Readiness guide
Your Robot's First Week: Onboard It Like a New Hire
Day-one setup framed as onboarding: orientation, one job at a time, and a check-in at the end of week one.
· Independent, not affiliated with Tesla.
The worst first day at any job is the one where nobody planned for you. No desk, no instructions, and five people giving five different orders. A home robot's first week can go the same way unless you plan it.
This post is a plan for that first week. It doesn't depend on any feature Tesla hasn't announced. It works for any helper you bring into your house.
Day 1: Orientation, not work. Walk the house the way you'd show a new employee around. Kitchen, laundry, the closet with supplies, the rooms that are off-limits. Introduce the people who live there and, slowly, the pets. Whatever setup the product actually needs, do it on day one with no chores scheduled. Use the day to learn, not to get things done.
Pick one manager. In a household, everybody gives instructions. That's confusing for a new person and it'll be confusing for a robot. Decide who sets the rules and the job list. Others can ask for things, but one adult owns the list.
Days 2–3: One job, watched. Choose the easiest of your three starter jobs, probably tidying or putting away laundry. Do it alongside, or watch the first few times. Write down what went right and what didn't. This is the trial period every workplace has.
Days 4–5: Add a second job only if the first is boring. Boring is the goal. When you stop watching the first job because nothing surprising happens, it's ready. Then add job two.
Keep a short log. One line a day: what it did, what surprised you, what you changed. After a week you'll have a better manual for your house than any guide, including this one.
Set working hours. People work better with predictable shifts, and households do too. Choose when the robot works and when it rests and charges. Avoid the busy hours: school mornings, dinner, the dog's walk.
Day 7: The check-in. Sit down with whoever shares the house. What helped? What annoyed anyone? Did anyone feel uncomfortable? Change the house rules page based on what you hear. Good managers do a one-week check-in with new hires. It's just as useful here.
What not to do in week one:
- Don't hand over every chore at once.
- Don't test it with the hardest job to "see what it can do."
- Don't let kids or guests give it orders yet.
- Don't leave it working alone while nobody's home.
Our community's most common worry is trust: keys, kids, pets, older parents living alone. The first week is how trust gets built, slowly and on purpose, the way it does with any new person in your home. Go slow on purpose.
Nothing here assumes a specific capability. If Tesla publishes real setup steps, follow those first. Use this plan for everything around them.
Printable checklist
- Day 1: tour only, no chores
- One adult owns the job list
- Days 2–3: one easy job, watched
- Add job two only when job one is boring
- One-line daily log
- Set working hours and rest hours
- No solo work while nobody's home in week one
- Day 7 household check-in; update house rules
Independent community site. Not affiliated with Tesla. Nothing here is a Tesla spec, price, or date; anything speculative is labeled.