If you’ve ever thought, “How could Tesla possibly top the Cybertruck in terms of absurdity?” be careful what you wish for, because here it is: the Tesla Bot.
CEO Elon Musk unveiled the 5’8” humanoid at Tesla’s AI Day event on Thursday night, describing it as sort of a body to house Tesla’s Dojo supercomputer and neural networks.
He explained that with Tesla’s cars already serving as “semi-sentient robots on wheels,” and its Full Self-Driving feature and other technological advancements ever evolving, “it kind of makes sense to put that on to a humanoid form.”
Assuaging possible fears, Musk stressed that Tesla Bot would be designed to be “friendly.” In case anyone isn’t convinced, he added that the android walks slow enough—at five miles per hour—allowing humans to “run away from it.”
Visuals shared by the CEO also outline a head where autopilot cameras and a screen would be displayed, a Full Self-Driving computer stomach, “human-level hands,” and lightweight materials within the limbs for agility.
Click to view enlarged version Click to view enlarged version. Image via Tesla
Aside from being a robotics case, the Tesla Bot can be trained to perform physical tasks—whether “dangerous, repetitive, [or] boring”—such as carrying items or buying groceries on your behalf. Musk projects a world where physical labor could eventually be a choice.
Tesla intends to have a prototype for Tesla Bot ready “sometime next year.”
Click to view enlarged version Click to view enlarged version. Image via Tesla