In recent years the tech world has been abuzz with the promise of humanoid robots. From Elon Musk’s ambitious plans for Tesla’s Optimus to China’s state-backed ventures the race to develop these machines is on. Publicly the justification is clear, labour shortages are driving the need for robots to fill the gaps. But a closer look at global population trends reveals a puzzling mismatch. With the Global South’s population set to explode, and youth unemployment already a crisis in places like China, is the labour shortage narrative just a smokescreen? And what about Honda’s ASIMO project which was shelved in 2018 only for the humanoid robot frenzy to reignite just two years later? As we dig deeper one can’t help but wonder are these “legions” of robots really about solving labour issues or is there something more at play?
Population Growth vs. Labour Shortage Claims: A Contradiction?
The United Nations projects that Africa’s population will surge to 2.5 billion by 2050 with Nigeria alone reaching 400 million. India, already at 1.4 billion, is set to grow further while the Global South as a whole will add 1.9 billion people by mid-century. This youth-heavy demographic boom suggests a massive labour surplus not a shortage. In China youth unemployment hit 21.3% in 2023 with nearly 12 million graduates struggling to find work. So why the push for robots to fill supposed labour gaps?
The answer, supposedly, lies in the details. While raw labour is abundant the shortages are sector-specific—tech, healthcare, and advanced manufacturing in developed nations like the U.S. and Japan where aging populations and skill mismatches leave millions of high-skill jobs unfilled. Robots like Tesla’s Optimus are being pitched to fill these niches not to replace the youthful low-skill labour flooding cities in Nigeria or India. But even this explanation doesn’t survive examination. If the labour shortage is so narrowly defined why the sudden global mania for humanoid robots that only appear capable of replacing some low skilled labour by enhancing automation?
The ASIMO Conundrum: A Cautionary Tale
Honda’s ASIMO project, once the poster child for humanoid robotics, offers a stark contrast to today’s hype. After decades of development Honda quietly shelved ASIMO in 2018 concluding that its $2.5 million price tag and limited utility made it a “vanity project.” ASIMO could walk, dance, and serve drinks but it couldn’t compete with simpler, cheaper robots for practical tasks. Honda pivoted to exoskeletons and autonomous vehicles aligning with Japan’s aging population needs.
Yet just two years later the landscape apparently shifted dramatically. Advances in AI—particularly large language models like GPT-3—and plummeting hardware costs reignited interest in humanoids. Tesla’s Optimus, China’s UBTech, and others now promise scalable, general-purpose robots. But was Honda’s decision truly obsoleted so quickly or did they see something the public didn’t? Their silence post-2018 raises questions, is there more to this story than meets the eye?
“Legions” of Robots: A Darker Purpose?
Elon Musk’s casual reference to building a “legion” of robots—5,000 in 2025, scaling to 50,000 by 2026—evokes imagery of Roman armies not friendly helpers. While Musk frames Optimus as a tool for “sustainable abundance,” the dual-use potential of these machines is hard to ignore. History is rife with technologies pitched as benign only to be weaponized later—drones, the internet, even AI itself. With elites like Musk, Bezos, and Thiel investing in bunkers and superyachts one can’t help but wonder are these robots being built to serve humanity or a select few?
The data doesn’t lie the Global South’s labour surplus undercuts the labour shortage narrative and Honda’s ASIMO retreat suggests the tech wasn’t ready—until it suddenly was. What’s really driving this mania? Are these “legions” of robots merely the next industrial revolution or are they being quietly assembled as armies for a future only the rich and politically powerful can see? The question lingers and the answer will shape humanity’s fate.