Rabat – On January 15th, Elon Musk shared a brief video on X, formerly Twitter, where Tesla’s new Optimus Gen-2 robot, also known as Optimus, confidently stood next to a table, effortlessly folding clothes.
However, skeptics swiftly emerged, questioning the authenticity of the video and speculating on the potential use of Computer-Generated Imagery to enhance Optimus’s capabilities.
“So, explain why there seems to be a shadow hand at the bottom right that seems to control Optimus’ movement?” queried one user.
As the video garnered momentum in the online sphere, the serial entrepreneur had to set the record straight.
In a clarifying comment, he affirmed that “Optimus cannot yet do this autonomously, but certainly will be able to do this fully autonomously and in an arbitrary environment.”
This led to a playful dialogue, where users asserted that a robot, with its advanced capabilities, should be tackling more complex and challenging assignments.
One X user humorously declared “My mom would’ve already taken its place and said: Too slow, I’ll do it. I always have to do everything around here.”
Darell Etherington, editor at TechCrunch, an American global online newspaper focusing on high-tech and startup companies, added to the dialogue on the robot’s laundry skills. In his article he wrote, “First, I can definitely fold shirts faster than that. Second, Optimus wasn’t acting autonomously, which is obviously the end goal.”
The editor also ironically describes the robot as “a very expensive marionette, or at best a modern facsimile of the first rudimentary automatons, going through prescribed motions to accomplish its task.”
In an interesting turn, certain female users raised thought-provoking questions, wondering, “Is this going to replace women?,” jokingly asking “Is he available to come do my laundry ?”
Optimus, unveiled as a revolutionary Tesla Bot and a general-purpose robotic humanoid, made its debut on August 19, 2021, during the company’s Artificial Intelligence Day event.
Fast forward to December 13, 2023, when Musk‘s X page treated the world to a captivating video titled “Optimus,” showcasing the second generation of Optimus, demonstrating its remarkable capabilities, such as dancing and poaching an egg.
Musk named the robot Optimus to give tribute to the legendary Transformers character Optimus Prime.
