Why Tesla's Optimus Robot Might Have a Hollywood "Problem"
Key Points
Hollywood portrays robots in homes, but real adoption starts in industry, where they are already in extensive use.
Optimus will likely be used in factories and logistics first.
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When Hollywood makes movies about humanoid robots, like Tesla's (NASDAQ: TSLA) Optimus, it tends to set them in a home environment. That's understandable: After all, a movie about a humanoid robot improving productivity in an automotive plant by carrying parts around isn't likely to be a box-office success. However, it's exactly the kind of application Optimus is likely to be used for.
Why the discrepancy matters
Whenever investors buy into a growth stock, they will need to assess the likelihood of its market adoption. When it comes to Tesla, that means assessing the Optimus robot, which Tesla CEO Elon Musk says "will be the biggest product ever."
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Making that assessment might prove difficult if investors base it on consumers adopting humanoid robots in the home. While that will potentially happen at some point, the reality is that the initial adoption of Optimus robots will largely be in places very similar to where existing robots are used.
Current uses of robots
According to the International Federation of Robotics' "World Robotics 2025" report, robots are most widely used in an industrial setting.
In particular, the automotive and logistics industries have long been early adopters of robotics to improve productivity. Indeed, according to Tesla's head of AI, Ashok Elluswamy, "We have a large number of Optimus robots practicing their tasks in what we call the Optimus Academy," and the data created from this practice "will be invaluable and help us close any minor form factor gaps that may exist between the bot and the humans."
Does Optimus make Tesla a stock to buy?
When Musk makes cautious comments (as he did on the recent earnings call) about how long it will take to ramp up Optimus production, investors shouldn't expect too much too soon. The perfecting and production scaling of Optimus is one thing, but adoption is another. Regarding the latter, investors interested in Tesla might do better to forget about Hollywood and robots running amok in homes and focus on Optimus as an extension of existing robots.
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Lee Samaha has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Tesla. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
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