Tesla Targets 1,000 Optimus Robots Produced Weekly In Rapid Production Ramp-Up

If you're familiar with the public failure of the Tesla Optimus robot from around a year ago, where the robot knocked over water bottles and fell over backward, you might be surprised to hear the project is still pushing aggressively forward. Elon Musk remains extremely bullish on Optimus. He predicted early in 2026 that Optimus (part of the Tesla company) should begin to make a major impact and "change the status quo" during 2027. In an attempt to continue moving toward that goal, Tesla is expecting to increase its production of Optimus robots to more than 1,000 per week by the end of 2026. This would represent an increase in production of roughly 10 times over 2026's second quarter.

Tesla and Musk are certainly betting heavily on the success of Optimus. Recently, Tesla halted production of two of its iconic car models to make robots. The company converted production areas for the Model S and Model Y vehicles to robot production in just 46 days.

However, it doesn't appear as though the Optimus robots' capabilities are progressing as fast. According to an exclusive report from The Information, creating hands that can function in a manner to mimic humans has been a production challenge. The hands and forearms of the humanoid robots require significant manual assembly work, according to the report. Some automated assembly stations for the hands aren't accurate or consistent enough, either. Such limitations are reportedly complicating ramping up the scale of robot manufacturing.

In case you aren't familiar with the Optimus program, it's developing and creating a robot that resembles a human. Tesla and Musk announced the program in 2021, and it's been progressing since then. The idea behind Optimus is that it can walk on two "legs" and use its "hands" like a human. It would perform tasks that might be dangerous or boring for humans, while potentially also serving as a family companion.

Although Musk sometimes misses on his predictions about production goals for his companies, what if Optimus hits its ramped up production expectations? Musk has said in the recent past that he expects the public to be able to purchase Optimus robots by late 2027. Optimus robots are reportedly already working inside Tesla factories.

At a 2024 event, Musk estimated that the robots would cost $20,000 to $30,000. He said prices should go down in future years as the technology and manufacturing processes become more streamlined. However, some industry analysts believe the actual cost per robot upon release will fall between a range of $50,000 and $100,000. It's important to note that at the time of this writing, Tesla doesn't have an option for residential or commercial customers to preorder Optimus robots. Musk's predictions aside, Tesla hasn't officially announced a price point or release date for Optimus, either.

When Optimus robots are available for regular purchase, whenever that may be, what will they be able to do? Some people expect units that will resemble the best TV robot sidekicks that work (and crack jokes) like humans. They'll do our most mundane tasks and adjust actions in real time. Others believe these machines will be good at one task, but might not adjust on the fly.

Upon its release, Optimus will probably perform general manual labor in commercial, retail, or residential settings. It'll be able to deadlift 150 pounds and walk while carrying up to 45 pounds. Down the road and after continued improvements, Optimus should be able to do far more tasks, according to Musk's predictions. The humanoid robot could eventually do your shopping, perform child care, converse with you, or care for your pets. "Whatever you can think of, it'll do," Musk said at a 2024 event. "And, yeah, it's going to be awesome."

At 5-foot-8, the Optimus robot will be similar in height to an average American adult male (5-foot-9) and much taller than an average American female adult (5-foot-3.5). And for the record, despite the visual design that's very similar to a human, Optimus robots aren't headed toward a future where they become like a T-800 cyborg from "The Terminator", according to Musk. In past interviews, he's compared them more to friendly "Star Wars" robots, like C-3PO or R2-D2.