By Pavethran Batmanathen. Picture Credits: Digital Trends

At the recent We, Robot event, Elon Musk offered a fascinating glimpse into the future, featuring advancements from self-driving cars to humanoid robots. The audience was captivated by the concept of Cybercabs—fully autonomous vehicles devoid of pedals or steering wheels. However, a significant portion of the spotlight also fell on Tesla’s humanoid robot, Optimus.
Musk introduced these robots as capable of performing any task requested of them, which was intriguing in itself. The event showcased various skills of Optimus, including walking, dancing, holding a glass, waving, and even speaking. But the excitement truly escalated once the presentation concluded, as Tesla allowed the Optimus robots to mingle with attendees and engage in conversation (with careful oversight from Tesla team members, of course).

One particularly noteworthy exchange occurred when someone asked Optimus, “What is the hardest part of being a robot?” After a brief moment of contemplation, Optimus responded in a remarkably human manner, stating, “Trying to learn how to be a human like you guys are.” This profound reply was complemented by the robot’s human-like speech delivery, complete with hand gestures.

During this same interaction, Optimus revealed that it strives to become more human-like every day, saying, “And this is something I try every day, and I hope that you help us become that.” This begs the question: does Optimus seek our data to better understand us? This mirrors how AI models such as ChatGPT, Gemini, and Meta AI are constantly learning and evolving.

Another intriguing moment that caught attention was shared on X by the user @ehuna. In the video, a person asked Optimus if it knew how to play rock, paper, scissors. The robot confidently affirmed its knowledge of the game and its rules, setting the stage for a human versus robot showdown.

The clip begins with the user asking the robot to greet his wife. Optimus, displaying a certain charm, responded with a question fit for a celebrity, “Do you want to film it for your wife?” After some light banter, they engaged in five rounds of rock, paper, scissors. In the end, humans still proved to be superior at the game.

Elon Musk has asserted that Optimus will eventually be able to integrate into everyday life. “You’ll be able to walk right up to them, and they will serve drinks,” he stated. Musk describes the capabilities of Optimus as virtually limitless, suggesting it could walk dogs, babysit children, mow lawns, and serve drinks. He projects that the long-term price for such a robot will be between $20,000 and $30,000, declaring, “I believe this will be the most significant product ever created.”

Though still under development, Tesla continues to release updates to demonstrate the progress of Optimus; the latest showcase on Thursday exemplified this evolution. The Gen 2 model marks a significant advancement in the robot’s development. While this represents another stride into the future, it also raises some unsettling feelings. Recall the initial awkwardness when OpenAI introduced the human-like voice feature in its AI model, ChatGPT. Now, envision a sentient being that walks and talks like a human—only it isn’t human at all.

Source: https://www.indiatoday.in/technology/news/story/elon-musks-tesla-humanoid-optimus-says-hardest-part-of-being-a-robot-is-trying-to-be-human-2615330-2024-10-11, Picture Credits: Digital Trends