As a result, humanoid robots are at last beginning to leave the lab and enter the workplace. On April 22nd Elon Musk reasserted during an earnings call that he expects “thousands” of Tesla’s Optimus robots to be working in its electric-car factories by the end of the year.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said China's rare earth element (REE) restrictions on the US as part of the Washington-Beijing trade war are affecting his company's robot production. Tesla’s net profits in the first quarter dropped 71%, according to CNBC, with Musk saying trade wars have hampered the company's ability to produce Optimus humanoid robots.

China’s halt this month on exports of magnets containing heavy rare earth metals has affected Tesla’s plans to manufacture Optimus robots.