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Tesla Will Have Metal Gear Snake Autocoupler, Musk Confirms
Tesla's Metal Gear Snake Autocoupler, also known as the snake robot recharger, is really going to be instantiated, according to Elon Musk in a recent series of tweets.
In a follow-up tweet, the CEO confirmed that Tesla still has plans for the robot snake charge concept:
Here's what it looks like:
See Tesla Robotaxis Will Automatically Recharge Themselves for yet more confirmation from Musk, this time from the 2019 Autonomy Day presentation.
Science fiction fans will of course check out the self-charging robots from the 1960 short story Callahan and the Wheelies by Stephen Barr, the first reference to this idea that I know about. Oh, and don't forget the steel robot tentacles from HG Wells' 1898 classic War of the Worlds.
Update 09-Mar-2026: It turns out there IS a good reference for this idea in Flying Dutchman (1951) by Ward Moore:
From the fuel storage an apparently endless hose snaked across the field, and reaching the bomber, became even more reptilian as it raised its head in response to electronic impulses, then crawling up the plane's towering side, blindly sought the intake leading to the empty gas tanks.
(Read more about the automatic fuel hose)
Thanks to SFFaudio for the lead on this story! End update.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 10/9/2020)
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Science Fiction
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The New Habitable Zones Include Asimov's Ribbon Worlds
'...there's a narrow belt where the climate is moderate.'
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'The robot clerk in the waiting-room checked her number...'
Can One Robot Do Many Tasks?
'... with the Master-operator all you have to do is push one! A remarkable achievement!'
Atlas Robot Makes Uncomfortable Movements
'Not like me. A T-1000, advanced prototype. A mimetic poly-alloy. Liquid metal.'
Boring Company Drills Asimov's Single Vehicle Tunnels
'It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
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'The massive feet working the pedals, arms and hands flashing and glinting...'
A Remarkable Coincidence
'There is a philosophical problem of some difficulty here...'
Cortex 1 - Today A Warehouse, Tomorrow A Calculator Planet
'There were cubic miles of it, and it glistened like a silvery Christmas tree...'
Perching Ambush Drones
'On the chest of drawers something was perched.'
Leader-Follower Autonomous Vehicle Technology
'Jason had been guiding the caravan of cars as usual...'
Golf Ball Test Robot Wears Them Out
"The robot solemnly hit a ball against the wall, picked it up and teed it, hit it again, over and again...'
Boring Company Vegas Loop Like Asimov Said
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
Rigid Metallic Clothing From Science Fiction To You
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
Is The Seattle Ultrasonics C-200 A Heinlein Vibroblade?
'It ain't a vibroblade. It's steel. Messy.'
Roborock Saros Z70 Is A Robot Vacuum With An Arm
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
A Beautiful Visualization Of Compact Food
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