Tesla's China president Wang Hao has publicly described the Shanghai Gigafactory as a 'golden key' for mass-producing Optimus humanoid robots — the first time a Tesla executive has linked the plant to robotics manufacturing. The factory delivered 851,000 EVs in 2025 and already has over 1,000 Gen 3 Optimus units deployed at Tesla's US facilities. Production targets range from hundreds of units in 2026 to potentially one million annually from Shanghai, though that figure is unconfirmed. Manufacturing in China would give Tesla access to a supply chain that controls ~90% of the global humanoid robot component market, including actuators, sensors, and precision motors. The move carries geopolitical risk given US-China tech tensions, but mirrors Tesla's earlier strategy of using Shanghai's manufacturing ecosystem to achieve cost and scale targets before expanding globally. Chinese competitors like Unitree and Agibot are already selling humanoid robots commercially at lower price points.
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