Elon Musk kicked things off by saying, “This will be the biggest product ever—of any kind,“ as he unveiled the Tesla Optimus robot. While the ‘We, Robot’ event was supposed to spotlight the robotaxi, it was the Optimus robots that wowed everyone. Attendees at the Warner Bros. studio lot in Hollywood watched in awe as several of these humanoid robots glided through the crowd without any strings attached.
It’s pretty wild to think that just 2 years ago, this robot couldn’t even make it on stage by itself! Now, the latest version was not only chatting with guests but also playing rock-paper-scissors. But here’s the catch—rumor has it they might have been controlled remotely. Curious about how it all went down? Let’s dive deeper!
We, Robot event
At a recent Tesla event aimed at exciting investors, humans were apparently helping control some of the Optimus robot prototypes behind the scenes. In a video from the Oct. 10 We, Robot event, an Optimus robot bartender even said it was being “assisted by a human.” Interestingly, Elon Musk didn’t mention this during his speech.
4. Bartender Optimus confirming he’s remote controlledpic.twitter.com/hRAPtutqcd— Min Choi (@minchoi) October 12, 2024
I’d say these robots were probably being controlled by a person. The way the fingers move looks like they’re reacting to a touch-sensitive controller. The head stays focused on the simple tasks the hands are doing. From what I’ve seen, autonomous bots usually have sensors and cameras in every direction. These seem to have them in just one, likely for human headset feedback.
After the presentation, the livestream showed people mingling with Optimus robots at tables and in the crowd. The robots weren’t exactly doing a lot, mostly waving like Astro Bot. There was a table with drinks, but the only thing one of the robots did was hold a cup of ice.
One bot, though, was a bit more interactive—it handed out small gift bags at another table and even played a game of rock, paper, scissors with guests. There was also a gazebo with a group of robots inside, dancing around.
What’s next for Optimus robots?
Optimus was one of the big products featured at the event, alongside the Cybercab robotaxi and a van concept. The invite-only guests, which included investors, Wall Street analysts, and Tesla fans, got to experience short rides in vehicles that were driving autonomously, without human control.
Originally, Optimus wasn’t even supposed to be part of the event. Musk had asked for it to be included just about 3 weeks before, according to Bloomberg’s sources. Because of the last-minute request, the software wasn’t fully ready, so they had to rely on remote operation.
Musk first introduced Tesla’s humanoid robot by having what was clearly someone in a robot suit take the stage, so it’s no surprise the robots at last week’s event had a dramatic flair. The crowd didn’t seem to mind at all.