Tesla Bot: Who is Kim Kardashian's "new boyfriend" and what Elon Musk has to do with it

If there's any new project in the world that's making headlines or getting noticed, you can be sure that the Kardashian family is never far away. In October, Elon Musk introduced the Tesla robot Optimus.In the future, Tesla bots will take over boring tasks from people, and Kim Kardashian has grabbed one of these robot helpers. What can the technology toy actually do?

Kim Kardashian has introduced a new machine on Elon Musk's social network X, which is run by the 53-year-old. In the future, the technology developed by Tesla will support people in “dangerous, monotonous or uninteresting tasks,” as the company describes it. In a video published there, Kardashian appears to interact with the Tesla Bot, giving a first insight into its capabilities.

“My new friend,” comments Kim Kardashian on a video that shows her in a green space with the Tesla Bot. In the recording she waves to the robot, which apparently waves back autonomously. She then tries to teach him to form a heart symbol with his hands. “Do you really know how to do this?” Kardashian asks, surprised as the bot appears to respond to her instructions. In other clips that Kim Kardashian posted on her Instagram stories, she can be seen playing rock, paper, scissors with the Tesla Bot. However, it remains unclear whether she is actually interacting with the autonomous machine or whether the robot is being controlled remotely by someone in the background. This was exactly the case at the Tesla presentation in October, without the company communicating this transparently. Tesla boss Elon Musk announced in July that the robot could potentially be used within the company as early as next year. In June 2024, Musk stated that Optimus would enter limited production in 2025, with more than 1,000 units planned to be deployed at Tesla facilities. From 2026, the robot could possibly also be produced for other companies.

When the Tesla robot Optimus, also known as Tesla Bot, was first introduced in 2021, quite a few people thought that there was a person hiding inside. But the technology toy is a humanoid robot developed by Tesla to take on versatile tasks. Optimus is designed to be adapted to many human movements and activities through its human-like structure with two arms, two legs and a head-like unit. Its ability to move is one of the robot's key strengths. It can walk, grasp and perform precise movements, which makes it suitable for numerous applications in industry, household or other areas. But Optimus can do even more: He should understand his surroundings, react to obstacles and make decisions. Developed to take on monotonous, dangerous or physically demanding work, it is intended to relieve people's everyday lives. What tasks does Kim Kardashian give him?

Kim Kardashian presented not only the Tesla Bot, but also Tesla's latest vehicle concept: the "Cybercab". This autonomous vehicle has no steering wheel or pedals at all, which underlines Tesla's claim to fundamentally revolutionize road transport. In a video shared by Kardashian, she explores the cybercab's futuristic interior and asks in amazement, "Wait, there's no driver?" The Cybercab is at the heart of Tesla's ambitious plans to advance the era of autonomous vehicles. The Kardashian family's connection to Tesla is not new: At the beginning of the year, Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian's mother, gave her grandson Psalm a mini cybertruck for his fifth birthday - a playful image of the Tesla model. However, it remains unclear whether Kardashian actually bought the Tesla products presented or whether the videos are part of an advertising campaign. The staging of Tesla's innovations raises questions: Are these technologies actually suitable for everyday use, or are they primarily PR-driven visions? Despite impressive advances – from the humanoid Tesla bot to the autonomous cybercab – fundamental challenges in safety, ethics and practicality remain. Kardashian's prominent platform and her staged enthusiasm illustrate how much technology trends can be shaped by PR strategies and celebrities today. It remains unclear whether such productions primarily serve as entertainment or actually stimulate a serious discourse about the future of mobility and robotics.