Elon Musk stated on March 4, 2026, that Tesla will be one of the companies to achieve artificial general intelligence (AGI) and likely the first to do so in a humanoid or atom-shaping form. The claim, posted on X, ties into Tesla's ongoing development of the Optimus humanoid robot. This announcement comes amid Musk's history of ambitious AI predictions that have not materialized on schedule.
Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, posted on the social media platform X on March 4, 2026, declaring that “Tesla will be one of the companies to make AGI and probably the first to make it in humanoid/atom-shaping form.” The statement highlights Tesla's focus on embodied AI through its Optimus humanoid robot program, which Musk has described as potentially functioning as a von Neumann probe—a self-replicating machine capable of building infrastructure on other planets.
Tesla is advancing Optimus production by phasing out Model S and Model X assembly at its Fremont, California, facility to create a pilot line for the robots, with plans to produce 1 million units annually. Musk emphasized Tesla's advantages in real-world AI, drawing from data generated by its vehicle fleet for autonomous driving, which he argues provides an edge over software-only AI competitors like OpenAI and Google DeepMind.
This claim follows a pattern of bold AI timelines from Musk. In 2023, he said Tesla cars had “a mind” and achieved “some aspects of AGI.” In 2024, he predicted AGI by 2025, later shifting to 2026 as the year of the Singularity. Critics, including reports from Electrek, note that none of these predictions have come to pass, and Tesla's self-driving features, such as the Robotaxi fleet in Austin, remain limited to about 30 vehicles requiring safety monitors.
Tesla's core automotive business faced challenges in 2025, delivering 1.63 million vehicles—a 9% decline from 2024—while revenue fell 3% to $94.8 billion and earnings per share dropped 33%. Competitor BYD overtook Tesla with 2.26 million EV deliveries. Despite this, Tesla's market capitalization stands at roughly $1.5 trillion, largely based on its AI and robotics narrative.
The announcement also intersects with Musk's xAI venture, which merged with SpaceX and may collaborate on Optimus AI, though Tesla investors have sued Musk over alleged resource shifts to xAI. Other AI leaders, like Google DeepMind's Demis Hassabis, have praised AGI's potential, quoting it as having “ten times the impact of the Industrial Revolution, but happening at ten times the speed.”
