Robo Future
Elon Musk has many ideas, and as a serial entrepreneur many have failed, but many have also succeeded. His biggest companies to date remain SpaceX and Tesla, each in separate fields, but nonetheless revolutionary. Although not under the umbrella of a new company, but rather under Tesla, Elon Musk’s newest announcement deviates from Tesla’s general manufacturing of cars. That’s right, a new robot concept has been announced by Elon himself in the fourth-quarter earnings call.
Musk explained that the humanoid robot would be the “most important product” that Tesla is developing this year. He even placed the robot’s position in the list of Tesla’s priorities ahead of the highly anticipated Cybertruck and other vehicles, including the Semi and the Roadster. The robot project is code named “Optimus” and aims to serve as robotic capital in the economy, filling gaps robotically in tasks humans are still required to complete.
The move could be strategic on Elon’s part, as the continued chip shortage stifles Tesla’s ability to release new vehicle models without compromising on delivery. The news helps in that it builds hype, interest, and belief in Tesla’s overall branding and vision, but has also been criticized for likely setting unrealistic expectations. In the past Elon Musk has set milestones for various technological goals that were never hit. For example, on “Autonomy Day” in April 2019, Musk said Tesla would have 1 million autonomous “robotaxis” on the road in 2020. Today, in 2022, those taxi still don’t exist. I guess that’s what happens when you’re a CEO leading multiple cutting-edge companies across various industries. Who can blame him really? What do you think about the news of the Optimus robot, and will it ever come to fruition?
I am not a financial advisor and my comments should never be taken as financial advice. Investments come with risk, so always do your research and analysis beforehand.