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Tesla’s latest update to its Optimus robot – an AI-powered humanoid – has sparked comparisons to Will Smith’s 2004 sci-fi film, I, Robot.
On Thursday (October 10), during the company’s unveiling event for its new Robotaxi, a fully self-driving vehicle, CEO Elon Musk also revealed the company’s newest edition of the Tesla Bot.
Initially unveiled in 2022, the bot has now been upgraded to include quicker walking speeds, improved hand mobility and tactile sensors.
In videos played at the event, Optimus was shown watering plants, bringing in groceries and serving drinks.
“This will be the biggest product ever of any kind,” Musk boldly told the audience, predicting that once made publicly available, the units would cost around $20,000 to $30,000.
“Less than a car is my prediction, long term. It’ll take us a minute to get to the long term,” Musk said, adding that the robot “will do anything you want.”
“It can be a teacher, babysit your kids, it can walk your dog, mow your lawn, get the groceries, just be your friend, serve drinks, whatever you can think of, it will do.”
Following the event, which was live-streamed and later shared on X, people on social media were baffled by how similar the inventions were to those featured in the decades-old classic I, Robot.
Directed by Alex Proyas and starring Smith, Bridget Moynahan, Alan Tudyk and Bruce Greenwood, the movie is set in 2035 amid a world filled with highly intelligent robots in public service positions designed to keep humans safe. However, after the death of the company’s founder, it’s suspected that he was actually murdered by one of the robots.
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Smith plays a robo-skeptic detective investigating the murder.
“During the whole Tesla event all I could think about is I, Robot! Everything Tesla announced is almost identical to the movie,” one person tweeted.
“Growing up on I, Robot, makes today hit different,” a second said, with a third writing: “Idk. This is 40% cool, 60% slightly terrifying. 100% straight from the movie I, Robot.”
“Man ya’ll ain’t watch I, Robot??? Literally unfolding right before our eyes,” a fourth noted, while someone added: “After seeing what Musk revealed last night I think it’s clear he’s seen I, Robot too many times.”
Many others expressed their fear about what the robots would mean for the future of human-run industries.
“Anyone else wondering how our job landscape will look with Optimus rolling around?” one questioned, with another adding: “So what happens to the workers that this thing displaces?”
