Tesla Director of Autopilot Software Ashok Elluswamy has been promoted to Vice President of AI Software. The promotion was listed on the Tesla executive’s personal LinkedIn page.
Elluswamy has been with Tesla for 10 years and 10 months as of writing. His long tenure in the electric vehicle maker started in January 2014, when he was hired as a Software Engineer for Tesla’s Autopilot program. Considering that the first iteration of Autopilot was launched in October 2015, it seems safe to infer that Elluswamy was likely one of the first members of the company’s Autopilot team.
Elluswamy would work as an Autopilot Software Engineer for 2.5 years, before being promoted to Autopilot Senior Software Engineer on June 2016. He would be promoted once more in September 2017 to Autopilot Senior Staff Software Engineer, and in May 2019, he would be promoted to Tesla’s Director of Autopilot Software.
We all know what the deciding contribution was— Cybertruck (@cybertruck) October 16, 2024
Elluswamy would serve as Tesla’s Autopilot Director for 5.5 years, leading the autonomy software team for the company’s Autopilot program. His run as Tesla’s Autopilot Director seems to have been successful, with the company launching and rolling out FSD Beta and FSD (Supervised) over the years, even on the Cybertruck. Tesla community members appreciated Elluswamy’s willingness to engage with members of the EV community on X, where he posts insights and updates on a fairly regular basis.
Needless to say, Elluswamy’s rise in Tesla seems to have been the result of extremely hard work—hard work that definitely makes him deserving as the company’s new Vice President of AI Software.
$TSLA
Congratulations to @aelluswamy , who was promoted to vice president of Tesla's AI software division.
What he achieved at Tesla is dazzling! pic.twitter.com/g2I1xc1VFO— Tsla Chan (@Tslachan) October 16, 2024
Elluswamy seems to have capped off his tenure as Tesla’s Autopilot Director at the recently held “We, Robot” event, where the company showcased its Cybercab and Robovan to more than 2,000 attendees. As per the new VP of AI Software, the Robotaxi unveiling event featured 19 Cybercabs and 29 Model Ys that were autonomously driving for over 3.5 hours, transporting over 2,000 guests across 1,300 trips. He also noted that the Cybercabs were running near-production AI software that is expected to ship in FSD V13.
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News
Tesla Model Y and Model 3 dominate U.S. EV sales despite headwinds
Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles accounted for more than 40% of all EVs sold in the United States in Q2 2025.

Tesla’s Model Y and Model 3 remained the top-selling electric vehicles in the U.S. during Q2 2025, even as the broader EV market dipped 6.3% year-over-year.
The Model Y logged 86,120 units sold, followed by the Model 3 at 48,803. This means that Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles accounted for 43% of all EVs sold in the United States during the second quarter, as per data from Cox Automotive.
Tesla leads amid tax credit uncertainty and a tough first half
Tesla’s performance in Q2 is notable given a series of hurdles earlier in the year. The company temporarily paused Model Y deliveries in Q1 as it transitioned to the production of the new Model Y, and its retail presence was hit by protests and vandalism tied to political backlash against CEO Elon Musk. The fallout carried into Q2, yet Tesla’s two mass-market vehicles still outsold the next eight EVs combined.
Q2 marked just the third-ever YoY decline in quarterly EV sales, totaling 310,839 units. Electric vehicle sales, however, were still up 4.9% from Q1 and reached a record 607,089 units in the first half of 2025. Analysts also expect a surge in Q3 as buyers rush to qualify for federal EV tax credits before they expire on October 1, Cox Automotive noted in a post.
Legacy rivals gain ground, but Tesla holds its commanding lead
General Motors more than doubled its EV volume in the first half of 2025, selling over 78,000 units and boosting its EV market share to 12.9%. Chevrolet became the second-best-selling EV brand, pushing GM past Ford and Hyundai. Tesla, however, still retained a commanding 44.7% electric vehicle market share despite a 12% drop in in Q2 revenue, following a decline of almost 9% in Q1.
Incentives reached record highs in Q2, averaging 14.8% of transaction prices, roughly $8,500 per vehicle. As government support winds down, the used EV market is also gaining momentum, with over 100,000 used EVs sold in Q2.
Q2 2025 Kelley Blue Book EV Sales Report by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
News
Tesla China weekly insurance registrations surge 145% amid strong June results
The results follow Tesla’s solid June performance in China.

Tesla China saw 12,300 new vehicle insurance registrations in the week of July 7-13, marking a 145% increase from the prior week’s 5,010 registrations. The surge seems to be bolstered by strong domestic demand for Tesla’s two mainstream vehicles, the Model Y crossover and the Model 3 sedan.
The results follow Tesla’s solid June performance in China, where it sold over 71,000 vehicles wholesale and introduced minor upgrades to its long-range variants.
Model Y leads weekly registrations
Of the 12,300 vehicles registered for insurance last week, more than 9,400 were Model Y crossovers and over 2,800 were Model 3 sedans, as noted in a CNEV Post report. Both vehicles are built at Tesla’s Giga Shanghai, which serves as the electric vehicle maker’s primary vehicle export hub.
Tesla introduced minor upgrades to the long-range Model 3 and Model Y on July 1. The Model 3 received a slight price increase, while Model Y pricing remained unchanged. This suggested that the Model Y is seeing continued consumer interest in the domestic Chinese market.
June sales reflect stable domestic demand
According to data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla delivered 71,599 vehicles in June. That’s a 0.83% year-over-year increase from June 2024 and a 16.12% jump from May. Of those, 61,484 units were sold locally, marking the second-highest domestic monthly total this year after March’s 74,127 units.
However, exports declined in June, with 10,115 vehicles shipped abroad, down 13.89% from the 11,746 vehicles exported a year ago and 56.16% from the 23,074 that were exported in May. The export dip suggests a stronger domestic focus last month, potentially driven by local promotions or strategic inventory shifts.
Elon Musk
Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion wasn’t a joke, it was a warning to competitors
Tesla might have made a joke with its first Robotaxi service area expansion, but it was truly a serious warning to its competitors.

Tesla’s Robotaxi expansion occurred for the first time on Monday, and while the shape of its new service area might be “cocky,” it surely is not a joke. It’s a warning to competitors.
Robotaxi skeptics and Tesla opponents are sitting around throwing hate toward the company’s expansion appearance. Some called it “unserious,” and others say it’s “immature.” The reality is that it has a real meaning that goes much further than the company’s lighthearted and comical attitude toward things.
Proudly unserious
— Tesla (@Tesla) July 14, 2025
For context, Tesla has routinely used the number 69 as a way to price things it sells. 420 is another, an ode to cannabis culture. A few years back, it actually priced its Model S flagship sedan at $69,420. The first rides of the Robotaxi fleet were priced at $4.20. They are now being increased to $6.90.
Some call it childish. Others call it fun. The truth is, nobody is doing it this way.
Tesla updates Robotaxi app with several big changes, including wider service area
But today’s expansion of the Robotaxi service area in Austin is different. Tesla did not expand its shape to different neighborhoods or areas of the City of Austin. It did not expand it by broadening the rectangle that was initially available. Instead, it chose a different strategy, simply because it could:
🚨 Tesla’s new Robotaxi geofence is…
Finish the sentence 🥸 pic.twitter.com/3bjhMqsRm5
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) July 14, 2025
Tesla could have done anything. It could have expanded in any direction, in any way, but it chose this simply because it has gotten Robotaxi to the point that it can broaden its service area in any direction. It chose this shape because it could.
Other companies might not have the same ability. Of course, many companies probably would not do this even if it could, simply because of the optics. Tesla doesn’t have those concerns; it has been open about its ability to be funny, and yes, immature, at times.
But in reality, it was a stark warning to competitors. “We can go anywhere in Austin, at any time, and we’re confident enough to make a joke about it.”
Tesla’s Robotaxi geofence in Austin grows, and its shape is hard to ignore
As Tesla is already aiming to expand to new states and high-population areas, and with applications filed in Arizona and California, Robotaxi will be in new regions in the coming weeks or months.
For now, it remains in Austin, and Tesla is sending a message to other companies that it is ready to go in any direction. The driverless Robotaxi fleet, bolstered by billions of miles of data, is ready to roam without anyone at the wheel.
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