As the Securities and Exchange Commission has pointed out, it’s always hard to tell if Elon Musk is serious when he gets onto Twitter. So when the CEO of Tesla says he wants to see a giant flying/fighting manned robot become reality, it gives one pause.
Musk, on Sunday, tweeted “It’s time to create a mecha” after posting a Tweet praising the 2016 anime movie Your Name. A mecha, for those who don’t follow anime, is a giant robot that’s controlled by a person from within.
Sure, the Tweet was almost certainly an early-morning joke. Creating these sorts of devices would cost millions of dollars and serve no practical purpose.
But before you shrug it off completely, remember that Musk joked about making a flamethrower once, then actually did it (and sold it, despite criticisms from firefighters). The Boring Company, he has said, “started as a joke” and it’s now leading a massive tunnel project in Los Angeles.
Musk also has a little more time on his hands these days, after being removed as chairman of Tesla as part of his settlement with the SEC.
Musk, it seems, is actually quite a fan of anime. After his initial Tweet about Your Name, he discussed his enthusiasm for other anime films, including Spirited Away and Princess Mononoke.
