On October 30, 2026, The San Francisco Standard reported that robotics investor and summit organizer Modar Alaoui said Tesla had told him consumer reservations for Optimus V3 might open around The Humanoids Summit in San Mateo or shortly afterward. Elon Musk’s X reply, “No,” was characterized by the publication as an apparent denial of December waitlist plans. Musk’s reply
Alaoui tied the possible window to the summit
Alaoui’s account describes a possible reservation window, rather than a date when consumers could take delivery. The Standard characterized Musk’s reply as an apparent denial of December waitlist plans; the post itself contains only the short reply.
A reservation and a delivery are different milestones
The Standard cited an expected Optimus consumer price above $20,000 as an estimate, not a Tesla retail price. That figure concerns the robot, not a reservation deposit. The publication also said it was unclear whether reserving one would require payment.
Musk separately expected deliveries to companies outside Tesla around the end of 2027, according to The Standard. That forecast concerns business deliveries, not consumer orders. NeoTeo previously covered Musk’s forecast for Optimus deliveries to companies.
The Standard cautioned that a waitlist would not guarantee a quick delivery or delivery at all. A place on a list and a robot arriving at a customer’s door are very different milestones.
What Optimus demonstrations show about autonomy
Bloomberg described Tesla video showing Optimus walking around a factory, navigating to a charging dock, carrying a battery tray, and climbing stairs. Separately, the Los Angeles Times and Ars Technica reported that some interactions at Tesla’s October 10, 2024, event relied on remote human operators, while the robots could walk without external control.
Those reports distinguish autonomous movement from operator-assisted interactions. They describe specific actions, not general-purpose household work. Elon Musk said Optimus still needed work before it could handle open-ended tasks usefully, The Verge reported on October 22, 2026.
