Although it is best known for its electric cars, Tesla is also developing a humanoid robot called Optimus. And the company continues to achieve new exploits to make this robot more skillful. This week, for example, the manufacturer published a video which highlights the new capabilities of the robot’s hands and forearms.
“I have a new hand for Black Friday”jokes Optimus’ official X account, which shares a video in which we see the robot catching tennis balls. This is a new feat for Optimus, which was made possible thanks to technical improvements to the hands.
Got a new hand for Black Friday pic.twitter.com/x3gQrsbYAQ
— Tesla Optimus (@Tesla_Optimus) November 28, 2024
Milan Kovac, Optimus’ chief engineer, explains that Tesla has doubled the number of degrees of freedom in the hands and forearms. Specifically, Optimus now has 22 degrees of freedom on my hand and 3 degrees of freedom on the forearm.
A more agile robot to carry out more tasks
Kovac also indicates that this is not yet the final version of Optimus’ new hand. Indeed, before the end of the year, Tesla engineers will have to improve touch detection by covering a larger surface area than on the previous hand. The manufacturer must also improve the tendons and lighten the forearm.
As a reminder, Tesla is developing this robot so that it can carry out repetitive, boring or dangerous tasks in place of human beings. But the company could also, later, position its humanoid as a domestic robot for homes. In any case, this is a very important project for Tesla, which believes that robotics could boost its growth in the long term. Indeed, within ten years, the market for humanoid robots could be worth several tens of billions of dollars.
Elon Musk also thinks that in 2040, there could be more humanoid robots than humans on Earth. He also thinks that, thanks to Optimus, Tesla could, one day, exceed $25,000 billion in capitalization.
- Tesla continues to improve its Optimus robot
- In a video, he presents the new hands of this robot, which now have 22 degrees of freedom
- The Optimus robot is very important for Tesla, which is counting on humanoids to ensure its long-term growth
