Key Takeaways
- BigGo Finance and SammyGuru have reported that Tesla lowered the AI6 DRAM requirement for Optimus from 216GB to 144GB, but this has not been confirmed by Tesla or any official document.
- BigGo Finance attributes the reported cut to a memory shortage; that rationale is a single-outlet claim and not independently corroborated.
- Neither report cites a Tesla filing, earnings call, executive quote, or official specification, so the underlying figures remain unverified.
- Because the original 216GB figure also appears only in these secondary reports, both the baseline and the reduction should be treated as third-party reporting.
Background
Optimus is Tesla’s general-purpose humanoid robot program, intended to perform physical tasks through onboard AI inference. The AI6 chip is Tesla’s next-generation custom silicon for AI workloads, but Tesla has not published a full data sheet or memory configuration for Optimus. In robotics, DRAM capacity sets a hard ceiling on how large a model can run locally and how many camera, lidar, and actuator streams can be buffered at once. A reduction in DRAM allocation can constrain real-time perception or force more aggressive model quantization. Those trade-offs make the reported 216GB-to-144GB change potentially significant for the robot’s autonomy roadmap, even though the numbers are not yet official.
Tesla has historically described Optimus as relying on the same AI hardware lineage as its vehicles, but the company has separately stated that Optimus may use different sensor and compute configurations than cars. That means vehicle DRAM requirements should not be used to infer Optimus requirements. Until Tesla publishes an AI6 specification or an executive confirms the change, owners and observers should treat any memory figure as provisional.
The Latest Development
Secondary media reportsTwo outlets that track semiconductor and consumer-electronics supply chains, BigGo Finance and SammyGuru, have published reports that Tesla has lowered the DRAM requirement for the AI6 chip used in its Optimus humanoid robot. Both reports describe a reduction from 216GB to 144GB. According to BigGo Finance, the change was made amid a memory shortage; SammyGuru’s write-up repeats the reduced memory requirement for Optimus but does not cite a specific cause. Neither outlet provides a link to a Tesla statement, regulatory filing, or executive quote.
BigGo Finance’s coverage frames the adjustment as a response to constrained memory supply, but the outlet does not identify a specific supplier, contract, or internal Tesla document. SammyGuru’s report appears to rely on the same underlying information and adds no independent technical detail. Because both outlets are secondary sources covering an unannounced design change, the reports cannot be treated as confirmation that Tesla has actually revised the AI6 memory target.
If accurate, the reported numbers would represent a one-third reduction in DRAM capacity, from 216GB to 144GB. However, the original 216GB figure also appears only in these secondary accounts, so even the baseline is unverified. Readers should therefore hold both figures as third-party reporting until Tesla publishes official specifications or an executive addresses the topic.
What It Means
Confirmed
What is confirmed is narrow: BigGo Finance and SammyGuru have each published articles stating that Tesla reduced the AI6 DRAM requirement for Optimus. No official Tesla source, regulatory filing, or executive statement has been cited in either report. The existence and content of the media reports are verifiable; the underlying technical change is not.
Speculation
The actual memory specification change, the original 216GB baseline, the new 144GB target, and the stated motive of a memory shortage remain unconfirmed. BigGo Finance’s memory-shortage framing is a single-outlet claim not repeated in SammyGuru’s available summary, and neither outlet provides a named source or document. The inference that Optimus production or AI6 development is being constrained by DRAM supply is speculation, as is any impact on robot capability or delivery timing.
FAQ
QHas Tesla confirmed the Optimus AI6 DRAM reduction from 216GB to 144GB?
No. Tesla has not confirmed the change. The figures come from reports by BigGo Finance and SammyGuru, and no official Tesla statement or filing has been cited.
QWhat is the reported new DRAM requirement for the Optimus AI6 chip?
Both outlets report that Tesla lowered the requirement to 144GB, down from 216GB. However, neither figure has been independently confirmed by Tesla.
QWhy did Tesla reportedly lower the AI6 memory requirement?
BigGo Finance attributes the cut to a memory shortage. SammyGuru’s report does not mention that cause, and Tesla has not offered an official explanation.
QHas Tesla published official AI6 specifications for Optimus?
No official AI6 specification for Optimus has been cited in the available reporting. The 216GB and 144GB figures appear only in secondary media accounts.
QDo multiple independent sources confirm the AI6 DRAM change?
Two outlets, BigGo Finance and SammyGuru, have reported the reduction, but they may rely on the same underlying information. Without an official source, the claim is not independently confirmed.
Information compiled from official statements and independent reporting, published November 6, 2026. Confirmed facts and unconfirmed/speculative points are separated above.