Tesla has abruptly fired the team running its electric vehicle charging business, raising doubts about the future of one of the largest U.S. charging networks, which other carmakers, such as General Motors and Ford, have said they will also use.
In social media posts Tuesday, several Tesla employees confirmed the layoffs, first reported by The Information.
Tesla 鈥渉as let our entire charging org go,鈥� William Navarro Jameson, strategic charging programs lead at Tesla, wrote on .
A lack of charging infrastructure is one of the main barriers to widespread EV adoption, and Tesla鈥檚 extensive 鈥淪upercharger鈥� network has long been a major selling point for its vehicles. Until recently, that network could only be used by Tesla vehicles.
Competitors blindsided
In a post on LinkedIn, Lane Chaplin, a senior manager in Tesla鈥檚 charging division, wrote: 鈥淚n the middle of the night, I learned, along with all my #Tesla Global #Charging colleagues, the Tesla Charging org is no more.鈥�
But, following an invitation by Tesla chief executive Elon Musk, virtually every big automaker in the United States committed to making EVs compatible with Tesla鈥檚 charging technology, now known as the North American Charging Standard.
In response, major EV charging providers such as Electrify America and EVgo have also announced they will begin building chargers with NACS cables.
鈥淲hat this means for the charging network, NACS and all the exciting work we were doing across the industry, I don鈥檛 yet know,鈥� Jameson wrote in his post.
Tesla has not responded to CNN鈥檚 request for comment. Musk said on X on Tuesday that the company 鈥渟till 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.鈥�
In a statement shared with CNN, Electrify America reiterated its plans to have NACS chargers available next year. General Motors said its plans to transition to NACS remain unchanged. 鈥淲e are continuing to monitor the situation regarding changes to the Supercharger team and the potential impacts,鈥� the company added in a statement.
鈥楻eading the room鈥� on EV demand
General Motors said its plans to transition to NACS remain unchanged. 鈥淲e are continuing to monitor the situation regarding changes to the Supercharger team and the potential impacts,鈥� the company added in a statement.
Gene Munster, a managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management, said the move 鈥渟hows Tesla does not see charging as a competitive advantage.鈥�
鈥淪ince they opened up the network, its no longer to the company鈥檚 benefit to advance charging because it also helps their competitors,鈥� he told CNN. 鈥淭esla鈥檚 North Star is now (autonomous driving), and thats where the resources are going.鈥�
According to Dan Ives, a senior analyst at Wedbush Securities, 鈥淢usk is reading the room around softer EV demand globally.鈥�
鈥淭esla is going through a鈥� demand storm and unfortunately strategic changes are needed to get the train back on the tracks,鈥� he told CNN, but added: 鈥淩emoving the whole department is a head-scratcher.鈥�
