A prototype of Tesla’s humanoid robot dubbed “Optimus” took the stage for the first time tonight as part of Tesla’s 2022 AI Day presentation.
As techno music blared and disco lights flashed, Optimus strolled, albeit cautiously, toward the audience and raised his arms in what appeared to be a “lift the roof” gesture.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk, dressed in a futuristic black leather jacket and black pants, revealed that “this is literally the first time the robot has worked without a chain.”
Musk went on to explain that the robot could do a lot more than just walk around the stage and wave.
“We just didn’t want it to fall on his face,” he joked.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) October 1, 2022
A video revealed the robot was lifting boxes, watering plants and doing odd jobs around Tesla’s Fremont factory.
Musk then introduced another version of Optimus, which is further in the development phase and closer to the model coming to market. While this bot wasn’t ready to run yet, it has actuators, a battery pack and an operating system from Tesla’s cars.
Musk said this robot will be able to move all of its fingers independently and has opposable thumbs that allow it to hold and operate tools.
“Our goal is to create a useful humanoid robot as soon as possible,” Musk said.
Like the Tesla cars, he hopes to make them in high volume and at low cost. Musk said this will eventually set his humanoid robots apart from competitors.
He predicted that the Optimus would be made in “millions of units” for “less than $20,000”.
“It will be a fundamental transformation for civilization as we know it,” Musk said.
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