Is the era of mass production of humanoid robots opening? China already sells 20 million won worth of robots
Experts are predicting that the mass production of humanoid robots will usher in an era of 'marketable' robots.
Tesla's Optimus Gen2 humanoid robot standing. [Photo = YouTube capture]
(From left) Tesla's humanoid robot 'Optimus', Unitree's 'H1'. [Photo = YouTube capture]
According to the industry on the 13th, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a performance announcement conference call on the 26th of last month (local time), "We are internally aiming to produce 10,000 Optimus robots this year," and "(If the situation is difficult) I think thousands of units are possible."
Musk added, "The numbers I am presenting now may sound ridiculous," but the robot industry is evaluating that Tesla is heralding an era of 'mass production' of humanoid robots.
This is because Tesla has revealed its plan to deploy robots in its electric vehicle factory, the 'Gigafactory'. CEO Musk also announced that he would supply the robots for $20,000 (about 29 million won). Tesla
unveiled the humanoid robot 'Bumblebee' in September 2022, 'Optimus 1st Generation (Gen 1)' in May 2023, and '2nd Generation (Gen 2)' in December.
While Bumblebee's movements were somewhat crude, Gen 1's joint movements were more delicate at each finger joint, and Gen 2 showed mobility that could be deployed on site. In December of last year, a scene was released of Gen 2 moving a box containing batteries inside Tesla's electric vehicle factory.
Figure AI's humanoid robot (center) and Figure AI CEO Brett Adcock (right). [Photo = LinkedIn]
Figure AI, a leading company in the humanoid robot field along with Tesla, also announced that it will supply 100,000 humanoid robots by 2029.
Brett Adcock, CEO of Figure AI, wrote on LinkedIn on the 1st, "We have signed our second humanoid robot commercialization contract with one of the largest companies in the U.S. We plan to supply 100,000 humanoid robots by 2029." Figure AI signed its
first humanoid robot supply contract with BMW in Germany last year.
Adcock said that this year, they will focus on manufacturing, AI data collection, and learning improvements for mass production and supply of humanoid robots. Han
Jae-kwon, a professor of robotics engineering at Hanyang University, said, "In the past, people were interested in whether robots could run and dance well, but now they are paying attention to whether they can be commercialized at a lower cost and with better quality," and "Companies are entering a completely different type of competition triggered by Tesla."
While Hyundai Motor Group's Boston Dynamics used to focus on showing off excellent athleticism, it has recently been researching what kind of work they can do in automobile factories.
Boston Dynamics' representative models are the humanoid robot 'Atlas' and the robot dog 'Spot'. Atlas is evaluated to have the best mobility of all existing robots, as it can climb stairs, jump, and even do somersaults.
Unitree Robotics' 'H1' robot dancing a traditional dance on China's CCTV Lunar New Year special program last month. [Photo = YouTube capture]
Meanwhile, China's Unitree Robotics attracted attention on the 12th by releasing two humanoid robots on the online mall Jingdong.com.
Unitree's 'H1' and 'G1', which began sales with the condition of 'delivery within 60 days of ordering', are for manufacturing and service industries.
Unitree explained that the products can walk, run, and carry objects.
The price is 99,000 yuan (about 20 million won) and they were sold out shortly after sales began.
Boston Dynamics' humanoid robot is demonstrating work in a factory. [Photo = Boston Dynamics]
Among major domestic companies, Samsung Electronics is just beginning its humanoid robot business. Samsung Electronics established the Robot Future Promotion Group at the end of last year and recently incorporated Rainbow Robotics as a subsidiary. A Samsung Electronics
official explained, "The Robot Research Center within Samsung Research is responsible for securing overall technology, while the Future Robot Promotion Group is responsible for developing future products such as humanoids," but added, "It is still in the early stages, so they are in the process of determining the direction."
LG Electronics is preparing robot products for commercial use at Bear Robotics, and for home and industrial use at LG Electronics. It also plans to produce and release the 'Q9' robot within the year. An
electronics industry official said, "In order to reduce the initial cost of purchasing a robot, it may be possible to sell it through subscriptions," but added, "In the case of humanoid robots, it will likely take several more years for them to develop to home use."
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