Indian-origin AI executive Rohit Prasad named Boston Dynamics CEO, to lead AI-powered robotics push

Indian-origin artificial intelligence executive Rohit Prasad, who played a key role in developing Alexa and later led Amazon's foundation-model efforts, has joined Boston Dynamics as its chief executive, bringing an AI-focused background to one of the world's best-known robotics companies.

Boston Dynamics said Prasad's appointment took effect on October 7. He succeeds Robert Playter, who stepped down as CEO in February after six years in the role. Prasad is also expected to join the company's board, subject to approval.

His appointment comes as Boston Dynamics seeks to combine advances in artificial intelligence with robots capable of operating in the physical world.

The company makes Atlas, its humanoid robot platform, Spot, a four-legged robot used for industrial inspections, and Stretch, designed for logistics and box handling.

Boston Dynamics has been increasingly focused on what it calls "Physical AI" -- systems that can perceive, understand and act in real-world environments. Prasad's experience spans several of the technologies underpinning that push, including machine learning, speech recognition, conversational AI and foundation models.

Who is Rohit Prasad?

Prasad grew up in Ranchi, Jharkhand, and completed his undergraduate engineering studies at Birla Institute of Technology, Mesra, commonly known as BIT Mesra. He later pursued advanced studies in electrical engineering and computer science in the US.

His interest in computers and artificial intelligence reportedly began at a young age. Fascinated by Star Trek and its portrayal of computers communicating with humans, he eventually built a career around technologies that sought to make interactions between people and machines more natural.

Before moving to Boston Dynamics, Prasad spent 12 years at Amazon, where he rose to become a senior vice president and head scientist for Alexa and Artificial General Intelligence.

He was closely involved in the development of Alexa, helping take the voice assistant from its early stages to a consumer AI service used in hundreds of millions of households.

Prasad later took on a broader AI role at Amazon and led work on Amazon Nova, the company's family of foundation models aimed at a range of applications.

His Amazon career therefore covered both consumer-facing AI products and the development of increasingly capable underlying AI models.

From research to consumer AI

Amazon was not Prasad's first major technology company.

Before joining the e-commerce and technology giant, he spent nearly 14 years at Raytheon BBN Technologies, where he worked on machine-learning research and its applications for government and commercial customers.

His career has consequently followed the evolution of AI across several stages -- from research and speech technologies to conversational assistants and foundation models.

That experience could be particularly relevant to Boston Dynamics as the company attempts to make robots more autonomous and capable of performing useful tasks outside controlled laboratory environments.

Why his appointment matters

For Boston Dynamics, Prasad represents a shift towards putting AI more centrally into the development of its robotics products.

The company has spent decades developing sophisticated robotic hardware and control systems. The next challenge is making those machines capable of understanding changing environments, learning tasks and working with greater autonomy.

Prasad's background in AI research and in taking complex technologies into products used at massive scale could help bridge that gap.

The appointment is also significant for Boston Dynamics' parent, Hyundai Motor Group, which is seeking to expand the use of robotics in manufacturing.

Hyundai plans to deploy Atlas robots at its manufacturing operations, with the first deployments planned for 2028.

The move places Prasad at the intersection of two rapidly developing fields -- generative and foundation-model AI on one side, and physical robotics on the other.

For the BIT Mesra graduate, the new role marks another step in a career that began with an interest in computers and speech technology and has now moved towards building machines that can understand and act in the physical world.