Elon Musk responds to Tesla 'robot attack' at Giga factory
- A story about a Tesla Giga Factory incident from two years ago resurfaced and went viral
- Several media outlets implied the robot involved in the incident was Tesla’s Optimus, whereas it was actually a generic Kuka industrial machine
- Musk addressed the incident on X
Published on Dec 28, 2023 at 4:05 AM (UTC-5)
by Alessandro Renesis
Last updated on Jan 09, 2024 at 4:25 AM (UTC-5)
Edited by
Adam Gray
A story from two years ago recently resurfaced and did the rounds on social media.
It involves an incident at a Tesla Giga Factory, during which a Tesla employee was injured by a machine.
Elon Musk has finally shared his response about the story, and he’s not happy.
READ MORE! Elon Musk had ultra genius method for figuring out which Tesla employee was leaking info
While the incident did happen, and the employee was indeed injured (he’s fully recovered since), there are two issues that Musk pointed out.
Firstly, he didn’t like the fact that the story broke out now, even though the incident happened two years ago.
More to the point, he didn’t like that several media outlets didn’t make it clear that the incident happened in 2021 and not today.
Correct.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 27, 2023
Truly shameful of the media to dredge up an injury from two years ago due to a simple industrial Kuka robot arm (found in all factories) and imply that it is due to Optimus now.
The other thing he didn’t like is the fact that some outlets reported that the incident involved Tesla’s Optimus robot.
Instead, the incident involved an automated industrial robot made by Kuka, which is used by several businesses and companies, not just in the car world.
There’s one media outlet Musk was particularly mad at, because they used a picture of Optimus in the header image, so as to imply Tesla’s robot may have been involved in the incident.
Musk himself isn’t new to controversy.
In a recent interview with NY Times’ Andrew Ross Sorkin, he addressed several issues, from advertisers leaving X to his love-hate relationship with regulators.
That interview also went viral because Musk made a bold claim regarding the Model Y.
In addition, Musk said it is not true that he has an issue with regulations.
He said that the industries he’s involved in, especially cars and aerospace, are heavily regulated.
Musk said you could fill entire rooms with the paper these regulations are written on and his companies comply with all of it.
Otherwise they wouldn’t be allowed to operate.
He believes that, because of his public profile, whenever he complains publicly about a piece of legislation, it simply makes more noise.
Alessandro is an automotive journalist with 10 years of experience covering supercars, automotive history, emerging vehicle technology, and luxury transportation. He wrote the first article published on SupercarBlondie.com when the website launched in 2022 and has since built a reputation for insightful reporting across the automotive and transportation industries. His expertise is grounded in hands-on experience. Alessandro has driven every Tesla model ever produced, from the original Roadster to the Cybertruck, and regularly covers the latest developments in electric vehicles and automotive innovation. His passion for transportation extends beyond cars, he has even flown a Boeing 787 Dreamliner simulator in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. His reporting spans everything from classic American muscle cars and rare automotive discoveries to luxury yachts, private aircraft, high-end watches, and cutting-edge vehicle technology. Known for his deep knowledge of automotive history and ability to uncover the stories behind iconic vehicles, Alessandro brings readers a blend of historical context, technical expertise, and first-hand experience.
