EV giant Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) on Tuesday revealed its upgraded humanoid robot- the Gen 2 Optimus- in a video on X.
What Happened: “There’s a new bot in town” Tesla wrote on Optimus’ official account while also sharing a short, less than 2-minute video of the bot.
The Gen 2 Optimus can walk 30% faster, is 22 lbs (10 Kg) lighter, and has improved body control including hands. This enables the bot to handle delicate objects such as eggs with the added help of tactile sensing on its fingers.
The new version of the bot has Tesla-designed actuators and sensors. During Tesla’s second-quarter earnings call in July, Musk had shed light on the difficulties of making the bot noting that that no supplier produces the actuators required for the bot, leaving Tesla to design its own.
“The first Optimus that is — that will have all of the Tesla designed actuators, sort of production candidate actuators integrated and walking should be around November-ish,” Musk then said, while adding that the bots will be able to do something useful in Tesla factories starting next year.
Why It Matters: Tesla announced the humanoid Optimus two years ago, initially aimed at performing unsafe, repetitive or boring tasks. It introduced the Bumblebee version of the bot in September 2022 and then the Gen 1 Optimus in March 2023. The new version comes 9 months later.
“Optimus a year ago could barely walk and now it can do yoga. So, a few years from now, it can probably do ballet,” Musk said in October while refusing more details on the Optimus program.
Photo by JWCohen on Shutterstock
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