Elon Musk’s move to disband Tesla EV charging team blindsides car industry: ‘Sharp kick in the pants’

Elon Musk’s abrupt decision to lay off employees who ran Tesla’s electric vehicle charging business blindsided automakers gearing up to equip new EVs for customers to use the Tesla Supercharger network, industry officials and analysts said on Tuesday.

For now, General Motors, Ford and other automakers which struck deals last year to give customers access to the network said they are not changing their plans.

Tesla’s decision to open its network to rival EV manufacturers was hailed by President Biden, and opened the door for Tesla to get federal subsidies to expand the reach of its North American Charging Standard (NACS) system.

Musk’s decision, as reported by The Information, to dismiss the head of the business, Rebecca Tinucci, and most or all of the staff that operated and maintained the system left officials at automakers and Tesla suppliers uncertain about the future.

Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Musk subsequently said on X that the carmaker still plans to expand the Supercharger network, “just at a slower pace for new locations and more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations.”