Elon Musk fires longtime ‘fixer’ Omead Afshar as – Business News
Tesla boss Elon Musk has reportedly fired longtime “fixer” Omead Afshar, the pinnacle of the company’s North American and Europe operations, after a extended gross sales stoop in the important thing areas.
Afshar was long thought-about one of Tesla’s strongest executives and had been promoted to supervise gross sales and manufacturing within the two areas final yr. Forbes was first to report on the firing, citing people acquainted with the matter.
Tesla didn’t instantly return The Post’s request for remark. Musk, who ceaselessly offers business updates on his X account, has but to handle Afshar’s standing.
Elon Musk has reportedly fired longtime aide Omead Afshar. Bloomberg by way of Getty Images
The precise timing of Afshar’s exit was not instantly clear, although information of his departure has reportedly been mentioned by some Tesla workers in current days, Bloomberg reported. Afshar’s identify has additionally been faraway from an inside worker listing.
Afshar’s reported ouster is the newest signal of turmoil at Tesla, with shares down more than 13% for the reason that begin of the yr. Tesla will report its second-quarter supply numbers subsequent week – an announcement that can be intently watched by traders.
Tesla’s gross sales in Europe plunged 28% in May, marking the fifth straight month of declines as Musk’s firm cedes ground to BYD and different Chinese electric car makers, in keeping with knowledge from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association.
As just lately as Tuesday, Afshar posted on X touting progress within the efficiency of Tesla’s Robotaxis in Austin, Texas.
On Monday, he described the Robotaxi rollout as an “absolutely historic day for Tesla.”
Tesla is within the midst of a gross sales stoop. Getty Images
“This has been *years* of hard work and focus by so many people within the company. Thank you, Elon, for pushing us all!” Afshar wrote.
A 2024 Wall Street Journal profile referred to Afshar as Musk’s “fixer” and one of probably the most highly effective executives at Tesla. Notably, he oversaw the construction of Tesla’s huge Gigafactory in Texas. He additionally as soon as ran the workplace of the CEO at Tesla.
Several prime executives left Tesla then, amid restructuring and layoffs, together with CFO Zach Kirkhorn, chief battery engineer Drew Baglino, and Rebecca Tinucci, who led the Supercharging division.
Milan Kovac, who led engineering on the company’s Optimus robot, resigned to spend more time together with his household.
Separately, Jenna Ferrua, who headed human sources operations in Austin, has additionally stop, in keeping with newest media experiences.
Afshar had praised Tesla’s Robotaxi program on X as just lately as Tuesday. x/omead
Wall Street has been involved about Tesla’s growing older car lineup and elevated competitors overseas, whereas Musk’s work with President Trump and the Department of Government Efficiency contributed to a model disaster.
Tesla backers say self-driving Robotaxis may have a transformative affect on the company’s business. For the restricted rollout in Texas, Tesla positioned security officers within the entrance seat to monitor the vehicle’s conduct.
Despite the security measures, some Robotaxis skilled glitches and even appeared to violate native site visitors legal guidelines.
