Musk Plans to Send Humanoid Robot to Mars by 2026, Human Landings Could Follow by 2029

[Social Media]

 

Elon Musk has announced that SpaceX will send a humanoid robot to Mars aboard its massive Starship rocket next year, with human missions potentially following by the end of the decade. The billionaire, who now serves as a close advisor to Donald Trump, revealed that a launch carrying Tesla’s Optimus robot is scheduled for late 2026.  

 

“Starship departs for Mars at the end of next year, carrying Optimus,” Musk confirmed. “If those landings go well, then human landings may start as soon as 2029, although 2031 is more likely.”  

 

Musk has long been vocal about his ambition to colonize Mars, a goal that aligns with Trump’s renewed space policy. During his January inauguration speech, Trump declared his commitment “to plant the Stars and Stripes on the planet Mars.”  

 

 

Optimus, Tesla’s humanoid robot, has been designed as a general-purpose worker capable of performing routine tasks. When unveiling the robot in October 2024, Musk suggested that Optimus could one day serve as a teacher, babysitter, dog walker, lawnmower, grocery shopper, bartender, and even a companion. “Whatever you can think of, it will do,” he said at the time. While he did not specify a launch timeline then, Musk estimated that Optimus, when produced at scale, would cost between £15,000 and £23,000—cheaper than a car.  

 

Starship, the rocket intended to carry both robots and humans to Mars, is the largest and most powerful spacecraft ever built. Standing at 403 feet tall—roughly 90 feet taller than Big Ben—it is designed for full reusability, a crucial aspect of Musk’s long-term vision for space travel. NASA is also counting on a modified version of Starship as a lunar lander for its Artemis program, which aims to return astronauts to the Moon within the decade.  

 

Despite its ambitions, SpaceX faced another setback this month when its latest uncrewed test flight ended in an explosion. Although the booster was successfully recovered, the upper stage of Starship lost control and tumbled before communication was lost. Footage shared online showed debris falling over the Bahamas. This marked the eighth orbital test flight, and as with previous attempts, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered an investigation before SpaceX can conduct another launch.  

 

Nevertheless, SpaceX’s rapid iteration strategy—often summarized as “fail fast, learn fast”—has propelled it to the forefront of the global space industry. Despite setbacks, Musk remains undeterred in his pursuit of making Mars a habitable destination, with robots possibly leading the way for human explorers in just a few years.

 

Based on a report by The Telegraph  2025-03-18

 

 

[KhunBENQ]

Hope his sick ego is big enough to be the first passenger.

[steven100]

15 minutes ago, Social Media said:

human landings may start as soon as 2029

don't think I'll bother going ....   I've heard theirs no action there and it can be a boring place.  

[blaze master]

2 minutes ago, steven100 said:

don't think I'll bother going ....   I've heard theirs no action there and it can be a boring place.  

 

No beer either.

[Cryingdick]

15 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

Hope his sick ego is big enough to be the first passenger.

 

His ass makes checks his ego can cash. Not a lot of people can say that. 

[steven100]

1 minute ago, Cryingdick said:

 

His ass makes checks his ego can cash. Not a lot of people can say that. 

he may very well be liked amongst other rich friends and associates,  but I think the middle class hate him,  as do many thousands of Tesla owners.  

[blaze master]

Just now, steven100 said:

he may very well be liked amongst other rich friends and associates,  but I think the middle class hate him,  as do many thousands of Tesla owners.  

 

All sales final. 

[Cryingdick]

14 minutes ago, steven100 said:

he may very well be liked amongst other rich friends and associates,  but I think the middle class hate him,  as do many thousands of Tesla owners.  

Even astronauts kiss the ground upon a safe return. Who else can do that?

[Yagoda]

39 minutes ago, KhunBENQ said:

Hope his sick ego is big enough to be the first passenger.

Guess you are against humanity going to the stars.

[Yolando]

Exactly why Musk got involved with the Trump admin.  He just wants them to end all regulation, so he can get to Mars.

[Cryingdick]

1 minute ago, Yolando said:

Exactly why Musk got involved with the Trump admin.  He just wants them to end all regulation, so he can get to Mars.

That's why all the big tech execs are on board. 

[Yolando]

All of the MAGAs seem to forget that Musk and his companies have received more government subsidies than anyone else in history.  I'm sure this project will be the same and it will receive massive federal funding.  He doesn't care at all about saving the taxpayers money or improving government efficiency.  He just wants all the spending to go to him instead.

[Yagoda]

9 minutes ago, Yolando said:

Exactly why Musk got involved with the Trump admin.  He just wants them to end all regulation, so he can get to Mars.

The following did not have regulations: Vasco deGama, Christopher Columbus, James Cook, David Livingston, Henry Stanley, Magellan......

[hotsun]

5 minutes ago, Yolando said:

All of the MAGAs seem to forget that Musk and his companies have received more government subsidies than anyone else in history.  I'm sure this project will be the same and it will receive massive federal funding.  He doesn't care at all about saving the taxpayers money or improving government efficiency.  He just wants all the spending to go to him instead.

As much as lefties want us to believe how selfish musk is, i just dont see it

[Yolando]

Just now, hotsun said:

As much as lefties want us to believe how selfish musk is, i just dont see it

 

You can't see all of the government subsidies from the lefties he has received?  It's not hard to find that in a google search.  He's not suddenly working for charity after spending his entire life collecting government handouts from the left.

 

 

[Yagoda]

6 minutes ago, hotsun said:

As much as lefties want us to believe how selfish musk is, i just dont see it

Im not going to criticize a man with a dream to benefit all humanity for trying to fulfill that dream

[kimothai]

23 minutes ago, Yolando said:

 

You can't see all of the government subsidies from the lefties he has received?  It's not hard to find that in a google search.  He's not suddenly working for charity after spending his entire life collecting government handouts from the left.

 

 

Where are you getting 38 billion USD?   Not what I'm seeing.  Even if it was double that it's a hell of a lot better than give it to those worthless DEI causes/waste/fraud.  

 

 

Elon Musk's companies—Tesla, SpaceX, SolarCity (now part of Tesla), The Boring Company, and Neuralink—have received significant government support in the form of subsidies, contracts, tax breaks, and loans. Estimates vary, but here’s a breakdown of key sources of government support:

1. Direct Subsidies & Tax Breaks

• $4.9 billion (estimated) in government subsidies across Tesla, SpaceX, and SolarCity (per a 2015 Los Angeles Times report).
• Tesla’s Tax Credits & Subsidies
  • $465 million low-interest loan from the Department of Energy (DOE) in 2010, which Tesla repaid in 2013.
  • Billions in federal and state EV incentives and tax credits for buyers of Tesla vehicles.
  • $1.3 billion in tax incentives from Nevada for Tesla’s Gigafactory in 2014.
  • $330 million in Texas for Tesla's Austin Gigafactory.
• SpaceX’s Subsidies & Tax Breaks
  • SpaceX has received millions in subsidies and local tax breaks for its launch sites in Texas, Florida, and California.

2. Government Contracts

• SpaceX has secured over $10 billion in contracts from NASA, the U.S. military, and other government agencies.
  • NASA’s Commercial Crew & Cargo Contracts – Over $5 billion to develop and launch spacecraft (Dragon, Starship, Falcon 9).
  • Department of Defense (DOD) Contracts – Several billion dollars for national security launches and satellite deployments.
  • FCC Starlink Subsidies – SpaceX was awarded $885 million in 2020 to expand broadband in rural areas via Starlink (some funds were later revoked).

3. Carbon Credits & Indirect Support

• Tesla has made billions selling regulatory carbon credits to other automakers.
• SpaceX benefits from infrastructure investment at NASA and Air Force launch sites.

Total Estimate

• Direct subsidies & tax breaks: At least $5 billion
• Government contracts: Over $10 billion
• Indirect support (carbon credits, regulatory incentives, etc.): Billions more

Would you like a more detailed breakdown of a specific company or program?

[CallumWK]

35 minutes ago, Yolando said:

 

You can't see all of the government subsidies from the lefties he has received?  It's not hard to find that in a google search.  He's not suddenly working for charity after spending his entire life collecting government handouts from the left.

 

 

 

 

Rather strange that DOGE hasn't mentioned anything about that waste of funds

[parallelman]

36 minutes ago, Yolando said:

 

You can't see all of the government subsidies from the lefties he has received?  It's not hard to find that in a google search.  He's not suddenly working for charity after spending his entire life collecting government handouts from the left.

 

 

Perhaps you would prefer Boeings Starliner to make the first trip to Mars. They received more funding than SpaceX Dragon.

[CallumWK]

38 minutes ago, kimothai said:

Total Estimate

• Direct subsidies & tax breaks: At least $5 billion
• Government contracts: Over $10 billion
• Indirect support (carbon credits, regulatory incentives, etc.): Billions more

Would you like a more detailed breakdown of a specific company or program?

 

No need for more detailed break down, as you can't make the blind see.

 

First of all you missed including THREE of his companies in the summary.

 

Secondly, how much is "billions more"?

 

 

[frank83628]

56 minutes ago, Yolando said:

All of the MAGAs seem to forget that Musk and his companies have received more government subsidies than anyone else in history.  I'm sure this project will be the same and it will receive massive federal funding.  He doesn't care at all about saving the taxpayers money or improving government efficiency.  He just wants all the spending to go to him instead.

Difference being what he doess is beneficial to humanity, funding gay sesame St in Afghanistan isnt.

[Yolando]

4 minutes ago, parallelman said:

Perhaps you would prefer Boeings Starliner to make the first trip to Mars. They received more funding than SpaceX Dragon.

Dragon is just one spaceX's many rockets, and received just a small minority of SpaceX's total subsidies.  SpaceX has received 22 billion total in subsidies.  

[Yolando]

1 minute ago, frank83628 said:

Difference being what he doess is beneficial to humanity, funding gay sesame St in Afghanistan isnt.

So you are saying the electric cars benefit humanity?   What a lefty.

[frank83628]

11 minutes ago, Yolando said:

So you are saying the electric cars benefit humanity?   What a lefty.

I thought man made climate change was killing the planet, so electric cars and living on Mars was the way humanity needed to go?

Don't tell me that since musk teamed up with Trump, that climate change is not longer an issue

[PETERTHEEATER]

1 hour ago, Cryingdick said:

Even astronauts kiss the ground upon a safe return. Who else can do that?

Thaksin....The Pope.....😋

[kimothai]

9 minutes ago, CallumWK said:

 

No need for more detailed break down, as you can make the blind see.

 

First of all you missed including THREE of his companies in the summary.

 

Secondly, how much is "billions more"?

 

 

Did you forget to mention that the 38 billion was over a 20-year period?   Or did you conveniently forget to mention it?  Do the math!  That's less the $2 billion per year.  Considering that he is employing well over 100,000 people, building cars, making rockets for space exploration, providing star link internet (which is tremendous aid to Ukraine) among other things, I think we got a hell of a deal.  You can't even compare what he's done to the fraudulent DEI crap that the lefties have been pushing.  Of course, you'll disagree because you don't like Musk.  I wouldn't like Musk either if I was one of those politicians' getting kickbacks from some of the wasteful spending going on.  

[Yolando]

3 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

I thought man made climate change was killing the planet,

I never thought that.  Maybe you and your MAGA hero Musk thought that, but not me.

[CallumWK]

3 minutes ago, kimothai said:

Did you forget to mention that the 38 billion was over a 20-year period?   Or did you conveniently forget to mention it?  Do the math!  That's less the $2 billion per year. 

Did you forget that DOGE found a "waste" of funding of 8 million over several years?

Sure that is less than 2 billion a year, and your claims are flawed, since the majority of subsidies were given over the last decade.

[thaibeachlovers]

33 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

Difference being what he doess is beneficial to humanity, funding gay sesame St in Afghanistan isnt.

He can benefit humanity by being the test pilot on the first rocket to Mars. Just do it Elon.

[Social Media]

A couple of inflammatory trolling posts removed @Brian J