I watched Tesla's Optimus robot sort batteries for an hour. I'm creeped out and impressed.

I watched a humanoid robot sort battery cells for 45 minutes last week. Not sped up. Not a highlight reel. Just raw footage of Optimus doing repetitive factory work.

Here's what I wrote in my notes at minute 10: "This is boring to watch but terrifying for factory workers." At minute 30: "Wait, it's actually faster than I expected." At minute 40: "I want one to bring me coffee."

What actually improved

The last time I paid attention to Optimus (Gen 2), it could barely walk without falling over. Gen 3 is different. The new hands have 11 degrees of freedom — that's almost human-like dexterity.

I watched it pick up different sized battery cells, recognize which type was which, and place them in the correct bins. It made four mistakes in 45 minutes. A human worker would make zero. But a human worker also needs breaks, health insurance, and sleep.

The price argument (and why it matters)

Elon says Optimus will cost $20,000-$30,000. I'm skeptical — Tesla has missed every price promise they've ever made. But let's say it's $40,000. That's still cheaper than a year's salary for a factory worker in the US.

Oluwa and I argued about this over coffee. We didn't agree. But we both agreed that this is moving faster than anyone predicted.

Will Optimus wash my dishes? Not yet. Probably not for 5-10 years. But the factory version? It's coming. Faster than I expected.