On the eve of resignation, downloading thousands of confidential documents, '5-month replication of Tesla's hand' — this Silicon Valley trade secret war unveils the brutal underbelly of the humanoid robot arms race.
On June 11, 2025, Tesla dropped a legal bombshell in the San Francisco federal court: Core engineer Jay Li was accused of stealing robotic hand sensor technology and quickly founded the competing company Proception. Even more dramatically, the company claimed to have achieved a breakthrough in 'the world's most advanced humanoid robotic hand' just 5 months after its establishment, with designs highly similar to Tesla's.
1. Timeline of theft: A meticulously planned technology heist
Incubation period (2022.8-2024.9)
During Jay Li's tenure, he led the 'robotic hand sensor R&D' and accessed Tesla's most sensitive technical materials. Key evidence shows:
In the weeks before resignation, he downloaded thousands of Optimus design files using two personal mobile phones.
High-frequency searches on work computers for 'humanoid robotic hand technology' and 'venture capital financing channels'
Lightning startup (from October 2024 to present)
Within 6 days after resignation, registered Proception with backing from the YC incubator.
Five months later, announced a breakthrough in robotic hand technology, claiming on the official website to 'disrupt human-machine interaction.'
The core technology is hijacked: Optimus is seen by Musk as 'the core of Tesla's future value,' and the robotic hand is its core module for gripping ability. Proception's rapid replication directly hits Tesla's technological moat.
2. The Optimus dilemma: Threefold crisis behind technology leakage
Mass production plans severely impacted
Tesla originally planned to trial produce 5,000 Optimus units in 2025 and expand to 50,000 units in 2026. Core technology leakage may lead to:
Competitors preemptively positioning in the robotic hand supply chain (only 3 companies worldwide possess multi-finger collaborative technology);
After receiving support from YC, Proception's valuation skyrocketed by 300%, undermining Tesla's market exclusivity.
Technological bottlenecks worsen the situation
The Optimus project has repeatedly missed deadlines:
The 2023 demonstration required manual remote control; the October 2024 'We, Robot' event still relied on off-site control;
The project leader Milan Kovac suddenly resigned a week before the lawsuit, exacerbating doubts about the feasibility of the technology.
Rare earth crisis compounded by leakage risks
China's export controls on rare earth magnets have threatened Optimus's mass production (each unit requires 3.5kg of high-performance neodymium magnets), and technology leakage further weakens its supply chain influence.
3. Industry warning: The global game behind the theft case
The collapse of Silicon Valley's entrepreneurial ethical red line
Nearly 40% of hard-tech startups rely on the technology of former employers, but Proception’s '5-month replication' crosses the legal bottom line. If Tesla wins the lawsuit, institutions like YC may be forced to rebuild technology source review mechanisms.
A microcosm of Sino-U.S. technological competition
China's rare earth regulation exposes Tesla's supply chain vulnerabilities, while core technology leakage cases reveal the fragility of America's innovation ecosystem — when top talents become technological loopholes, trillion-dollar market ambitions may turn into bubbles.
Ultimate deduction: lawsuits will rewrite the rules of the robotics industry
✅ Short-term: Proception's financing is frozen, YC faces joint liability (Tesla's lawsuit explicitly points to 'profit from trade secrets');
⚠️ Mid-term: Optimus mass production is delayed, Apple/Boston Dynamics seize the opportunity to capture factory landing scenes;
⛔ Long-term: If Tesla loses the lawsuit, it will severely impact corporate R&D investment confidence — when technology becomes a fruit to be casually stolen, who would still be willing to plant trees?
Musk's bold declaration lingers in the air: 'The value of Optimus will exceed that of the automotive business,' but under the dual strangulation of a technological shadow war and resource dilemmas, the trillion-dollar robot empire faces the severest cold wave on the eve of its birth.
Data verification: Tesla's lawsuit details are integrated from the progress of the Optimus project; the impact of rare earth regulation is referenced.
#Musk #Tesla
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