Skepticism was high when Elon Musk said he wanted to build a humanoid robot; the person dancing in a stretchy onesie during his announcement last year didn't exactly help with his credibility. At Tesla AI Day 2022, Musk lowered expectations for the unveiling, saying that compared to the dancer, it would be an improvement, then his team showed off Tesla Optimus.

The result — the Tesla Optimus Development Platform took around six months to build — was a surprise; it could walk without support from cables or wires, a milestone. "This is literally the first time the robot has operated without a tether, onstage tonight," Musk admitted. Progress, yes, but the goal is a robot that can liberate a human workforce.

Optimus uses the same self-driving computer as Autopilot in Tesla's electric cars relies upon and trains itself using the same processes that Autopilot does on the roads. The development platform uses "semi off-the-shelf actuators," Musk says. The battery is in the center of the robot's torso, with 2.3 kWh capacity, which should be enough for a full day's work.