Tesla manufactures vehicles, yet its primary rivals today appear less like traditional automakers such as General Motors or Ford, and more like major tech giants aiming to commercialize AI technologies — mighty Apple notably among them.
The iPhone maker is considering launching a small AI-trained robot in 2026 or 2027, wrote Morgan Stanley analyst Adam Jonas on Wednesday, citing a Bloomberg report. “A $3.6 trillion company with Apple’s resources and pedigree can have a deterministic impact on the world of robotics,” he added.
AI optimism has driven much of the rally. Tesla uses AI computing to teach its cars to drive and humanoid robots to complete useful tasks. Tesla launched a robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, in June. It wants to start selling significant quantities of robots as soon as 2026.
(One incentive in Tesla CEO Elon Musk’s new trillion-dollar pay package, to be voted on by shareholders in November, is to deliver one million humanoid robots.)
“Elon Musk may have been early on identifying the opportunity of physical AI… However, the secret is out,” wrote Jonas, adding the Magnificent Seven tech firms are working on robots enabled by AI. “A firm like Apple getting into the ring on robots would mean another giant in need of world-class AI and manufacturing talent.” That’s more competition for talent among Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Microsoft, Amazon.com, and, of course, Tesla.
MacDailyNews Take: As American AI and robotics scientist Cynthia Breazeal said so well, “If you look at the field of robotics today, you can say robots have been in the deepest oceans, they’ve been to Mars, you know? They’ve been all these places, but they’re just now starting to come into your living room. Your living room is the final frontier for robots.”
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