Tesla is facing significant setbacks in its Optimus humanoid robot production. The company aimed to produce 5,000 Optimus units in 2025 but has only managed to build a few hundred so far. The main challenges causing delays include underdeveloped hand and forearm components, overheating joint motors, battery issues, and general hardware reliability problems. Many completed robot chassis are currently idle as Tesla engineers work to fix these technical issues.
Production was paused in mid-2025 following the departure of Milan Kovac, the original project leader, and the team is now undergoing a major redesign under new leadership led by Ashok Elluswamy. Tesla expects production of the updated “Optimus 3” model to start only in early 2026. CEO Elon Musk has moderated earlier ambitious timelines, acknowledging that the 2025 production target looks increasingly unachievable, though he remains optimistic about scaling production in the longer term, with a goal of one million units per year within five years.
These delays and leadership changes have drawn scrutiny and raised doubts about Tesla’s ability to meet short-term targets, though the company still sees the Optimus project as strategically important for the future.
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