Elon Musk Wants People Primed For His Optimus AI Robots | Inc.Com

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Musk made it clear that the robots weren't going to look anything like a real person, neatly side-stepping the unsettlingly human-like "uncanny valley" problems associated with some humanoid robots like the famous Sophia . The entrepreneur said Tesla was going to make Optimus "good looking," though, according to Business Insider.

That Musk would think seriously about the appearance of the Optimus tallies with design choices made for SpaceX's space suits --Musk took a direct hand in steering Hollywood costume designer Jose Fernandez when he created the modish suits that shun traditional NASA industrial design norms. The Optimus prototypes that Tesla has already shown also look markedly different, perhaps gentler than other outfits' robots, particularly aggressive-looking machines like Boston Dynamics' Atlas .

Industrial designers have long known that appearance can impact how people interact with their products, with the front of cars being a particular example: researchers have shown "friendlier" cars change how people chose to cross the road.

Making Optimus "good looking" may thus prove a sensible choice, and even help Musk achieve his goal, also stated at Cannes, of selling an Optimus to everyone, and even having them widely adopted in different industries. Recently Musk said Optimus's could sell for as little as $20,000 and he suggested that widespread adoption in workplace, industrial and home settings could add tens of billions to Tesla's value.