<div id="readability-page-1">Elon Musk wants to bring the production of its Optimus robot to the US amid electric carmaker Tesla’s plan to pivot towards manufacturing humanoids, smart machines that could one day serve as part of the workforce at American factories. That ambitious initiative, however, was expected to remain dependent on China’s vast and fast-developing robotics supply chain into the foreseeable future, even as the final assembly of Optimus would be established in the US, according to analysts and industry insiders. As early as three years ago, Tesla started sourcing and engaging with hundreds of Chinese component suppliers, working closely with some on research and development as well as hardware design, according to people who are not authorised to publicly discuss these collaborations. These suppliers had shipped small batches of sample components to Tesla in response to the client’s feedback. New prototypes of Optimus’ curved-glass head, for example, were sent to Tesla by one of these sources in recent months. Those companies saw themselves, according to the people, as part of an emerging “Optimus chain”, which would mirror the formidable component supplier networks set up by the likes of Apple and Tesla in China. Manufacturing partners – spanning suppliers of actuators, motors, reducers, bearings, vision systems, sensors, screws and batteries – now vied to secure a place in that chain, hoping to land orders that could lift sales and the profile of their businesses. “With about 50 to 70 per cent of manufacturing and core component production expertise residing in China, we expect Chinese players to take on greater roles in the global humanoid robot supply chain,” said Cheng Xin, a partner at US consultancy Bain &amp; Co. “In some core components … they accounted for at least 55 per cent of the global humanoid robot bill of materials (BOM).” At Tesla’s earnings call on Wednesday, Musk said the company would start to wind down production of its Model S and Model X electric vehicles (EVs) from next quarter, so that its factory in Fremont, California, could be repurposed to manufacture Optimus and start mass production by the end of 2026.  The long-term goal was to produce 1 million humanoid robots per year at the Fremont facility, Musk said, adding that Tesla would unveil the third generation of Optimus “in a few months”. When asked about Optimus’ performance in factories during the earnings call, Musk expressed a rare note of caution, saying it was “very much at an early stage”. The next-generation Optimus will be built at Tesla’s Giga Texas factory at a “much higher volume”, Musk wrote in a post on X on Thursday. Still, talk of a “production-ready” Optimus, combined with China’s broader enthusiasm for humanoid robots, had driven a rally in related stocks over the past year. Among the most closely watched potential Optimus chain suppliers are Zhejiang Sanhua Intelligent Controls – a long-time Tesla supplier of thermal-management components, which had been linked by analysts and investors to Optimus’ joint-drive systems – and Ningbo Tuopu Group, a major EV parts supplier that was also developing actuators, motors for dexterous hands and electronic skins. Other companies that have drawn the market’s attention include harmonic gearing devices maker Leaderdrive; planetary roller-screw suppliers such as Seenpin Electromechanical Transmission and Beite Technology Group; precision gear producer Shuanghuan Driveline; bearings maker CSB; and joint-housing supplier Xusheng. In a January research note, Morgan Stanley estimated that the global market for humanoid robot components could generate as much as US$780 billion in revenue by 2040. Compared with humanoid “body” and “brain” makers, component suppliers were expected to profit first from this nascent sector’s growth, it said.   In humanoid robots, the motors supply power; actuators regulate and amplify controlled motion; joints deliver degrees of movement; and the reducers, bearings, screws and sensors embedded within the system largely determine its performance and reliability. “Cost and efficiency remain the Chinese supply chain’s key advantages,” said Zhang Xin, an analyst at brokerage Longbridge Dolphin Research. A dense and integrated industrial base would enable production to be localised – from raw materials down to small parts – to keep costs low, while suppliers rapidly responded to frequent design iterations, Zhang said. However, since Optimus’ technical path had yet to be finalised, the supplier roster remained fluid, Zhang said, with even minor design changes by Tesla capable of triggering large swings in component demand. He added that Tesla selected suppliers based on technology, cost, mass production experience, responsiveness and overseas manufacturing capacity, regardless of company size. China’s total BOM for humanoid robots, according to Morgan Stanley, was expected to fall by 16 per cent this year. Tesla targeted a manufacturing cost of about US$20,000 per Optimus unit. According to a November Goldman Sachs field report, certain component suppliers were already investing in production, despite the absence of large-scale orders or a clear mass production timetable.</div>

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<p>Elon Musk aims to produce Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot in the US, relying on China's robotics supply chain for components. Tesla has engaged with numerous Chinese suppliers for R&D and hardware design, forming an "Optimus chain" similar to Apple's. Musk plans to repurpose the Fremont factory for Optimus production by 2026, targeting 1 million units annually. Analysts predict the global humanoid robot components market could reach $780 billion by 2040, with Chinese suppliers playing a crucial role due to their cost efficiency and integrated industrial base. However, the supplier list remains flexible due to ongoing design changes.</p>

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‘Optimus chain’: Chinese suppliers form backbone of Tesla’s humanoid robot plans