Apple (AAPL) is setting the stage for a future that might make even Siri do a double-take: by 2040, analysts at Morgan Stanley (MS) predict Apple could rake in an astonishing $133 billion a year from humanoid robotics, a number robust enough to dethrone Macs and possibly send Tim Cook into spontaneous robot dance mode. If that wasn’t futuristic enough, the race for droid supremacy has Tesla (TSLA) rolling out its own ambitious “Optimus” robots, and CEO Elon Musk—never one to shy away from sci-fi—believes Optimus could compose 80% of Tesla’s value in years ahead, leaving electric cars as a sideshow act at the Musk family robot talent show.
Apple’s Humanoid Aspirations
Apple’s robotics platform is projected to revolutionize how users interact with their homes, offices, and maybe even the family pet. The company’s first product—expected as early as 2027—will be a motorized tabletop hub that glides across surfaces, tracking users and handling daily tasks with the cool efficiency of an over-caffeinated Roomba. With a forecasted 9% slice of the global robotics market, Apple may soon join its iPhone, Mac, and services divisions as a fourth pillar of revenue. Under Morgan Stanley’s optimistic scenario, Apple’s robotics revenue could surge past $300 billion, making the company’s robot division only slightly less lucrative than selling actual iPhones (and much less likely to be dropped in a toilet).
Tesla’s Robot Revolution
Meanwhile, Tesla isn’t just charging up batteries—it’s training robots to moonwalk through factories. Musk has announced plans for thousands of Optimus units in Tesla factories this year, scaling to millions as soon as possible. If Tesla’s vision pans out, robot workers will become as common in manufacturing as memes in Musk’s Twitter feed. However, some skeptics—possibly humans in disguise—note that humanoid shapes aren’t always the most efficient for factory work, though Musk is betting his AI chips on making Optimus the world’s most versatile bipedal intern.
The Great AI Droid-Off
The battle lines are drawn: Apple brings engineering prowess, ecosystem integration, and a flair for waiting until competitors beta-test embarrassment out of their products, while Tesla touts breakneck innovation and a willingness to redefine the rules (and the workplace break room). Both companies seem to agree that “embodied AI”—robots with personalities coded somewhere between Jeeves and Jarvis—will transform labor, leisure, and maybe even rock-paper-scissors tournaments.
The Market Stakes
Morgan Stanley envisions a $5 trillion humanoid robot sector by 2050, with millions of units working alongside humans. As costs decline from $200,000 to as little as $10,000 a year, soon humanoid assistants could be doing everything except explaining why your WiFi is slow. Apple and Tesla are prime candidates to dominate a world where robots fetch coffee, fold laundry, and—if Musk is correct—occasionally perform surgery (pending FDA approval and a good bedside manner).
In Silicon Valley’s newest arms race, one thing is clear: the robots are coming, and they might just have better stock options, snazzier startup routines, and a mysterious preference for wireless charging stations over coffee breaks.
If Morgan Stanley’s predictions hold, soon investors may wonder: Will Siri and Optimus ever collaborate for a “Dancing with the Droids” spin-off? Let’s just hope neither learns how to short stocks.
The Sources
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- https://www.morganstanley.com/insights/articles/humanoid-robot-market-5-trillion-by-2050
- https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2025/07/02/13-million-humanoid-robots-will-walk-among-us-by-2035/
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- https://www.tesla.com/AI
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- https://www.americancentury.com/insights/humanoid-robots-future-of-work/
