A primary look on the Tesla Optimus pilot manufacturing line was shared by the corporate throughout its Q1 2025 Replace letter. Tesla famous that its Optimus manufacturing timeline stays intact with the corporate aiming to provide its first humanoid robots able to helpful work quickly.
Tesla’s Optimus pilot manufacturing line is within the Fremont manufacturing facility, a becoming place for the corporate to start out any challenge. Tesla hopes for a wider deployment of the Optimus bots throughout its factories by the tip of the 12 months.
“And we’ve obtained Optimus. We’re making good progress in Optimus. We count on to have 1000’s of Optimus robots working in Tesla factories by the tip of this 12 months. And we count on to scale Optimus up sooner than any product, I feel, in historical past to get to thousands and thousands of items per 12 months as quickly as doable. I really feel assured in attending to one million items per 12 months in lower than 5 years, perhaps 4 years,” shared Elon Musk throughout TSLA’s first quarter earnings name.
Musk later famous that Tesla’s Optimus manufacturing remains to be “very a lot a improvement program.” He clarified that Tesla won’t soar proper into large-volume manufacturing. As an alternative, Tesla will give attention to producing a number of thousand Optimus bots with many of the manufacturing happening on the tail finish of the 12 months.
“So, nearly the whole lot in Optimus is new. There’s not an present provide chain for the motors, gearboxes, electronics, actuators, actually nearly something within the Optimus aside from the the AI for Tesla, the Tesla AI pc, which is identical as one within the automotive. So when you’ve got a brand new complicated manufactured product, it’ll transfer as quick because the slowest and least fortunate part in your complete factor,” elaborated Musk.
Tesla is working with China to get a license to make use of uncommon earth magnets for Optimus. Earlier this month, China’s Ministry of Commerce imposed restrictions on the export of uncommon earth components and magnets, responding to U.S. President Trump’s tariffs on Chinese language merchandise.
“So we’re working by that with China. Hopefully, we’ll get a license to make use of the uncommon earth magnets. China desires some assurances that these will not be used for navy functions, which, clearly, they’re not. They’re simply going right into a humanoid robotic. In order that’s not a weapon system,” Musk defined.
Musk shared that actuators in Optimus arms use everlasting magnets. He said that Tesla didn’t want to make use of everlasting magnets.
“Now Tesla as a complete doesn’t want to make use of everlasting magnets, however when one thing is quantity constrained, like an arm of the robotic, you then wanna attempt to make the motors as small as doable. After which so we did the design in everlasting magnets for these motors, and people have been affected by the availability chain,” the Tesla CEO commented.
