Tesla starts Optimus humanoid production in California

Tesla has begun production of its Optimus humanoid robot at its Fremont, California factory, calling the initial units "production-quality bots" and the manufacturing process "suitable for a commercial product." The company announced the milestone in its quarterly earnings report, stating it will continue refining Optimus's hardware and process. Tesla did not specify when the robot will become commercially available, and CEO Elon Musk previously warned scaling up production would be "agonizingly slow." Tesla halted Model S and Model X production at Fremont earlier this year to accommodate an Optimus line targeting one million robots annually, with a second Austin line planned for ten million. The company faces competition from Agility Robotics, Figure AI, and others preparing home deliveries.