New developments in a double pack: Tesla boss Elon Musk (53) asked last week during the presentation of the Robotaxi model “Cybercab” also presents the current version of the humanoid robot “Optimus”. In his words, robots will be “the most important product of all” in the future, as everyone will one day want mechanical helpers.
Following the approximately 20-minute presentation of the “Cybercab”, the robots acted as bartenders and dancers, among other things – to show, among other things, how far Musk and Tesla had already come in realizing his visions. Now Bloomberg reports
However, the robots did not act completely independently, but were partly controlled remotely by people.
According to insiders, employees who were said to have been stationed at another location on the site controlled many interactions between the machines and the participants in the product presentation on the site of the Hollywood studio Warner Bros. near Los Angeles. Tesla did not want to comment on the allegations.
A video of the event even purports to show an Optimus bartender admitting that he is “assisted by a human.”
Short-term performance required remote operations
Human assistance raises questions about the robot’s capabilities and marketability. Musk recently said that the robot could take on many household tasks. In the future, consumers will pay $20,000 to $30,000 each for the machines, at least according to the plan.
Tesla has shown prototypes of the Optimus before, but last week, for the first time, non-employees had the opportunity to interact directly with the robots. Not only did they pour visitors drinks, they also gave them a “high five” or played “rock, paper, scissors.”
The robots’ capabilities and development have long been closely watched by investors, but the timing of their market launch remains uncertain. Originally, Optimus wasn’t even supposed to be introduced at last week’s event. According to a Tesla insider, Musk only asked to present Optimus about three weeks before the event. The late announcement meant there was no time to update the software, necessitating remote operations, the person familiar with the matter reported, according to Bloomberg.
The Tesla event was widely seen as disappointing by investors because it lacked technical details and only vaguely outlined plans for the robotaxi business. The following day, Tesla shares suffered their biggest decline in more than two months.
Many in attendance cited their interaction with Optimus as a standout experience during the Tesla presentation. If the allegations are confirmed, this impression is likely to change again.