Tesla’s shift from electric cars to high-tech robots is set to go into overdrive, with Elon Musk telling investors the “Optimus” robot will be its most important product yet.
That’s a big call coming from a company that built the world’s best-selling car, having paved the way for large-scale electric vehicle adoption around the globe.
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Musk spoke at a quarterly earnings report in the US this week, where he outlined plans to convert production lines in California from building electric cars to assembling humanoid robots.
Tesla says its Californian plant will produce about 1 million robots per year, while a new facility in Texas will have the capacity to build 10 million per year.
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“As you’ve heard me say a few times, I think Optimus will be our biggest product, not just Tesla’s biggest product, but probably the biggest product ever,” Musk said.
“And I remain convinced of that conclusion.”
Tesla has pushed back the public debut of its third-generation robot.
Its chief executive didn’t give much away surrounding the evolving capability of its products, as he suspects rivals are paying close attention.
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“What we have found is that when have unveiled previous Optimus versions, our competitors literally do a frame-by-frame analysis and copy everything we’re doing,” he said.
“I think we want to push the Optimus 3 unveil maybe closer to production. Summer production, we’re assuming, is somewhere around the late July, early August time frame.”
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Musk believes robots will be one of the world’s most sought-after products in years to come, predicting that billions of the machines will be built and sold in the next 15 years.
Tesla’s robot is expected to cost $US20,000-$30,000 ($28,000-$42,000).
Other car companies have significant stakes in robotics. Geely has conducted demonstrations of its humanoid sales assistant robot in Australia, and Hyundai’s Boston Dynamics aims to revolutionise production lines around the world.
Tesla also plans to ramp up production of its electric semi truck, as well as the driverless Robotaxi set to take on Alphabet’s Waymo.
