Tesla Aims for Thousands of Optimus Robots by Year-End 2025 Amid Strategic Pivot

Palo Alto, CA – Tesla, Inc. is on track to produce several thousand units of its humanoid robot, Optimus, by the close of 2025, signaling a significant strategic shift for the company. This ambitious production target underscores Tesla's evolving identity from primarily an electric vehicle manufacturer to a leader in artificial intelligence and robotics. The move comes as the company faces increasing competition in its core automotive business.

The "Whole Mars Catalog" account, a prominent voice in the Tesla community, recently highlighted the robot's rapid advancements via a tweet, stating, "Wow. Optimus is much further along than we thought." This sentiment reflects the growing capabilities of the humanoid robot, which Tesla intends to deploy initially within its own factories to automate repetitive and strenuous tasks.

Tesla's CEO, Elon Musk, has consistently emphasized Optimus's long-term potential, projecting that the robotics division could eventually constitute 80% of Tesla's overall value. The company plans to scale production dramatically, aiming for 50,000 to 100,000 units in 2026, with a vision to reach 500,000 to 1 million units annually by the decade's end. Musk has also indicated that Optimus could be commercially available to external customers by late 2025, with an estimated price point between $20,000 and $30,000 per unit.

Recent iterations of Optimus, including the Gen 2 model showcased in December 2023, have demonstrated improved dexterity, a slimmer design, and new abilities such as dancing and delicate handling of objects like eggs. The Gen 3 version, previewed in May 2024, is expected to feature even more advanced hand articulation with 22 degrees of freedom. Despite these advancements, the project has faced engineering challenges, including issues with overheating and battery life, leading to redesign efforts in mid-2025.

The focus on robotics is a key component of Tesla's Master Plan Part 4, which outlines a future where AI and humanoid robots play a central role in achieving "sustainable abundance" by significantly reducing labor and energy costs. Beyond factory applications, Musk has even announced plans to send an Optimus robot to Mars in 2026 aboard a SpaceX Starship rocket, showcasing the company's long-term vision for the robot's capabilities. This pivot is seen by analysts as a strategic response to a slowdown in EV sales and intensifying global competition, particularly from Chinese manufacturers.