Lifeboat Foundation

I’m not a robotics expert, so I’ve been particularly keen to hear what robotics experts think of Tesla’s Optimus presentation the other day. The core arguments from Elon Musk and many Tesla fans regarding why Optimus is such a big deal are: Tesla will find a way to mass produce it at relatively low cost, Tesla is adding a brain to the robot, and it needs to be in the form of a human so that it can perform tasks designed to be done by humans. I don’t see any strong arguments against those things, but I know they are broad-brushed claims and quite vague. What about the details that I can’t see, that a common Tesla fan can’t see, and that perhaps even an engineer working on Optimus can’t see?

Let’s start with Dennis Hong. Dennis is a professor of mechanical & aerospace engineering at UCLA. He’s Director of RoMeLa: Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory. With this title and being an independent expert in the separate world of academia, I was particularly interested to see his opinion. He was clearly excited as AI Day 2 arrived, but not in a sycophantic way. Luckily, he put his thoughts in a good little 13-post Twitter thread.

Known for its electric vehicles, Tesla Inc TSLA also has a solar power division. Customers who bought solar roofs in Florida might be thanking the company after the lingering damage of Hurricane Ian.

What Happened: Hurricane Ian hit landfall in Florida and has caused severe damage to the region. Benzinga previously reported the impact could be $258 billion in replacement costs in one region and another $149 billion in the area of Tampa Bay.

The impact could be hundreds of millions of dollars for insurance companies as well.

There was in-depth engineering rundowns as Musk asks AI experts to join Tesla and help build a better society.

Tesla AI Day 2022 explored the processes required to mimic the human, driver and worker. The autonomous robot and car were laid out in detail, from an engineering point of view. Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, opened the event, and laid out this event’s main focus, including the public in the Tesla projects, especially Optimus Tesla Bot.

Continue reading “Tesla AI Day 2022: Optimus Unit 1 humanoid robot waves at the audience” »

Tesla unveiled its first prototype of its Optimus humanoid robot on Friday — an actual robot this time, by the strictest definition, instead of a flesh and blood human clad in a weird suit. The robot performed some basic functions, including walking a little bit and then raising its hands — all for the first time without supports or a crane, according to Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

The company may be taking its first early steps into humanoid robotics, but it has a lot riding on the business. Musk has said that the Optimus bot will eventually be more valuable “than the car business, worth more than FSD (Tesla’s add-on ‘Full Self-Driving” feature, which is not self driving.)

What was apparent at the event Friday night is that Tesla is making the economically wise, but strategically questionable decision to yoke together the destinies of both Optimus and its Autopilot (and by extension, FSD) ambitions.

At 2022 Tesla AI Day, Elon Musk gave the public its first look at his company’s humanoid robot nicknamed Optimus. He expects the production model to cost less than $20,000.

Musk and Twitter are set to go to Delaware Chancery Court in mid-October over the Tesla CEO’s attempt to get out of his $44 billion deal to buy the company.

Tesla has unveiled its Optimus humanoid robot at its AI Day 2022 today and Elon Musk believes Tesla can bring it to market for “less than $20,000”.

As expected, the event started with Tesla unveiling a working prototype of its humanoid robot – a project first announced at Tesla’s AI day in 2021.

There were two prototypes unveiled at the event.

He made the announcement as usual over Twitter.

Over the years, we have watched with excitement as Tesla CEO Elon Musk has revealed more and more details about the Cybertruck. On Thursday, he took to Twitter to share one more feature of the truck: it will be waterproof enough to briefly serve as a boat.

Tesla.

Continue reading “The Cybertruck will also be a boat, says Elon Musk” »

SpaceX and billionaire astronaut Jared Isaacman are teaming up with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration to study whether a private mission could extend the life of the famed Hubble telescope.

NASA signed an agreement with Elon Musk’s company and the Polaris Program, which Isaacman leads, to study the possibility of using a SpaceX spacecraft to dock with the telescope and change its orbit in an effort to further its lifetime, the parties announced Thursday.

NASA’s science chief Thomas Zurbuchen said during a press call that SpaceX approached NASA with the idea “a few months ago.”