Who is Ashok Elluswamy? Indian-origin engineer to lead Tesla's Optimus robot project

Ashok Elluswamy, who was leading Tesla's Autopilot team, will now lead the Optimus humanoid robot program, according to an article published in Bloomberg.

Milan Kovac was earlier leading the Optimus humanoid robot program. On Friday (June 6), Kovac confirmed his departure, which he called “the most difficult decision” of his life, via social media platform X. “Over the past 9+ years, I’ve had the immense privilege to work with some of the most brilliant minds in AI & engineering. I’ve built friendships that will last a lifetime,” he wrote.

“This week, I’ve had to make the most difficult decision of my life and will be moving out of my position. I’ve been far away from home for too long, and will need to spend more time with family abroad. I want to make it clear that this is the only reason, and has absolutely nothing to do with anything else. My support for@elonmuskand the team is ironclad – Tesla team forever.”

Who is Ashok Elluswamy?

Ashok Elluswamy is based out of San Francisco. He has been the Director of Tesla’s Autopilot Software since 2019. A robotics engineer by training, he received his Master of Science in Robotic Systems Development from Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

He was the first engineer to join Tesla’s AI/Autopilot team back in 2014 and has since led the development of all AI and Autopilot software. He has a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electronics and Communication from the College of Engineering, Guindy, Chennai.

Prior to joining Tesla, he worked as a Software Engineer at WABCO Vehicle Control Systems and completed a research internship with Volkswagen’s Electronic Research Lab, where he contributed to autonomous driving projects.

According to his LinkedIn profile, his expertise are robotics, computer vision, perception, planning, and control.

Last year, Ashok praised Elon Musk with words of appreciation for his essential role as the “key driver of AI and autonomy at Tesla.” Following his grand post detailing Elon’s importance to Tesla, Musk thanked Elluswamy and his consequential contributions to the team.