During Tesla’s AI Day conference, Elon Musk announced an ambitious new project: designing humanoid robots thought to help with simple tasks.
After the takeover of the automotive market and the conquest of Mars, Elon Musk has a new fad: humanoid robots, designed to help us in repetitive and boring, even dangerous tasks. On the occasion of the AI Day conference broadcast on the night of August 20, the billionaire announced that the project is currently in development within Tesla. A first prototype could be presented next year, but keep in mind that Elon Musk regularly communicates missed deadlines. The show on stage did not involve a real robot, but a person disguised as a robot and performing a small choreography for the occasion.
The robot, called Tesla Bot, already has its description on the manufacturer’s official website, in the tab dedicated to artificial intelligence and Autopilot. A bipedal automaton is simply mentioned for which the firm is looking for engineers specializing in several fields (mechanical, electrical, software, etc.). In terms of design, the Tesla Bot still looks a lot like the spooky robots from the science fiction movies: machines so evolved they quickly took over the Earth.
Tesla works on a humanoid robot
This Tesla project is not as surprising as it seems: the multinational is already very involved in robotics and artificial intelligence. After all, its cars, capable of maneuvering alone and increasingly autonomous when driving, already benefit from this know-how. A humanoid robot is only the logical continuation and will naturally find its place in factories to help with the assembly of products.
Tesla will be able to use the data stored by its Bot to continue improving its technologies. The robot’s technical sheet also brings together components that are already found in cars: Autopilot cameras, processors dedicated to FSD (Full Self-Driving) or neural networks. The Tesla Bot will also be based on Dojo, a supercomputer designed to develop automated systems. Finally, it will benefit from Tesla’s advances in automatic machines (already installed on its production lines).
No doubt aware of the somewhat destabilizing design of his future robots, Elon Musk was very keen to reassure. This robot is ” designed by humans, for humans », Can we read on the slide presentation. It is true that we are talking here about a humanoid measuring 1.77 meters, weighing 57 kilograms, capable of carrying 20 kilograms and walking at 8 km / h. This speed will reassure the most skeptics – you can escape a Tesla Bot by running! The robot is also equipped with a screen (instead of the face), hands with human joints and 40 electromechanical junctions (12 for the arms, 2 for the blow, 2 for the torso, 12 for the hands and 12 for the legs). For balance, the feet have two axes and also have force feedback sensors.
If the Tesla Bot is primarily dedicated to inflating the workforce of Tesla factories, Elon Musk sees a future where he could help the general public. He thus gives the example of a robot that would pick up groceries in the grocery store, in our place. In short, Elon Musk wants us to spare: ” In the future, I think physical labor will be a choice », He assures us.
