Musk sees potential for Tesla robot to eclipse car business

The first use of the Tesla bot likely will be in the company’s own facilities, Musk said, giving the example of moving parts around a factory. — AFP

The humanoid robot Tesla Inc first teased five months ago may be the most important product the carmaker is working on and has the potential to be more significant than its vehicle business, chief executive officer Elon Musk said.

Tesla’s “Technoking” on Wednesday played up the bot – known internally as Optimus – over models the company has had in development for years. During an earnings call, Musk said the Semi and Roadster first revealed in 2017 and the Cybertruck shown in 2019 will fall further behind schedule and “hopefully” go into production next year.