Written by Cláudio Afonso | [email protected] | LinkedIn | X
Tesla has named Bonne Eggleston as the new head of its 4680 battery department, according to a report from Chinese media LatePost which was meanwhile confirmed by the Tesla employee.
Eggleston, who joined the company seven years ago as a senior manager for New Product Introduction in Powertrain, has ascended through various roles, culminating in his promotion to senior director for the 4680 project in September 2022.
On X, Eggleston subtly confirmed the report with two emojis.
Following his appointment, Eggleston held a department-wide meeting where he announced a freeze on layoffs. However, he emphasized that meeting the cost reduction target by the year’s end is imperative. Tesla’s goal is for its self-produced 4680 batteries to be cheaper than those from suppliers such as Panasonic and LG Energy, the report indicates.\
In March, Tesla produced enough 4680 battery cells in a single week to power 1,000 Cybertrucks.
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Prior to Eggleston’s appointment, Tesla had already reduced its battery material department’s workforce by half while the 4680 battery division downsized by over 20%, leaving approximately 800 employees.
Earlier today, Tesla emailed its customers in Australia to provide an update on Supercharging amidst growing concerns about service quality following layoffs.
The email was followed by a post on X from Elon Musk saying Tesla will spend “well over $500M expanding the Supercharger network to create thousands of NEW chargers” in 2024.
“That’s just on new sites and expansions, not counting operations costs, which are much higher,” he added.
In the email, Tesla reiterated that the “network will continue to be expanded” adding that all the sites which are currently under construction “will be completed and put into operation”.
Written by Cláudio Afonso | [email protected] | LinkedIn | X
