Elon Musk Confirms Supercharger Expansion Despite Firing Team
After announcing it would lay off 10 percent of its global workforce in mid-April, Tesla this week decided to fire its head of new products as well as the senior director of its Supercharger team, along with everyone reporting to them. Around 500 people are affected.
The automaker informed employees in an email that was shared on Monday and seen by a few media outlets in the U.S. including The Information.
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Claiming the need to be "absolutely hardcore about headcount" and cost reduction, Tesla CEO Elon Musk quickly turned to his favourite social media platform in an attempt to reassure investors and customers alike:
Tesla still plans to grow the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace for new locations and more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 30, 2024
So, it appears that Tesla will focus on improving the existing network and finalizing locations that are currently under construction to make sure that chargers are always available. The addition of new Superchargers will continue, but like Musk wrote, it will take more time than previously anticipated.
The decision to eliminate the Supercharger team is already being widely criticized, especially with Tesla opening up its network to EVs from other brands. What’s more, entire sections of Canada and the U.S. continue to lack Supercharger locations.
Tesla currently operates 57,579 Superchargers at 6,249 locations globally.