Tesla has lost a top executive to Waymo in the lead-up to the EV maker’s robotaxi unveiling on Thursday.
Daniel Ho, Tesla’s former head of vehicle programs and new product integration, last week announced his new role as programs director at Waymo.
Ho, who previously reported directly to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, oversaw the development and ramp up of the Model Y and Cybertruck, launched new factories in Berlin and Texas, and grew production volume “from 0.5M to 1.85M cars per year” while setting the groundwork on the robotaxi, according to his LinkedIn.
Ho joins Waymo as the autonomous vehicle company adds the Hyundai Ioniq 5 to its robotaxi lineup and prepares to scale its purpose-built Zeekr robotaxis.
Daniel Zhang, one of Tesla’s top vehicle program managers who worked under Ho, also left Tesla recently, per a LinkedIn post.