Tesla’s robotics division has hit a key leadership change, as Milan Kovac, head of engineering for the company’s humanoid robot project, Optimus, departed on Friday. Kovac said on X that he was leaving for personal reasons—to be with his family in another country—and that he still strongly supports Tesla and Elon Musk.
“I stand firmly with @elonmusk and the team,” Kovac said, aiming to stop any rumors about political issues or recent controversies involving Musk. Musk expressed gratitude to Kovac for his exceptional work at Tesla over the last decade.
Optimus, which Musk describes as Tesla’s most important product development, is at the heart of the company’s future plans. Since electric vehicle sales are slowing and Tesla’s stock is under pressure, Musk is now relying on Optimus and Tesla’s autonomous driving plans to attract investors. According to Musk, the only things that will matter in the long run are autonomy and Optimus.
According to Bloomberg, Ashok Elluswamy, who leads Tesla’s Autopilot software team, will now be in charge of Optimus. The change is happening at a crucial moment. In March, Musk stated that by the end of 2025, Tesla would have built at least one legion of robots, which is about 5,000 units, and aimed to have 50,000 units by 2026.
To achieve these tough goals, Tesla has to deal with both technical problems and international issues. China has put in place stricter rules on exporting rare earth minerals and magnets, which are important for robotics manufacturing in the U.S. Such supply chain issues could seriously threaten Tesla’s ability to meet its production targets.
Even though Kovac is leaving, Tesla still believes its Optimus timeline is unchanged. Now that Elluswamy is in charge, people are interested in how Tesla will grow its robotics ambitions as it deals with leadership changes, supply problems, and increased attention from investors.
