Tesla's Optimus robot development project has just encountered a new obstacle when Milan Kovac, the project's head of technical departments, announced his departure from the company.
Mr. Kovac shared on the X platform that the decision to quit was to "spend more time with his family abroad", while affirming his "stable" support for Elon Musk and the Tesla team.
Mr. Kovac's departure comes at a sensitive time, when Elon Musk is placing high expectations on Optimus as a strategic direction, in the context of declining electric vehicle sales and fluctuating Tesla stock prices. Musk has declared Optimus as Tesla's "most important product development project," in addition to the autonomous vehicle and "robotaxi" service program expected to launch in Austin this month.
Despite Kovac's claim that his departure from Tesla "will not change anything" about the robot development plan, observers are still questioning the company's ability to achieve production targets. In March, billionaire Elon Musk said Tesla could make at least 5,000 Optimus robots this year and increase it to 50,000 by 2026, the equivalent of a robotic army in his likeness.
However, the Optimus project is facing many challenges. In addition to the departure of key personnel, Tesla also has to address supply chain issues, especially recent restrictions from China on rare earth and magnet exports - essential components for making robots.
According to some sources, the person who will take over as leader of the Optimus project is Ashok Elluswamy, currently the head of Autopilot at Tesla. Despite being experienced, Elluswamy will face great pressure to lead an initiative at a key stage, while public opinion is increasingly skeptical about the feasibility of Musk's timelines.
In a post, Musk thanked Kovac for his excellent contributions to Tesla over the past 10 years. However, the loss of a key figure while the project is still unfinished is certainly a step back for Tesla's ambitious automation ambitions.
