Elon Musk presents "Optimus" the humanoid robot at Tesla's AI Day.

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, unveils his much-discussed humanoid robot "Optimus" on Friday at the company's "AI Day" event.

The billionaire stated that a robot-based business would be more valuable than a car-based business. He desires to advance beyond self-driving cars, which he has repeatedly promised but has not yet delivered.

A model of the robot walked onto the stage and waved to the audience members. A video was shown in the automaker's factory of a robot carrying a box, watering plants, and moving metal bars.

Musk stated at the event held at a Tesla office in Palo Alto, California, "Our immediate goal is to create a useful humanoid robot."

"There is still much work to be done to improve and demonstrate the functionality of Optimus."

Musk stated that current humanoid robots "lack a brain" due to their inability to navigate the world on their own. He added that they are expensive and produced in limited quantities.

In contrast, he stated that Optimus would be a "extremely capable robot" that would be mass-produced in the millions and cost significantly less than a car, at less than $20,000.

Musk was also anticipated to discuss Tesla's long-awaited technology for autonomous vehicles.

In May, the CEO stated that the world's most valuable automobile manufacturer would be worth "virtually nothing" without fully autonomous vehicles. Additionally, the company faces increasing regulatory investigations and technological obstacles.

Musk tweeted late Wednesday evening, "There will be a great deal of technical detail and cool hardware demonstrations." He also stated that the purpose of the event was to recruit new engineers. The record of Tesla's live demonstrations is not flawless.

Musk had an employee throw a steel ball at the armored window of a new electric pickup truck in 2019, causing the window to shatter.

The most important test for the robot is its ability to deal with unforeseen circumstances.

Musk discussed Tesla's plan for humanoid robots during its AI day last August. The AI day for this year has been moved from August to September so that the robot prototype can be tested and production can begin as early as next year.

Tesla posted a picture of metal robot hands forming a heart on social media as a hint about when the robot would be unveiled to the public. However, according to Heni Ben Amor, a robotics professor at Arizona State University, it is extremely difficult to create hands that look and function like human hands.

Musk claims that Optimus used to perform tedious or dangerous tasks, such as moving parts around Tesla factories or installing a car bolt with a wrench. This was a reference to the heroic leader of the Autobots from the Transformers franchise.

"There are countless things that humans can do with their hands that robots cannot. This is true regardless of whether the robot is a robot arm or a humanoid, according to Jonathan Hurst, chief technology officer at Agility Robotics, a company that manufactures humanoid robots.

Musk has stated that in the future, robots could be used in homes to make dinner, mow the lawn, care for the elderly, and even serve as a "buddy" or sex partner.

At the event on Friday, he will also discuss Tesla's high-speed computer, Dojo, which was unveiled last year and is integral to the company's work on self-driving technology.

Musk has stated that he believes Tesla will be fully autonomous this year and that a robotaxi devoid of a steering wheel and pedals will be mass-produced by 2024.

Musk promised one million robotaxis by 2020 at a 2019 "Autonomy" event, but no one has received one yet.