r/electricvehicles • u/malbecman • 2d ago
News Tesla's software engineering head to step down, Bloomberg News reports
https://www.reuters.com/business/autos-transportation/teslas-software-engineering-head-step-down-bloomberg-news-reports-2025-04-04/264
u/turb0_encapsulator 2d ago
they are going to start hemorrhaging skilled engineers. Nobody wants to be associated with this brand.
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u/Smeltanddealtit 2d ago
Rivian and Lucid are good landing spots.
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u/Lordofthereef 2d ago
I was actually thinking somewhere in legacy auto dining because a lot of that software is then worst part of the EV 😅
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u/DeathChill 1d ago
They don’t want to work at companies that don’t understand software. Software is a very important piece of the car at Tesla/Rivian/Lucid. It’s like hitting your head against the wall when your organization doesn’t believe you are as important as you are.
Plus, I don’t imagine legacy is willing to pay Silicon Valley salaries + perks.
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u/paulwesterberg 2023 Model S, Elon Musk is the fraud in our government! 2d ago
Nobody wants to work on a legacy stack.
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u/chr1spe 1d ago
You're going to have to explain how you think that applies here for me. The software in cars isn't something that constantly gets recycled at these companies and has a bunch of legacy code. Also, there is no concern of breaking legacy features on cars that aren't ever going to be updated.
Are you really trying to argue that there is a bunch of legacy code in a GM or Hyundai where they've just started using Android Automotive, and the vast majority of systems have nothing to do with older vehicles?
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u/party_benson 2d ago
I would not hire anyone who worked on the cybertruck or the FSD program.
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u/swoodshadow 2d ago
Meh, the FSD software is pretty damn impressive and has solved a ton of challenges. I don’t think it’s reasonable to blame the engineers because it doesn’t work like Elon’s messed up marketing and sales pitch.
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u/party_benson 2d ago
FSD is still not level 3. It was promised years ago. To be that far behind and out of spec is not something to brag about.
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u/TeslaJake 2d ago
That far behind and industry leading. A weird juxtaposition but true.
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u/nfgrawker 1d ago
Oh they will say Mercedes and China are ahead but they haven't used FSD or the other two cars.
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u/party_benson 1d ago
Checks Tesla sales for the quarter. Checks Tesla stock. Looks at cybertruck. China. Byd. Yeah.
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u/TeslaJake 1d ago
A cursory glance at social media will give you ample evidence that people are ditching the brand despite it having the best software in the industry. Tesla’s problems have very little to do with the product.
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u/party_benson 1d ago
A cursory look at social media will show numerous accidents caused while FSD was engaged.
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u/swoodshadow 1d ago
What absolute garbage. The spec is Musk shooting his mouth off to grift investors and customers. Not a reasonably arrived at plan with everyone’s buy in.
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u/obxtalldude 2d ago
It was getting pretty good until last summer.
Now it completely depends on which car and which Hardware you have.
My 2019 Model S is undrivable on FSD. It constantly changes the speed to the point it makes you car sick.
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u/chfp 2d ago
You'd be surprised by the number of asshat conservative / libertarians in tech.
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u/TechnicianExtreme200 2d ago
Yep, it's no different than anywhere else, they put on a mask while it's convenient. There are also a lot who are just in it for the paycheck and prestige.
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u/Different-Housing544 21h ago
Translation:
People don't bring their personal political beliefs into the office, like to get paid well for the work they do, and like to be recognized by their peers for their accomplishments.
Sounds like a healthy work environment honestly.
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u/mrbuttsavage 2d ago
Tech has been a bastion of libertarian types since forever. It's really more recently that tech is also associated with leftism.
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u/natesully33 F150 Lightning, Wrangler 4xE 1d ago
Firmware engineer here, can confirm. Also, there's a recent trend of "brogrammers" that are the opposite haha.
I think as nerds took over the world (for better and worse...) tech grew to include far more people than the libertarian and hippe types that were the only nerds back in the day.
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u/couldbemage 1d ago
Utopian libertarians aren't that different from utopian leftists, to the point of sometimes being the same people.
Particularly among software people.
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u/Cryptic0677 1d ago
Not really but you don’t have to lose all or even half of your most skilled employees for it to be a disaster
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u/ace184184 2d ago
Some people legit dont care. My neighbors just bought a Tesla, I would call them moderates one leaning left one leaning right. They said they got a great deal and they love the car. Just like people dont mind working for insurance companies or Wal-mart or other scummy corporations
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u/bigdipboy 2d ago
Toppling democracy Nazi salutes is beyond regular corporate scumminess
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u/ace184184 2d ago
I dont disagree just saying that there are many who dont even consider it. Its just a car or just a job. I could never drive a Tesla even before the salutes but I realize how little others seem to care about whats happening.
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u/nfgrawker 1d ago
No one outside of reddit thinks like this. You people actually believe it I know, but no normal person does.
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u/chr1spe 1d ago
Where do I meet these "normal people"? In real life, all I meet are delusional right-wingers and people who actually do think like what you're saying normal people don't think like. How fucked up the US, Trump, and Elon are is a pretty regular thing to come up when I go out to my favorite bar in town.
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u/Limekiller 20h ago
The amount of people protesting at Tesla dealers every week (in real life!) suggests otherwise
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u/Germanofthebored 1d ago
I suspect that at some point you - as a single person - just can't see what kind a difference you can make anymore. Case in point - we are on reddit, and whatever we write will be fed to the AIs that big corporations are building, and that will take away our jobs and our agency.
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u/duggawiz 2d ago
Yep. Good. I knew this morning that Elon is shit for real when I drove past a Tesla here in semi-rural New Zealand and saw a swastika spraypaibted on them. He’s gotta fuck off.
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u/KaleLate4894 2d ago
Where’s the FSD ?
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u/BallBearingBill 1d ago
Be ready in 2wks....
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u/enfuego138 Polestar 2 Dual Motor 2024 2d ago
I’m sure Lau is only leaving because it’s ready to go. /s
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u/Nameisnotyours 2d ago
He isn’t stepping down, he is running away.
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u/RddtIsPropAganda 2d ago
When such a high level exec leaves it means they are told to leave or asked to do something. My guess, layoffs.
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u/Nameisnotyours 2d ago
Or they got a great offer from someone else and he saw the shine coming off Tesla.
Best to be the first rat off the sinking ship.-2
u/sierra120 1d ago
People below him have to sign non-compete for like 2yrs which was banned or gimped in CA but not Texas.
So safe to say he’ll have to wait a bit before he can move on to Rivian or Lucid.
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u/RddtIsPropAganda 1d ago
https://www.ftc.gov/news-events/news/press-releases/2024/04/ftc-announces-rule-banning-noncompetes
Biden administration ruled non competes invalid. Don't know if this administration has reinstated them.
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u/LimpRain29 1d ago
So... they may have to move to a state that doesn't suck? None of these people wanted to move to Texas in the first place, not a big deal.
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u/quetzalcoatlus1453 2d ago
Don’t worry, Enron will rewrite it in Java in three months and push the updated software out over the air.
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u/willingzenith 2d ago
Oh no, another tesla reality the fan boys don’t want us to talk about. If we don’t post the story, it never happened.
Cue bahgdad bob - nothing to see here, everything is fine. Really, it’s fine.
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u/wongl888 2d ago
Is the head of software at Tesla going to BYD, ZeekR, or some other Chinese EV manufacturer?
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u/DeuceSevin 18h ago
As the owner of a Tesla and an EV from a different manufacturer, software and charging network are the two things I see Tesla having a big advantage. He almost killed the charging network, but I guess thought better of it? Now his actions could kill the software edge.
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u/Zealousideal-Ant9548 2d ago
They still have software engineers? No one seems to be working on the car outside of self driving...
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2d ago
[deleted]
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u/Zealousideal-Ant9548 2d ago
That are all "minor fixes". Cut me some slack, I was being a jackass ;)
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2d ago
[deleted]
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u/Zealousideal-Ant9548 2d ago
I have actually talked to a software dev there. He said his role changed nearly every week and they don't have that many devs to begin with. One of the reasons why the voice commands haven't been improved in 9+ months
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2d ago
[deleted]
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u/Zealousideal-Ant9548 1d ago
Do you know how to control the defogger? It hasn't worked for 3 years
It seems like one of those voice control things as I'd be turning it on or off while driving and it's hidden behind several swipes.
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u/Jmauld 1d ago
Press button. Say: “Defog the windshield”
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u/couldbemage 1d ago
They've updated the voice commands already this year.
I would not say it's an improvement, but they have certainly changed them.
Changed to more natural speech, but actually less functional.
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u/mikeyP-619 21h ago
As a Tesla owner who can’t get rid of the car because of loan hell, I will say the only updates we have been getting from Tesla is minor fixes and patches. The scary part is that electric vehicles are computers on wheels. We need talented engineers to maintain the software. If the engineers don’t want to be associated with the brand, it will ruin the company within. Elon is ruining the country within by destroying the software. So there you go.
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u/Supremesaiyajin 2d ago edited 2d ago
How is this relevant?
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u/critter2482 2d ago
Are you asking how this is relevant to the electric vehicles sub, this sub, the one we’re on right now. Hmm, an all-electric car manufacturer who leads everyone in EV software development has their vice president of software engineering step down after 12 years…how much more relevant to this sub do you want? Software is a huge component of EVs. I also don’t understand one of the replies to your comment saying something to the effect of 90% of headlines shared here have to be negative headlines. How is this a negative headline? It’s just a fact and a relevant fact to the EV world for a company who leads everyone by wide margins in EV software development.
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u/hotsaucebleucheese 2d ago
Software seems to be the only real advantage that Tesla maintains over it’s competitors. This is relevant news
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u/astros1991 2d ago
Better charging infrastructure too
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u/hotsaucebleucheese 2d ago
Mostly now shared with other manufacturers. Not a big deal anymore
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u/astros1991 2d ago
Not at all the majority. And that’s good. Don’t want to share the charging exclusivity with others.
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u/icaranumbioxy 2d ago
Because 90% of articles on this sub have to be negative Tesla headlines.
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u/yhsong1116 '23 Model Y LR, '20 Model 3 SR+ 2d ago
its not.
head of software leaves at Ford. no one gives a fxxx.
only Tesla gets looked at with a microscope.
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u/Malforus Chevy Bolt EUV 2023 2d ago
If Mike Amend bailed on Ford it would make the news.
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u/yhsong1116 '23 Model Y LR, '20 Model 3 SR+ 2d ago
no it wouldnt.
find me posts where SE head left at other companies and a post was made.
I did a quick search and couldnt find any so I am asking for your help.
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u/Malforus Chevy Bolt EUV 2023 2d ago
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u/Puzzleheaded-Flow724 16h ago
These are not POSTS here. These are articles from the web. Did this sub care enough to write posts about them?
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u/yhsong1116 '23 Model Y LR, '20 Model 3 SR+ 2d ago
3rd result of what ? Lmao stfu but thanks. There is one.
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u/Entire_Purple3531 2d ago
Have you read Walter Isaacson’s book (authorized) on Musk? 98% of anyone Musk goes into business with, etc, leaves.
So in that light, I guess you’re right, it’s really not news.
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u/stilhere 2d ago
Yes, that's because Ford's CEO isn't actively trying to insert himself into US politics. Or did you miss that part?
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[deleted]
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u/birdbonefpv 2d ago
Smart move. I bet all the Tesla engineers are looking for new jobs this weekend.