Tesla starts Optimus production, but Elon Musk has a long wait in store for buyers
Tesla has started building production-quality Optimus humanoid robots at its Fremont, CA factory, but buyers can't get one yet. On the Tesla Q3 earnings call on October 21, CEO Elon Musk referred to the work as "early production" and stated that deliveries to external companies are likely toward the end of 2027.
The robots are being built on a production line which is designed for a far higher output than Tesla can currently achieve. Tesla does state that its manufacturing process is suitable for commercial production, though the design and manufacturing processes will continue to evolve.
So far, Tesla has not announced a price, nor a delivery schedule for individual customers, nor given an insight into how many Optimus units have been completed to date.
Fremont production has begun, but Tesla expects a slow manufacturing ramp
Tesla's Q3 update referred to the Fremont bots as its first "production-quality" bots. Musk noted that the bulk of the equipment for a line designed to produce 1 million robots per year had arrived. However, this is only the planned capacity and not the current output.
Musk said it would take at least a year to get to 20,000 robots a week, or possibly longer. He also noted that the ramp would be very uneven, as Optimus is a brand new product with all sorts of different parts and processes that need to be able to work in concert.
Some of the design elements are still subject to change, and Tesla will have to build a supply chain that can support production at scale. The company is in the process of converting space at Fremont, which was previously used for Model S and Model X production, over to Optimus.
However, having built a factory doesn't in itself prove that the robot is ready to do useful work. Tesla has yet to publish a verified production number or detailed results to show that the robot can perform tasks reliably without human intervention. The company hasn't announced plans for a public demo of the production version, nor has it published repeatable performance results.
According to Musk, Optimus still has a long way to go in terms of its hands, durability, safety, and AI. The hands need to be able to manipulate all sorts of different objects, and they need to be able to do so over and over again through repeated use. A robot designed for factory work must perform tasks safely and reliably over time.
Musk says deliveries to companies outside Tesla are expected by late 2027
Musk expects Tesla to be delivering Optimus to external customers by the end of 2027 once the final engineering work is done. Industrial jobs, particularly the dangerous and repetitive ones, are the first target.
Before sales, Tesla plans to build a fleet of 10,000 to 20,000 robots for what Musk refers to as "Optimus Academy". Musk also says Tesla hopes to integrate its AI5 chip into Optimus in April 2027. The chip will provide more computing power, but won't by itself solve the issues of dexterity, reliability, or decision-making in real-world tasks.
The AI, the mechanical design, and useful operating life all still need work. There's also a clear distinction between the announcement of manufacturing and a product that's ready for customers. So while production has started, Tesla has yet to demonstrate that Optimus can perform a broad range of unscripted tasks reliably.
The price for Optimus has not been announced yet. The next steps include a gradual factory ramp, more robot development, and evidence that these robots can actually do useful work. External deliveries are still targeted for late 2027, but that is not a date when the product will be available to buy commercially.
Sources: Aparobot , The Verge , TechCrunch
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