Tesla’s stock experienced an increase on Monday, fueled by Elon Musk’s ongoing promotion of the company’s humanoid robots.
Musk announced on X that Tesla would likely produce genuinely useful humanoid robots for internal use in low volumes next year, with hopes for larger-scale production for other companies by 2026.
At Tesla’s annual meeting in April, Musk had projected that the Optimus robots would enter limited production in 2025, estimating that more than 1,000 units would be operational at the company by the end of that year. Currently, two robots are present on the factory floor, although their specific roles remain undisclosed.
Musk previously suggested that the introduction of the robots could potentially add $20 trillion to Tesla’s market cap. Although the robots are not expected to be available for purchase until late 2025, a selling price between $20,000 and $30,000 has been indicated.
The term “genuinely useful” has raised questions, as past demonstrations have not always been convincing. For instance, Tesla faced criticism for a video showing an Optimus robot folding a shirt, which was later revealed to have been controlled by an off-screen person.
Historically, Tesla has been accused of presenting illusions in its robot demonstrations. The initial unveiling of the Optimus project in 2021 involved a person dressed as a robot dancing.
Craig Irwin, an analyst at Roth MKM, commented on Yahoo Finance that developing a sentient humanoid robot by 2025 seems improbable, especially considering Tesla’s previous attempts with a dancer in a robot costume. He expressed skepticism about Tesla’s ability to compete with established players like Boston Dynamics, noting that their technology appears outdated.
Alongside Hyundai’s Boston Dynamics, Tesla faces competition from Honda and Apptronik in Japan. Chinese companies like Dongfeng Motor and Nio are also testing humanoid robots developed by UBTech Robotics in their production lines, while BMW has incorporated humanoid robots from Silicon Valley-based Figure into its operations since the beginning of the year.
On Monday, Tesla’s stock rose by more than 3% following Musk’s comments. Year-to-date, shares are relatively stable after experiencing a significant recovery over the past two months.
Tesla is scheduled to report its second-quarter earnings on Tuesday, where Musk is anticipated to provide updates on the delayed robotaxi introduction.