An Optimus robot holding a battery. Explore how leading tech companies like Tesla and Xiaomi are pioneering humanoid robots, and discover the innovative developments emerging from South Africa's Stellenbosch University that could redefine our relationship with technology.
Image: Tesla, X.
Over the past few years, it has been predicted that robots will coexist with us. In 2025, we are beginning to see signs that they are almost here. Some of the leading technology companies are developing their humanoid robots.
Tesla Optimus is a general-purpose robotic humanoid under development by Tesla.
It was announced at the company's Artificial Intelligence (AI) Day event on August 19, 2021, and a prototype was shown in 2022. What’s interesting about the robot is that the Tesla CEO, Elon Musk thinks Optimus "has the potential to be more significant than Tesla's vehicle business over time." There is a belief that humanoid robots will form part of the future workforce and human companions.
The Chinese tech company, Xiaomi, has also developed their humanoid robot, known as CyberOne. It’s a full-sized bipedal robot designed with advanced features like 21 joints, a 3D visual spatial system, and the ability to sense human emotions and interpret environments. The robot is part of Xiaomi's Cyber series, which also includes the CyberDog and CyberDog 2 quadrupedal robots. CyberOne was first unveiled in August 2022 and is a functional humanoid robot, not just a concept.
One notable development so far about humanoid robots is that there’s one being developed in South Africa as well. Although it’s still early days, the robot has been introduced as an innovative research platform by the Stellenbosch University, Department of Electrical Engineering. It is designed to advance the field of humanoid robotics. According to the university, this state-of-the-art platform highlights sophisticated robotics technology and exemplifies the benefits of interdisciplinary collaboration in engineering.
The humanoid robot stands fully assembled, built around a total of 38 degrees of freedom (DOF)—including dual 6-DOF arms, two neck joints, and dexterous five-finger hands on each side—the design closely mirrors human upper-body mobility.
It’s also equipped with a webcam for vision tracking and advanced software, the robot can analyse and replicate human movements in real time, enhancing its human-like functionality. An on-board NVIDIA GPU accelerates vision processing and large-language-model (LLM) inference, enabling voice-initiated commands and natural dialogue with operators.
Although the SA developed robot is far from what has been developed by Tesla and Xiaomi, it’s an indicator of what the future will look like.
I foresee that in the near future we will own/buy robots in the same way that we acquire cars. They will form part of our tools and possessions. We will probably use them in our factories and at our homes to carry out complex tasks that are beyond us in terms of energy and time.
As the field of robotics advances, it will surprise us in ways that we have not imagined. We now have a choice to prepare them to enter society. At a policy level, we need to start thinking about what it will mean to have humanoid robots amongst us.
What kind of advantages will they bring, as well as risks? If we are to live harmoniously with them, we need to start preparing now for a world that will include humanoid robots.
As engineers are building humanoid robots in South Africa, it is my hope that they are initiating conversations that will assist with the integration of robots in society.
Latest technologies have not been well introduced to society, and that has led to negative effects at least in the beginning. Humanoid robots can form part of improving our productivity and quality of life. We just need to prepare for them now.
Wesley Diphoko is a Technology Analyst and the Editor-In-Chief of FastCompany (SA) magazine.