Tesla surprisingly released a video of the second generation ‘Optimus’, an artificial intelligence (AI) humanoid (humanoid robot) that more closely resembles human movements, on the 12th (local time). While Optimus, which was released in September, showed off his sense of balance by arranging blocks and doing yoga on one foot, this time he showed off his delicate movements by demonstrating tasks such as boiling an egg.
The humanoid Optimus, so-called ‘Teslabot’, is part of Tesla’s AI project unveiled by Tesla CEO Elon Musk in 2021. CEO Musk said that by training neural networks to perform basic tasks, they can replace simple labor in factories or be used as domestic helpers and human companions.
Tesla released a 1 minute 43 second video of the 2nd generation Optimus on this day and said, “Walking speed is 30% faster than before, hands can move in 11 directions, and all fingers have tactile sensors.” He claimed that the weight was also reduced by about 10 kg compared to the previous version.
After announcing the development of the robot in 2021, when the actual product was first revealed in 2022, Optimus seemed to have difficulty even walking. However, in March of this year, they were shown walking around a factory, and in September, they were shown doing yoga, getting closer to human movement.
Optimus, who evolved again this time, delicately picked up the egg without breaking it using his thumb and forefinger and placed it in boiling water. Electrek, a U.S. media outlet specializing in electric vehicles, said, “One of the most difficult parts of creating a useful humanoid is the hands. “It must be strong enough to support a significant amount of weight, yet precise enough to handle delicate objects,” he said. “According to the video, Optimus Gen 2 is equipped with new hands that can be considered a significant upgrade.”
Photo source: Tesla ‘X’ (old Twitter)Optimus also walked between Tesla Cybertrucks at a faster pace than the previous generation, went to the gym, and performed squats with perfect posture. He showed that he had joints that allowed him to control his body even in a squat position. When it was pointed out that ‘the walking speed was edited because it was faster than before’, Julian Ivarz, who said he was the lead developer of Optimus, said on the social media LinkedIn, “The video was not sped up to be completely real-time.”
CEO Musk said at last year’s ‘Investor Day’, “In the future society, the ratio between humans and humanoids will exceed 1:1. “We cannot even know now what kind of economy will unfold in such a future,” he said. He also said that the price of this robot will be less than $20,000 (26.4 million won) within the next three to five years. When commercialized, ‘robot workers’ who work without vacation with an annual salary of 30 million won will be created.
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Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.