Elon Musk first announced a humanoid robot Tesla in 2021. Then a person in a robot costume simply appeared on stage. It is not surprising that the way bots are presented Tesla Optimus at last week’s eventWe, Robot” was also a bit over the top.
Tesla employees supervised the bots’ interactions
Tesla used workers to remotely control some of the prototypes’ capabilities Optimus. This took place during the much-announced “We, Robot” event, intended to arouse investor enthusiasm for upcoming products, Bloomberg reports.
Workers stationed behind the scenes oversaw many of the interactions between the humanoid machines. Optimus prototypes were able to walk without external control using artificial intelligence, Bloomberg’s anonymous sources added.
Some event participants later claimed on social media that the robots were assisted, with at least one video posted online purporting to be of the event Cybercab October 10 shows bartender Optimus admitting he was “human-assisted”.
Elon Musk praises Optimus, but does not comment on the reports
The outside oversight raises questions about the capabilities and market readiness of the bot, which Musk said last week would likely be “the largest product of any kind.” Tesla’s CEO said Optimus could eventually be available to consumers starting at $20,000. up to 30 thousand dollars per piece.
“What can it do?” Musk said. “He can be a teacher, babysit, walk the dog, mow the lawn, shop, be a friend, serve drinks. He will do anything you can imagine.” While Tesla has previously shown prototypes of Optimus, last week was the first time non-employees had the chance to interact directly with the bots. Neither Tesla nor Musk commented on the reports of external control.
Robotaxi premiere in the shadow of Optimus
Originally, Optimus wasn’t scheduled to appear at last week’s event at all. Musk asked for them to be turned on about three weeks earlier. There was no time to accelerate the software, which made remote maintenance necessary, Bloomberg comments.
Optimus was one of several products highlighted at the event, along with the launch robotaxi Cybercab and the van concept. However, the impressive event was widely perceived as a disappointment – technical details and plans regarding robotaxi activities were missing. The next day, Tesla shares suffered their biggest decline in over two months.
Musk was scheduled to discuss a broader range of elements related to autonomous driving on stage, especially plans for autonomous truck technology Tesla Semihowever, he did not discuss this topic. Optimus turned out to be the most interesting element of the presentation. “Optimus stole the show in my opinion,” said Nancy Tengler, CEO of Laffer Tengler Investments. In turn, Gene Munster, managing partner of the investment firm Deepwater Asset Management, admitted that Optimus was remotely controlled and said he was “deceived” during the event. Still, he said the bot showcase provided “a window into the potential of these products.”
