Elon Musk-owned Tesla shows off Optimus humanoid robots at ‘We Robot’ event

People were seen waving and interacting with the Optimus humanoid robots after the event.

Tesla's humanoid robots named Optimus walked out on their own at the company's 'We Robot' event. (Screenshot: Tesla)

Several humanoid Optimus robots were seen walking out, serving drinks, and handing out gift bags to the attendees at Tesla’s ‘We Robot’ event held in California, the United States of America, on Thursday, October 10.

Along with the humanoid robots, the EV maker showed off its long-awaited self-driving robotaxi, called Cybercab, as well as a larger, self-driving vehicle called Robovan capable of carrying up to 20 people.

Optimus was also seen doing household tasks like watering plants and picking up packages in a video demo displayed at the event. “The Optimus will walk amongst you. You’ll be able to walk right up to them, and they will serve drinks,” Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on-stage, adding that it will be capable of walking your dog, babysitting your kids, mowing your lawn.

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Musk further said that the Optimus robots will cost $20,000 to $30,000 in the long term. “I think this will be the biggest product ever of any kind,” he said.

Also Read | Tesla wants you to teach its humanoid robot how to move like a human

However, anyone looking to have Tesla’s Optimus work in their factories or walk their dog may have to wait for another two years as Musk had previously said that the humanoid robots will only be ready for use by 2026. Although, they could be seen on the Tesla factory floor a lot sooner.

Optimus can talk pic.twitter.com/4VTI0DPtdU

— Whole Mars Catalog (@WholeMarsBlog) October 11, 2024

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Musk has always said he envisions the humanoid Optimus robots to have use cases beyond just industrial work. In 2022, Musk gave the public its first actual look at a bipedal Optimus prototype which was able to walk on stage and wave to the crowd. The robot’s ability to move autonomously had been called into question after it was revealed that the Optimus Gen 2 was being remotely controlled in a video demo.

Thursday’s event revived speculation over the level of autonomy in Optimus as a few attendees said that the humanoids were being remote controlled by Tesla employees.

Optimus make me a drink, please.

This is not wholly AI. A human is remote assisting.

Which means AI day next year where we will see how fast Optimus is learning. pic.twitter.com/CE2bEA2uQD

— Robert Scoble (@Scobleizer) October 11, 2024

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