Can Musk's Optimus Dream Power Tesla's Next Growth Phase?

Tesla TSLA is taking steps to scale up the production of its humanoid robot, Optimus. CEO Elon Musk has great expectations for Optimus and thinks that it has the potential to become the biggest product of the company.

Per Teslarati, Tesla plans to expand its Texas Gigafactory to build a dedicated facility for mass-producing Optimus, the robot designed to handle everyday, repetitive tasks. For now, pilot production is underway at Tesla’s Fremont factory in California, where early Optimus V3 prototypes are being assembled. Tesla expects to ramp up Fremont’s output to about 1 million units annually by late 2026, ahead of a much larger production push in Texas. The Gigafactory Texas line is planned to start in 2027, with a staggering 10-million-unit annual capacity.

Musk believes that Optimus could transform how people work by taking over repetitive or monotonous tasks. Optimus prototypes are already being tested across Tesla facilities, helping move parts, sort materials and support production line operations. Tesla aims to produce each robot at around $20,000 per unit, once full-scale production begins.

Tesla plans to unveil the Optimus V3 design in early 2026, with Musk teasing that it will look so lifelike “you’ll need to poke it to believe it’s an actual robot.”

Optimus shows Tesla’s push to expand beyond cars and into robotics—a move that could open new long-term growth opportunities. Still, it’s too early to say how big an impact Optimus will have. Companies like Boston Dynamics and Figure AI are also advancing quickly, meaning Tesla has plenty of catching up to do before Optimus becomes the game-changer Musk envisions.

At the same time, tech heavyweights are racing to build the brains behind next-generation robots.

NVIDIA NVDA is solidifying its position in the transformative robotics revolution through groundbreaking 2025 advancements, including the launch of Isaac GR00T N1.5, the world's first open humanoid robot foundation model and the general availability of Jetson Thor, delivering an unprecedented 2,070 FP4 teraflops of AI compute power within a 130-watt envelope for real-time robotic reasoning. 

Advanced Micro Devices AMD is also pushing into robotics with its Kria System-on-Modules and the KR260 Robotics Starter Kit for industrial robots. Its partnership with BlackBerry QNX gives AMD an edge in enabling real-time robotics with reduced latency. From surgical robots to factory floors, Advanced Micro Devices is planting its flag in the space.

The Zacks Rundown on TSLA Stock

Shares of Tesla have gained 6% year to date compared with the industry’s growth of 12%.

From a valuation standpoint, TSLA trades at a forward price-to-sales ratio of 13.47, above the industry and its own five-year average. It carries a Value Score of D.

See how the Zacks Consensus Estimate for TSLA’s earnings has been revised over the past 90 days.

Tesla stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research