Even in small businesses automation takes entirely different forms. We automate bookkeeping with software, production with CNC, packing and shipping... that's a tough one, but humanoids are not the best solution here either, when it needs to scale it typically gets outsourced to something like Amazon who could possibly use warehouse automation.
They might not be *optimal* but it all boils down to the fact that Optimus robots being cheaper and more reliable than biological robots (aka humans). So when you have businesses where human labour has not yet been automated with dedicated solutions (accounting software, CNC, Amazon etc), there's a potential Optimus could fill that gap.
I doubt small businesses will want humanoid robots interacting with their customers... that's freaky and defeats most of the purpose of a small customer-facing business, which is to not be the big faceless penny-pinching corporation trying to barricade itself from those pesky humans.
I agree, but it very much depends on the type of business. I went to a restaurant that uses robots to deliver food to the tables and did not like the experience at all. But if I could pay 30%-40% less for a bricklaying job done by a guy who uses Optimus robots instead of human helpers, I unlikely would have any problem with it.
Plus, there are plenty of small businesses that are not customer-facing, and even those that are most likely have some staff working in the background (think chefs in restaurants, cleaners etc).
And I think you're grossly underestimating how much these robots would cost to acquire, train, supervise, maintain, and dispose, and how far from a real human their abilities would be, at least in the foreseeable future. There is a reason Tesla has been hyping this for years but is nowhere near a real product yet, and some other companies that have been at it for much longer and in a much more serious capacity have little more than a cool demo.
I think Elon Musk gave an estimate of $20k-$30k being a potential price when they get mass adoption. And yes, we're talking more about future capabilities, as I don't think they're capable/fast/reliable enough right now. And I hope they don't become good enough too soon.
I think they look incredible, Elon truly is a visionary. He said they will probably retail at about $30,000. Would you buy one? I probably would, once there is a reputable proof of reliability over a significant time period. It could do all the house chores, gardening, that alone is worth a good amount of money.
I probably wouldn't as I don't think delegating house choirs to a robot would have a good impact on my household, but from a purely time/money perspective - even if they were only good in cooking and cleaning, that would probably be a good investment. Assuming a minimum life of 10 years and a low-end price of $20k, you could have a personal chef and cleaner for $167/month + electricity costs. That's a good value.
Corporations, specially the big ones in Europe and the United States are all in saving operating costs, and if they need to replace human beings for the sake of profit, I have no doubt they will start doing it as soon as it becomes cheaper to have those machines instead of a team of people working for them.
This is a weird one to solve because businesses do have incentives to automate to reduce costs, but they also need people (aka customers) to earn money to be able to buy their products/services.
I think the only somewhat serious proposed solution is the unconditional income, but I have serious doubts whether that could actually work.
