Introduction
Milan Kovac, the leader of Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot program, has announced his decision to resign in a recent post on X.Context
Kovac took charge of the program in 2022, being appointed as the director of Optimus and Autopilot Engineering. He later advanced to the position of vice president in September 2022. In his announcement, Kovac cited personal reasons for his departure, expressing a need to prioritize family time abroad.Developments
According to a earlier report by Bloomberg News, Kovac will leave his position immediately, with Ashok Elluswamy, the current head of Tesla's autopilot teams, poised to succeed him. Tesla and Elluswamy have yet to provide comments regarding this transition.CEO Elon Musk has previously indicated that Tesla aims to produce thousands of Optimus robots this year, although the production was impacted by issues related to rare-earth magnets, as mentioned in April. The company's strategic focus has shifted towards the launch of both the robots and its robotaxi service, with a significant portion of Tesla's valuation riding on these initiatives. Musk emphasized in May that in the long run, "the only things that matter are autonomy and Optimus."