Overview
- At a recent Tesla shareholder meeting, Elon Musk said Optimus could eliminate poverty by vastly boosting productivity, citing fivefold gains per worker and ten- to hundredfold for the global economy.
- Musk presented a tentative consumer price range of $20,000 to $30,000 and described Optimus as eventually more valuable than all other Tesla businesses combined.
- He floated a goal of producing at least one million Optimus V3 units per year by 2030 in Fremont and later Austin, though no consumer rollout timetable was provided.
- Public showings to date have been limited to demonstrations such as handing out candy or dancing, and reports highlight unresolved hurdles including realistic grasping, broad autonomy, battery endurance, and safety near people.
- Regulators and experts caution about job losses and ethical risks as the EU’s AI Act targets highly autonomous systems, with OECD data showing 28.7% of jobs in Germany highly susceptible to automation and IFR noting 18% growth in 2024 service-robot sales.