Elon Musk likes to have a focus – and this year, it looks like it might be robots.
He told investors on a Tesla earnings call his nascent robot plans had “the potential to be more significant than the vehicle business, over time”.
And they would be the most important things Tesla worked on this year.
The robot in question, part of a project dubbed Optimus, was previewed last year – to raised eyebrows – by a human in a robot suit dancing on stage.
And the performance became a popular internet meme.
The Tesla Bot, as it was dubbed, would use the same artificial-intelligence (AI) systems that helped power Tesla vehicles, Mr Musk said at the event last August – but no prototype has yet been made.
He also said the not-yet-built robot would have a screen on its “face” and be able to lift 150lb and travel at about 5mph.
This week, Mr Musk told investors the humanoid robot’s first application would be at a Tesla plant, moving parts around the factory.
But in the future, he sees it helping solve labour shortages.
