Tesla’s Rapid Turnaround: Massive Layoffs Followed by a Big Hiring Spree

Just three months after Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk implemented the company’s largest-ever round of layoffs, Tesla is now on a hiring spree, looking to bring on nearly 800 new employees.

     Bloomberg’s analysis reveals that Tesla’s job listings have seen a significant expansion in recent weeks, with new positions ranging from AI experts to service roles. This expansion in hiring coincides with Tesla’s soaring stock prices, which have seen a massive increase of over $223 billion (approximately 1.62 trillion Chinese yuan) in the past 14 trading days. Tesla’s stock price has been on a consistent rise, with only one reported decline, which was when the company announced a delay in the release of its autonomous taxi prototype. Musk confirmed on Monday that he had requested design changes for the autonomous taxi and provided additional time for the development team.

While the 800 new positions may not be as significant as the thousands of jobs Tesla cut this year, and the publicly listed positions may not fully reflect the company’s hiring activities, they do offer a glimpse into Musk’s strategic priorities for the company.

In May, Tesla fell short of vehicle sales expectations, experiencing its largest-ever drop, with only three job listings on its website. Bloomberg reported that the 20% decline in quarterly deliveries prompted Musk to initiate staff reductions, which would have meant dismissing approximately 28,000 of the company’s 140,000-plus employees.

     Now, Tesla is focusing on hiring in the fields of artificial intelligence and robotics, with products such as the humanoid robot Optimus. At least 25 positions are related to autonomous driving development or Autopilot, and at least 30 focus on the Optimus robot. As Tesla prepares to unveil its autonomous taxi prototype in October, the company is reinforcing its commitment to autonomous driving technology.

    The hiring spree also seems to be an attempt to fill gaps left by the layoffs and align with Musk’s vision for the company. He has previously stated that he now sees Tesla more as an AI, robotics, and sustainable energy company rather than solely as an electric vehicle manufacturer.

    In mid-May, Tesla quietly posted 17 AI and robotics-related positions at its Palo Alto, California office. By July 10th, that number had risen to about 130 positions. Tesla’s job listings also include dozens of energy-related roles in Palo Alto and Lathrop, California, where Tesla builds its large battery Megapacks, covering everything from engineering positions to the installation of Megapacks and solar products.

    The customer-facing departments at Tesla are also bolstering their staff, with 268 service-related positions listed on July 15th, including 77 repair technicians, surpassing any other position or department. The company has also opened over 60 sales and customer support roles.