Tesla showed a prototype of a humanoid robot

As part of the AI ​​Day 2022 event, Tesla CEO Elon Musk showed off an early prototype of the Optimus humanoid robot that appears on stage, walking and waving its arms to the beat of the music. For the first time, the robot was moving on its own without a delay, although its movements seemed a bit vague. Shortly after that, Elon Musk presented the prototype of the second-generation robot, a more refined Optimus model that also moves arms and legs, but does not move independently. The robot was staged in a private car by three company employees. Tesla promises he’ll be able to walk in a few weeks.

The demonstration lasted about seven minutes, during which time audiences were shown a demo video of the Optimus prototype lifting a box, watering a plant, and moving metal rods at a Tesla factory. At that time it was tied with a rope. Musk noted that an early prototype was developed in about six months using “semi-standard actuators.” By the way, it was noticeable that he was worried that the robot would not fall right into the scene. The company also showed off a 3D visualization of the world that the Optimus robot could see.

According to Musk, the new prototype is close to the serial version in terms of movement. The company will provide 28 degrees of freedom for the robot’s entire body (humans have over 200 degrees of freedom), but the arms will have 27 degrees of freedom. Engineers will try to ensure that the mass of the serial model does not exceed 73 kg. The body of the robot will be equipped with an onboard computer based on a proprietary processor and a day-long battery with a capacity of 2.3 kWh. Much of the experience was borrowed from the Tesla car.

Musk is confident that Tesla can produce millions of such robots, and the price of one cannot exceed 20 thousand dollars. Thus, the robot will cost not only less than its counterparts, but also cheaper than the Tesla electric car.