Musk: Tesla will likely rent Optimus robots instead of selling them
Elon Musk said Tesla will probably rent its humanoid robots to customers, with build costs starting near $30,000 and falling toward $20,000.
Tesla will probably rent its Optimus humanoid robots to customers rather than sell them, Elon Musk said on November 6 at the 33rd Annual Baron Investment Conference in New York. Asked whether Tesla would rent or sell the robot, Musk answered, "I think probably rent them."
Musk also sketched what the robot costs Tesla to build. Asked whether Optimus would be cheaper to build than a car, he said it would cost about the same at first and then much less over time, agreeing with a framing that put early build costs near $30,000 per unit and falling toward $20,000. He did not say what a rental would cost.
Tesla started early production of Optimus last month on a line in Fremont built for up to 1 million robots a year, in space freed by tearing down the Model S and Model X lines. Musk expects it to take at least a year to reach full production speed. Tesla plans to put Optimus to work in its own factories first, with deliveries to outside companies around the end of 2027, now expected to arrive as rentals. An AI5-powered version is expected around April 2027.
Musk said in the interview that Optimus will be five times more productive than the average human. Tesla delayed the unveiling of its third-generation Optimus earlier this year, but a demo video could arrive soon, possibly this month, Musk said on the third-quarter earnings call.
Renting Optimus fits Tesla's shift toward recurring revenue. Full Self-Driving (Supervised) reached a record number of subscribers in the third quarter and was purchased with 75 percent of new vehicle orders in North America, and Tesla confirmed an analyst's estimate that the software's annual recurring revenue is approaching $1 billion. More detail on Optimus rental terms is expected closer to the first customer deliveries, or at Tesla's annual shareholder meeting on December 3.