could ever see a drone transforming into a bipedal form for delivery of a package would be for the marketing and gimmick image that companies such as Amazon could perhaps enjoy.

Speaking of gimmick imagery of bipedal robotic forms, I bring attention to the recent video footage of Kung-Fu dancing robots for the Spring Festival celebrations. The imagery is impressive, but from a technical purpose, what is the value of a robotic bipedal form, other than to provide mimicry to the human form?

However, aircraft such as drones, with a second mode such as a vehicular mode, could have multiple applications, and I’ll return to these ideas for future articles.

For drone technology itself, I could certainly foresee for military applications a combination of this drone technology and the four-legged robots I discussed in issue 1. Ie a drone carrying a ‘docked’ four-legged robotic form which could be dropped or deployed into a region that would prove inaccessible for larger military vehicles. (Modern variants of the character Soundwave that was originally a Sony Walkman have drone or stealth-bomber alt-modes, with options to deploy the ”cassettes” such as Ravage.)

Or instead of a four-legged robotic mode, possibly even six (hexapod) or eight-legged robots that would be more stable.

Ah, maybe I’ll be doing that article on spider Transformers after all.

“Decepticon” (though strictly speaking not exactly), Airachnid