When you think of humanoid robots, Tesla's Optimus probably comes to mind. It's been the poster child for the industry, the robot that Elon Musk has promised will transform manufacturing and everyday life. But according to Andrew Kang, CEO of RoboStrategy, Inc. (NASDAQ:BOT), Tesla might not actually be leading the pack right now. In an exclusive interview with MarketDash, Kang made a bold claim: privately held Figure AI has taken the early lead in commercial deployment, and it's not particularly close.
Tesla Isn't the Humanoid Robotics Leader—Figure AI Is, Says RoboStrategy CEO
MarketDash
RoboStrategy CEO Andrew Kang says Figure AI—not Tesla—currently leads U.S. humanoid robotics based on commercial production progress.
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Figure AI's Production Head Start
Kang isn't buying the narrative that Tesla is the company everyone else is chasing. Instead, he's looking at where each company stands on the factory floor. And that's where the picture gets interesting.
"As of the July 22 Q2 shareholder update, Optimus lines are still being installed and the hardware design meant for mass production still being finalized," Kang said.
That's a far cry from a robot that's ready to roll out in volume. Meanwhile, Kang points out, "Figure AI is the only US company that has crossed the 1,000 robot mark."
So you've got two companies at very different stages of the commercialization game. Tesla is still building the machine that will build the machines. Figure AI, on the other hand, has already hit a production milestone that no other American humanoid robotics company has reached.
Why the 1,000-Robot Milestone Matters
For investors, this is a signal that the humanoid robotics race isn't just about flashy demos anymore. Crossing the 1,000-robot threshold doesn't guarantee that Figure AI will be the long-term winner. But it does mean the company has moved beyond the prototype phase and into something resembling actual manufacturing.
That experience could be a big deal as the industry shifts from research projects and pilot programs to real-world commercial adoption. Building a thousand robots teaches you things you can't learn from a single prototype. It's the difference between knowing how to make one thing and knowing how to make a thousand things consistently.
Tesla, meanwhile, is still laying the foundation. The production lines are being installed, the hardware design is being finalized. That's not a criticism—it's just where they are in the process. But it does mean they're behind Figure AI in terms of actual production output right now.
The Investment Takeaway
Kang's assessment highlights a key distinction for investors: being ahead today doesn't mean you'll be ahead tomorrow. Based on production milestones, Figure AI has an early lead in commercial deployment. Tesla is still building the groundwork for large-scale manufacturing.
As the humanoid robotics industry matures, the big question will be whether early execution or future production scale turns out to be the bigger competitive advantage. It's a classic tortoise-and-hare scenario, except both companies are moving fast. The real race is just beginning.
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