Elon Musk Foresees a Future with 1 Billion Humanoid Robots by 2040s

In an intriguing conversation with a contemporary from the tech industry, billionaire Elon Musk has voiced his agreement with a forecast suggesting that the 2040s could see Earth populated by around 1 billion humanoid robots. This bold vision aligns with predictions from David Holz, creator of the artificial intelligence research lab Midjourney. Holz's forecast paints a future with not just billions of robots on our planet but also a sprawling robotic presence encompassing the entire solar system, scaling up to a hundred billion, many stationed on extraterrestrial grounds, by the 2060s.

Commenting on Holz's speculations, Musk remarked that such an outcome appears feasible as long as civilization's underpinnings remain solid and unshaken. It's a comment that blends Musk's iconic technological optimism with a hint of caution, acknowledging the delicate balance of societal and environmental stability that underpins such technological advances.

Tesla's Leap Into Humanoid Robotics

Against the backdrop of these futuristic prophecies, Tesla, Inc., one of Musk's many entrepreneurial ventures, recently showcased a prototype for a humanoid robot. This robot, dubbed the Tesla Optimus or Tesla Bot, was introduced to the public during Tesla's AI Day in August 2021. At that time, Musk emphasized the potential significance of the robot, considering it could possibly eclipse the company's automobile industry in terms of impact.

Musk's aspiration to turn this prototype into millions of functioning units comes with an ambitious price point of approximately $20,000 each. While presenting the Optimus robot, Musk made it clear there was still a significant amount of work required to enhance its abilities. Despite the early stages and limited functionality demonstrated in 2022, Musk's projections see the Tesla Bot evolving into an 'extremely capable' machine, with a hopeful market launch in three to five years from the prototype's unveiling.

Future Implications and Optimus' Role

As Musk envisions a future where humanoid robots play an integrative part in our society, he acknowledges that producing such robots isn't immediately connected to Tesla's core mission of accelerating sustainable energy. However, he suggests that the introduction of Optimus could expand the company's horizons, contributing to what he terms 'making the future awesome.' With Musk’s track record of turning what once seemed impossible into reality, the industry and the world at large watch with anticipation to see how this vision unfolds over the next two decades.

Musk, robots, Tesla