Tesla shares climbed on Monday as CEO Elon Musk continued to highlight the potential value of the company’s humanoid robots.
Elon Musk announced on X (formerly Twitter) that Tesla plans to have “genuinely useful humanoid robots” in low production for internal use next year, with high production for external companies expected by 2026.
In April, Musk addressed shareholders at Tesla’s annual meeting, stating that the humanoid robot, named Optimus, would enter limited production in 2025. He predicted that more than 1,000 of these robots would be operating at Tesla by the end of that year. Currently, two robots are already on Tesla’s factory floor, although their specific functions have not been disclosed.
Musk speculated in April that this new product could potentially add $20 trillion to Tesla’s market capitalization. The robots are expected to become available for purchase by late 2025, with an anticipated price range between $20,000 and $30,000.
The exact definition of “genuinely useful” when describing these robots remains vague. Previous demonstrations of the robots have been less than impressive; in one instance, Tesla was accused of showcasing a video where an Optimus robot folding a shirt was actually being controlled by a person off-screen.
Tesla has a history of employing showy tactics to promote its robots. Notably, the Optimus project was introduced in 2021 with a person dancing in a robot costume.
Roth MKM analyst Craig Irwin expressed skepticism on Yahoo Finance, saying, “A sentient humanoid robot by 2025? They tried to launch this product with a dancer inside a robot suit. It’s going to be hard for them to catch up to Boston Dynamics. What they’ve shown us is really state-of-the-art for 2014.”
Tesla will face competition from companies like Hyundai Motor’s Boston Dynamics, Japan’s Honda, and Apptronik. In China, automakers Dongfeng Motor and Nio are testing humanoid robots from UBTech Robotics on their production lines. Meanwhile, BMW has been using humanoid robots from Silicon Valley-based Figure in its facilities since January.
On Monday, Tesla stock increased more than 3% following Musk’s comments. The shares have remained relatively flat year-to-date, though they have seen a significant resurgence over the past two months.
Tesla is set to report its second-quarter earnings on Tuesday, where Musk is expected to provide an update on the company’s delayed robotaxi unveiling.