Editorial
The Gist
- AI-powered brand agents. Elon Musk’s Optimus robots could improve customer experience by acting as 24/7 brand representatives and increasing engagement.
- Personalized shopping experiences. Optimus robots can anticipate consumer needs and help them make informed purchasing decisions.
- Human-like interaction. Optimus showcases the future of AI in customer experience, blending human-like interaction with advanced personalization for deeper brand connections.
There isn’t much that Elon Musk can’t and won’t try or do. The man is a builder and an innovator, and he has already done more than most — especially with his latest innovation.
Elon Musk revealed at a recent Tesla event a new autonomous robot called “Optimus” — an android straight out of a science fiction movie that has the charisma of George Clooney and the intelligence of Albert Einstein.
In many of the videos posted on social media, Optimus can be seen having conversations, interacting with people and taking drink orders from attendees at an event. But this new android will be able to do much, much more than that.
According to Musk, “It'll be able to do anything you want… It can be a teacher or babysit your kids. It can walk your dog, mow your lawn, [and] get the groceries. [It can] just be your friend — serve drinks, whatever you can think of, it will do. It's gonna be awesome.”
Musk also made it clear that Optimus will have a human-like presence rather than the feel of a stale, predictable robot. "One of the things we wanted to show tonight was that Optimus is not a canned video. It's not walled off. The Optimus robots will walk among you... You'll be able to walk right up to them, and they'll serve drinks at the bar."
So what’s the big deal? This isn’t the first AI robot we have seen in recent years. Why is this one different?
First and foremost, it’s Elon Musk, so we know that if he puts something out, it’s going to be what he would describe as “awesome.” Secondly, it's less about what the android is doing in this release and more about the potential of what could happen if we all have our own personal Optimus in the future. This innovation showcases the potential of AI in customer experience.
Here are three ways in which Optimus can bring benefits for consumers in our everyday lives.
AI in Customer Experience: The Emergence of Optimus Robots
Advancements of AI in customer experience brought by innovations like Optimus will raise important questions about the future of consumer interactions. Imagine going shopping at a local mall where every single store associate is an Optimus. A bit scary, right? But it’s closer than you think. I predict most brands will have their own in-store robot associates to answer customer questions, take orders and act as an overall customer support resource for customers.
What else could this mean? How about 24/7 store hours, where customers can purchase at whatever time works best for them? We have all seen the self-service convenience stores at airports where you swipe your credit card, enter the store, grab what you need and leave. This takes that approach to a new level, especially for products that require higher touch and consideration before purchasing.
As these new androids start to work their way into the brand world and society, their computing power and ability to personalize shopping experiences based on consumer behaviors and preferences will become unmatched.
The Impact of AI Androids on Personalized Shopping
The world of personalized shopping agents isn’t a new concept. Many brands are exploring the idea of having digital live chat shopping agents that can help you find products based on conversations that you’ve had directly with the brand.
What’s different now is how Optimus could be integrated into your home. Running low on toilet paper? Optimus will notice it and ask you if you’d like to order more. Got a light bulb out? Optimus will check to see if you have any light bulbs in your closet before ordering without your permission. Essentially, these AI androids will become so woven into our lives that they can intuitively make purchases for us, without needing to ask for our permission.
Let’s take it a step further. Have a date lined up later this week? Optimus can help you pick styles that are trending and give you dating advice before you venture out. Where the rubber really meets the road is how Tesla and their team will incorporate empathy, compassion and understanding into their operating system.
Related Article: How AI Is Changing Ecommerce Personalization
True Brand Anthropomorphism
I may sound like a broken record talking about anthropomorphism. But this time, it really holds true to this use case. When brands adopt Optimus (or any robot for that matter), they are creating a method of commerce in which consumers can humanize their experience with a brand. In theory, the robot becomes the brand -– just like store associates are representations of the brand.
So what’s the difference? The difference is that these robots will know everything you’ve ever purchased in the past and will be able to personalize new products or experiences in real time. That’s never been done before by anything that resembles a human, and that’s why Optimus is a really, really big deal.
There has been speculation that these Optimus bots were teleoperated — meaning it wasn't the robot's AI responding to people at the event, but rather a human controlling it. I’ll be honest, I’ve watched the videos, and I could see the robot being teleoperated.
But guess what? I don’t really care about that. The showcase did what it was designed to do. It showcased the future of AI in customer experience — what could be, what will be and how we will live. Believe it or not, it’s closer than you think. I could easily see these robots being incorporated into our lives over the next few years.
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Throughout our time on earth, humans have always created new machines to help us with tasks. Need to go somewhere? Take a car. Need to go somewhere far? Take a plane. Need to figure out something complex? Use a computer. The idea of building a tool to help us live our lives isn’t a new concept. What is a new concept, however, is giving these tools the ability to converse, communicate and compute for us.
As Neo once said in the Matrix, “I don’t like the idea that I’m not in control of my own life.” This begs the question, how much persuasion will AI and Optimus have over us as consumers? What are the boundaries and limits of this technology, and will it go too far?
All of these questions are yet to be answered. But one thing is certain: We as a human society seem to be leaning toward taking that red pill and seeing how deep the rabbit hole will go.
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