Elon Musk's Optimus: Future of Robotics or Sci-Fi Fantasy?

At last week's Cybercab event, Tesla unveiled its robot, Optimus and the Robotaxi and Robovan. CEO Elon Musk’s bold promises about the future of robotics and transportation dominated the event, but the reception was far from unanimous. While the vision sounds revolutionary, lots of people are seriously concerned with practicality, originality, and the timeline of Tesla's latest offerings.

Optimus: Too Good to Be True?

Optimus is the humanoid robot of Tesla that stole all the headlines at the Cybercab event. The bot mingled and had drinks, played games, and was part of the immersive experience for the attendees. Optimus can mow lawns, walk pets, and babysit as Musk said. although the exact price of the robot was not declared.

Navigating by myself pic.twitter.com/CeFSqCcy5I— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) October 17, 2024

It might be sold to consumers for around $20,000 to $30,000. attendees were spectacle of that as the man has history of overpromising on timelines, and this innovation did not escape the rule. Even though it was impressive on stage, how close is Optimus to actually becoming a reliable household companion? Without a clear release date or a demonstration of its effectiveness in the real world, it’s hard to believe the bold promises.

Robotaxi and Robovan

Other innovations included the release of Tesla's self-driving Robotaxi and Robovan. These are two different models of autonomous vehicles that could revolutionize transport in cities. According to Musk, the Robotaxi was supposed to be fully available by 2026 and cost less than $30,000. The Robovan was a car designed to carry 20 passengers. However, at the same time, Tesla was not able to come up with concrete details on its self-driving cars, and this has left investors unimpressed-thereby forcing Tesla stocks to drop nearly 9% since the event. However, competitors such as Uber and Lyft saw their shares rise, showing that the market remains skeptical of Tesla's vision for driverless vehicles.

Borrowed Designs, Original Innovation?

Some reactions were most shocking was from the fans of the sci-fi movie I. Robot, which debuted in 2004. Some pointed out that Tesla's Optimus was almost a carbon copy of those NS5 robots in the movie, and its Robotaxi as well as the Robovan bore a very close similarity to those futuristic vehicles presented in the movie. Even the film’s director, Alex Proyas, playfully mocked Tesla on social media, asking for his designs back.

Inputs by Agencies

Image Source: Multiple Agencies