Tesla CEO Elon Musk is no stranger to making bold promises with little follow through, but maybe this time will be different. He just posted on his social media site X that Tesla will have humanoid robots in “low production” for the automaker’s internal use sometime next year. Then, they’ll “hopefully” be rolled out to other companies in 2026. Sure, buddy.
Back in April, Musk posted that the Tesla robot, called Optimus would be able to perform tasks in its factory by the end of 2024, and they could be ready for sale by the end of 2025. It looks like that timetable didn’t work out for Musk. The Austin, Texas-based automaker put out its first generation Optimus robot – called Bumblebee (again, very creative) in September of 2022, according to Reuters. The company has posted a video of a second-generation robot folding a T-shirt at one of the company’s facilities. That means it’s ready to build cars.
Tesla isn’t the only company trying to build humanoid robots, Reuters reports. Time will tell if any of them can actually find real-world applications.
Humanoid robots have been in development for several years by Japan’s Honda and Hyundai Motor’s Boston Dynamics. Companies are betting on them to meet potential labor shortages and perform repetitive tasks that could be dangerous or tedious such as logistics, warehousing and manufacturing.
It’ll be interesting to see if Elon’s latest artificial intelligence/robotics gambit actually pays off because it’s been a bit of a rocky road in the past. Here’s what Reuters has to say on the matter:
Musk has a history of failing to fulfill bold promises to Wall Street.
In 2019, he told investors that Tesla would be operating a network of “robotaxi” autonomous cars by 2020.
Last week, he signaled that an unveil of the robotaxi would take more time, saying he requested “an important design change” to the front of the vehicle.
Musk has in recent months pivoted to focus on artificial intelligence, autonomous driving software, robotaxis and the Optimus robot amid tapering demand for EVs, which make up more than 80% of Tesla’s quarterly revenue.
Listen, it’s impossible to know if this humanoid thing will turn out the way Elon wants it to, but one thing is certain: it’s not going to be here when he says it will.