Former Tesla Optimus AI lead founds company to develop non-humanoid robots

Two people directly familiar with the matter said that Ashish Kumar, former AI head of Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot, has co-founded a startup developing non-humanoid robots. These robots can take on various tasks in manufacturing, aerospace, and other industries that previously required highly skilled technical workers. The San Francisco-based startup is named Intelligent Machines, has recruited several former members of Tesla's Optimus team, and is currently raising a seed round that could reach about $100 million. Intelligent Machines is currently focused on robot software development, but its management is also discussing developing its own hardware. Two people familiar with the matter said the company uses reinforcement learning technology to train robots: giving rewards for achieving goals and imposing penalties for incorrect actions, thereby teaching robots to perform complex tasks.