Tesla has begun building Optimus humanoid robots on high-volume lines in California, but its latest update gives no production target, leaving the scale of the rollout undefined.
Tesla’s Oct. 21 third-quarter update says production started at its Fremont operation, which it labels an “Early Ramp.” The capacity table gives no annual figure, and the update does not state a production rate.
Tesla said the robot’s design and the methods used to build it remain subject to change, while describing the current manufacturing setup as capable of supporting a commercial product.
YYForce Inc. praised Tesla and CEO Elon Musk after the announcement. YYForce CEO Mike Fu said, “We applaud this manufacturing milestone,” in the company’s Oct. 26 release.
The Singapore-based workforce and facilities-services company plans to deploy its first humanoid robot at Novotel Singapore on Stevens in early November. YYForce said it intends to use the deployment to assess how a humanoid fits into hotel operations. The project’s pace and scope will depend on technical readiness, site requirements and the results of an initial evaluation.
YYForce’s announcement does not identify the robot’s maker or model. It does not say the planned machine is an Optimus or announce a Tesla partnership, supply agreement or endorsement.
In an Oct. 20 announcement, YYForce said it had acquired 20 wearable data-collection systems, including head-mounted and wrist-mounted cameras, to record housekeeping tasks for robot-learning research. The company said the program remains in development and cautioned that recordings of people doing tasks do not show whether a robot can perform them autonomously or is ready for commercial use.
A separate Oct. 13 plan with Novotel and Mercure Singapore on Stevens covered specialized service robots across a 772-room hotel precinct. YYForce projected about 10% lower monthly costs in selected housekeeping, concierge and food-and-beverage operations, including robot costs. The projection was made before rollout, with actual results to be assessed afterward; it applies to the service-robot project, not the humanoid deployment planned for early November.
