You can't buy Elon Musk's humanoid robot yet. On October 21, 2026, Tesla said in its third-quarter update that Optimus production had begun "on our high-volume lines" at its Fremont, California factory. It called these units "the first production-quality bots that we have manufactured." On the same day's earnings call, Musk called this "early production." He said Tesla expects to deliver Optimus "to companies outside of Tesla" around the end of 2027, first for industrial work. Tesla has not given a price, a unit count or a production rate.
What Tesla announced on October 21, 2026
Tesla reported the news in its Q3 2026 Update and on the earnings call the same evening.
- Production start. The update says "Optimus production began in Fremont on our high-volume lines." It adds that Tesla "will continue to iterate on the hardware and manufacturing process." These lines are quoted from Tesla North's coverage of the deck. The deck itself was not checked for this article.
- Capacity. Musk said "the vast majority of a 1 million unit per line production line" is now installed in Fremont. Tesla's capacity table lists Optimus as "Early Ramp" in California and "Construction" in Texas, with no capacity figures.
- Ramp speed. Musk said the ramp "has a shallow slope and is somewhat bumpy because it is such a radically new product." He also said reaching the line's full annualized rate "takes us probably at least a year, maybe a little longer." A line built for 1 million units a year works out to about 19,000 robots a week.
- Design still changing. Musk said "there's still parts of the design that are changing," mainly "the hand and just kind of the fine-tuning of the hand design and the fingers." Tesla engineer Konstantinos Laskaris called the hand "one of the most challenging hardware areas."
- Chip. Musk said Tesla plans to put its AI5 chip into Optimus, which "if things go according to plan, will be in approximately April of next year."
- Second factory. CFO Vaibhav Taneja said Tesla has "started constructing a factory here in Austin."
- Next demo. Musk said Tesla "may be ready to release like an Optimus video in a month or so," showing the robot "doing things that are not preprogrammed."
Tesla's Q3 materials did not say which Optimus version is being built.
The financial backdrop
Tesla's 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2026 reports:
- revenue of $28,046 million
- net income attributable to common stockholders of $787 million
- research and development expense of $2,761 million
Tesla said spending on AI, Optimus and the Cybercab is part of its R&D, but it does not report Optimus revenue or costs separately.
When can a business or a household get one?
- Businesses: Musk said deliveries to outside customers are "likely to be towards the end of next year," meaning late 2027. He named "dangerous repetitive tasks, things that people really don't want to do" as the first jobs.
- Homes: Musk said that "as we scale production, of course, it would be something that people can buy for their home." He gave no date.
Tesla Optimus dates: promised vs delivered
Step through Tesla's Optimus dates from 2021 to now, and see which slipped and what is still expected.
- August 2021Tesla Bot announced at AI Daydone
Musk announced a humanoid robot for repetitive tasks. The 2021 concept targets were 5 ft 8 in tall, 125 lb, a 45 lb payload and a top speed of 5 mph. These are not the specifications of the robots being built now.
- October 2024Long-term price aim at "We, Robot"done
Musk said Optimus could eventually sell for $20,000 to $30,000 once production reaches scale. Reports said the robots shown were partly teleoperated. Tesla has not confirmed a price since.
- January 2025Roughly 10,000 robots predicted for 2025slipped
According to Electrek, Musk predicted roughly 10,000 Optimus robots would be built in 2025. The target was missed.
- January 2026Model S/X space to become an Optimus linedone
Tesla said it would end Model S and Model X production and turn that Fremont space into an Optimus line with capacity for up to 1 million units a year. It planned to unveil the third-generation Optimus that quarter.
- April 2026Gen 3 reveal pushed backslipped
The third-generation reveal moved to "probably middle of this year." Musk called the 2026 production rate "literally impossible to predict."
- October 21, 2026Early production starts in Fremontdone
Tesla said Optimus production began on its high-volume lines in Fremont. Musk said reaching the line's full rate takes probably at least a year. Tesla gave no price, unit count or production rate.
- About April 2027AI5 chip planned for Optimusexpected
Musk said the AI5 chip going into Optimus would arrive in approximately April 2027, if things go according to plan.
- Summer 2027Giga Texas Optimus factoryexpected
Electrek reported a start of production around summer 2027. Tesla's capacity table lists Texas as "Construction."
- Late 2027First deliveries to outside companiesexpected
Musk said deliveries to companies outside Tesla are likely towards the end of 2027, first for dangerous, repetitive industrial tasks. He gave no date for home buyers.
This lists only dates Tesla and the cited reports gave; it does not predict whether the expected dates will hold, and nobody outside Tesla has checked its production claims.
How we got here: 2021 to 2026
- August 2021, AI Day. Musk announced the "Tesla Bot," a humanoid robot for "repetitive and robotic tasks." The specifications shown then were 5 ft 8 in (about 172 cm) tall, 125 lb (about 56 kg), able to carry 45 lb (about 20 kg), with a top speed of 5 mph (about 8 km/h). These were concept targets from 2021. They are not the specifications of the robots now being built.
- October 2024, "We, Robot" event. Musk said Optimus could eventually sell for $20,000 to $30,000 once production reaches scale. Reports from the event said the robots shown there were partly teleoperated. Tesla has not confirmed any price since then.
- January 2025. According to Electrek, Musk predicted "roughly 10,000 Optimus robots" would be built in 2025. That target was missed.
- January 2026, Q4 2025 call. Tesla said it would end Model S and Model X production and turn that Fremont space into an Optimus line with capacity for up to 1 million units a year. It said it planned to unveil the third-generation Optimus that quarter, calling it its "first design meant for mass production." Electrek reports that Musk said at the time that no Optimus robots were doing "useful work" in Tesla factories.
- April 2026, Q1 2026 call. The third-generation reveal was pushed to "probably middle of this year." Musk called the 2026 production rate "literally impossible to predict." Electrek reported that a Giga Texas Optimus factory was expected to start production around summer 2027.
- October 2026, Q3 2026. Early production started in Fremont, as described above.
What to watch next
- The demo video Musk promised "in a month or so." In particular, whether Tesla says the robot is acting on its own or being teleoperated.
- Numbers. Tesla has published no unit counts, weekly output, price or customer names. The first of these in a shareholder update would be the first hard measure of progress.
- The hand redesign and the AI5 chip, which Musk tied to "approximately April" 2027.
- The Austin factory, listed as "Construction" in Tesla's capacity table.
- Whether late 2027 holds. Every Optimus date Tesla has published so far, from the 2025 volume target to the Gen 3 reveal, has slipped.
Limitations: almost everything here comes from Tesla, through its filings, its quarterly update and statements on its earnings calls, and nobody outside the company has checked Tesla's production claims.
