Tesla Cybertrucks are seen in July at Gigafactory Texas. The executive leading the Cybertruck business is leaving the Austin-based automaker.
The executive leading Tesla Inc’s Cybertruck business is leaving the Elon Musk-led automaker after eight years.
Siddhant Awasthi, the program manager for Tesla’s Cybertruck and Model 3, said on LinkedIn that it wasn’t an easy decision to depart the Austin company. He did not provide details on what he will be doing next.
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Awasthi said he began as an intern at Tesla and was involved in “ramping up Model 3, working on Giga Shanghai, developing new electronics and wireless architectures, and delivering the once-in-a-lifetime Cybertruck — all before hitting 30. The icing on the cake was getting to dive back into Model 3 work toward the end.”
It’s the latest in a string of high-level departures from Tesla, which continues to struggle to sell both its aging line of vehicles and relatively new Cybertruck amid increasing global competition and continuing backlash against Musk’s political activities.
In July, it was reported top North American sales executive Troy Jones was leaving the company after 15 years. That followed the firing of Omead Afshar, who had been promoted in the past year to oversee Tesla’s manufacturing and operations in North America and Europe.
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Jenna Ferrua, Tesla’s North American director of human resources, departed in June. Earlier this year, David Lau, Tesla’s vice president of software engineering, left the company after more than a decade. Vineet Mehta, who oversaw architecture, exited in April after 17 years with the company. Also in June, Milan Kovac, vice president of the Optimus humanoid robotics program, said he’d resigned to spend more time with family.
Cybertruck has had its share of difficulties — not least among them that sales have been disappointing since it was introduced.
Last month Tesla announced that it was recalling more than 63,000 of the angular pickups in the U.S. because the front lights are too bright, which may cause a distraction to other drivers and increase the risk of a collision.
In March U.S. safety regulators recalled virtually all Cybertrucks on the road. The NHTSA’s recall, which covered more than 46,000 Cybertrucks, warned that an exterior panel that runs along the left and right side of the windshield can detach while driving, creating a dangerous road hazard for other drivers, increasing the risk of a crash.
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Tesla reported a fourth straight decline in quarterly profit in October, even as sales rose. The automaker reported third-quarter earnings plunged 37% to $1.4 billion, or 39 cents a share, from $2.2 billion, or 62 cents a share, a year earlier. That marked the fourth quarter in a row that profit dropped. Even the revenue rise, a welcome relief from a sales plunge earlier in the year due to anti-Musk boycotts, came with a significant caveat: Customers rushed to take advantage of a $7,500 federal EV tax credit before it expired on Oct. 1, possibly stealing sales from the current quarter.
RELATED: Tesla approves $1 trillion pay deal for Elon Musk, who could become world’s first trillionaire
While Tesla continues to have difficulties, last week Musk won a shareholder vote that would give him stock worth $1 trillion if he hits certain performance targets over the next decade. More than 75% of voters approved the plan as shareholders gathered in Austin, Texas, for their annual meeting.
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The vote was a resounding victory for Musk, showing at least rank-and-file investors still have faith in him as Tesla struggles with plunging sales, market share and profits in no small part due to Musk himself. Car buyers fled the company this year as he has ventured into politics both in the U.S. and Europe, and trafficked in conspiracy theories.
Tesla’s stock fell last week on the news of the pay deal, but was rising ahead of Monday’s market open.