Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) boss Elon Musk has stated that his electric vehicle giant will begin using bi-pedal ‘Optimus’ robots in its factories from as early as next year.
“Tesla will have genuinely useful humanoid robots in low production for Tesla internal use next year and, hopefully, high production for other companies in 2026,” he said in a reply to user Rom Altman.
Tesla describes Optimus as “a general purpose, bi-pedal, autonomous humanoid robot capable of performing unsafe, repetitive or boring tasks”.
A Tesla recruitment page states: “Achieving that end goal requires building the software stacks that enable balance, navigation, perception and interaction with the physical world.”
Optimus is named after Optimus Prime, leader of the ‘Autobots’ in classic kids show Transformers.
Unlike Prime’s garish red and blue colour palate, Optimus is a sleek white and black figure of Tesla-like aesthetics.
On June 13, Tesla shared a video of an ambulant Optimus performing picking tasks on a factory line. “We've built @Tesla_Optimus from the ground up – and it's already being tested in our factories,” the company stated.
We've built @Tesla_Optimus from the ground up – and it's already being tested in our factories pic.twitter.com/TDWZXeM74W
— Tesla (@Tesla) June 13, 2024
Although Tesla hopes to bring Optimus into low production next year, the company has a notable track record of delays.
The Tesla Cybertruck suffered a two-year delay before the first customers could get behind the wheel.
Most recently, Tesla’s much-hyped ‘Robotaxi Day’ was postponed from August to October, causing a 6% dip in Tesla shares.