Top Tesla executive, an Elon Musk confidant, leaves the company, sources say
Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk gets in a Tesla car as he leaves a hotel in Beijing, China May 31, 2023. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang/File Photo
(Reuters) -Tesla executive and longtime Elon Musk confidant Omead Afshar has left the electric-vehicle maker, three people familiar with the matter said on Thursday, another senior departure as the company grapples with slowing global demand.
Afshar was part of the CEO's office and since last year had overseen sales and manufacturing in Europe and North America. After joining Tesla in 2017, he quickly became one of Musk's trusted lieutenants, playing a central role in major projects like the Texas Gigafactory.
The sources, who declined to be identified, had no details on the circumstances of his exit or the reason behind it. Afshar posted about Tesla on X early this week, and his profiles on X and LinkedIn still showed his Tesla role as current on Wednesday.
Afshar departed amid slumping demand in Europe and North America for Tesla's aging vehicle line-up while rivals have offered more affordable alternatives.
Two people familiar with Tesla's operations said Afshar was among the executives who took on bigger roles this year when Musk was focused on Washington.
Musk led President Donald Trump's government cost-cutting drive this year, and many investors and analysts worried that distracted Musk from Tesla and alienated some potential buyers.
Former mid-level Tesla sales manager Matthew LaBrot, who was recently fired for public criticism of Musk, said Afshar was a "supporting character" closely tied to Musk until he rose to head sales and manufacturing in North America and Europe.
LaBrot said there was significant pressure internally to deal with the sales declines, which have been particularly severe in Europe.
Afshar's departure was reported earlier by Bloomberg News, which also reported that North America HR Director Jenna Ferrua had exited the company. Two of the three people who confirmed Afshar's departure to Reuters also said Ferrua had left.
One of those people said Afshar and Ferrua were close colleagues, so it was not surprising that both left around the same time. Another of the people said Ferrua has served as a direct HR adviser to Afshar.
The departure caps a series of executive exits over the past 14 months, driven by company-wide restructuring as Tesla slashed thousands of jobs and shifted its focus to AI-powered self-driving technology and robotics.
The departures included leaders in robots, batteries and public policy. The head of Tesla's Optimus humanoid robot team, Milan Kovac, announced he was leaving this month, and top battery executive Vineet Mehta did so in May.
Chief battery engineer Drew Baglino, Rebecca Tinucci, who led the supercharging division, and global public policy head Rohan Patel left in spring 2024.
Musk ended his Washington stint in late May, reassuring some investors concerned about brand damage. But Tesla's shares remain down about 19% for the year, after an initial rise on optimism that Trump's victory would clear the regulatory path for robotaxis.
On Sunday, Tesla deployed self-driving taxis in Austin, Texas. Some analysts have warned that the company's plan to expand to other cities later this year could face hurdles, due to concerns about safety and the technology.
On Monday, Afshar posted on X that the Austin robotaxi debut was an "absolutely historic day for Tesla," adding: "Thank you, Elon, for pushing us all!"
In the past, Afshar posted about spending holidays and late nights with Musk, particularly when Tesla was ramping up production of the mass-market Model 3 sedan in 2018. He reflected in a March post about "living in the factory at this time, truly 24/7."
(Reporting by Alexandra Ulmer in Washington, Akash Sriram in Bengaluru, Abhirup Roy in San Francisco, Chris Kirkham in Los Angeles and Rachael Levy in Washington; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli and Cynthia Osterman)
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