Pool/Getty Images
- A Tesla engineer quit after 8 years, citing Elon Musk's leadership.The engineer said Musk has damaged Tesla's mission, and his leadership seems "seriously compromised."The employee wrote on LinkedIn that he could not convince himself that Tesla is the "right place to be."
A Tesla engineer said he's leaving the company because of Elon Musk's leadership.
"The main reason I'm leaving is that I think Elon has dealt huge damage to Tesla's mission (and to the health of democratic institutions in several countries)," wrote Giorgio Balestrieri, who joined Tesla in 2017 and worked for the company's autobidder platform, in a LinkedIn post on Thursday.
"Elon's leadership and decision-making seem seriously compromised," he added.
Balestrieri and Tesla did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
Balestrieri, whose LinkedIn said he led Tesla's European energy trading algorithms, said he could not convince himself that Tesla is the "right place to be" given Musk's huge stake in the company.
"This is not just about politics: it's about lying to the public, manipulating public discourse, targeting minorities and supporting climate change deniers and political forces aligned with the oil and gas industry," he wrote.
"It's fairly indisputable that the current US administration is slowing down the energy transition. Unfortunately, speed is critical if we are to avert the worst consequences of climate change," he added.
Balestrieri spent eight years at Tesla, rising from data science intern to staff algorithms engineer, according to his LinkedIn profile. He said he was Tesla's first autobidder employee in Europe.
Autobidder is Tesla's automated energy trading platform that allows its batteries to act like virtual power plants — buying and selling electricity on the grid in real time. The system is a key part of Tesla's energy storage business.
Musk's leadership under scrutiny
Balestrieri's criticisms come as Tesla faces mounting questions about Musk's leadership.
Shareholders are set to vote in November on a proposed pay package that could make Musk's compensation worth as much as $1 trillion, as well as on whether Tesla should funnel money into his AI startup, xAI.
Some investors have pushed back. The SOC Investment Group, which represents union pension funds, urged Nasdaq last month to investigate whether Tesla violated listing rules by not securing shareholder approval for the interim pay package.
Ross Gerber, the CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management, has scaled back his Tesla position over Musk's leadership. Once a prominent shareholder and Musk backer, Gerber told Business Insider last year that he is skeptical of Tesla's pivot away from its core EV business into robotics and cab services.
Musk's politics have also added turbulence to the company. The billionaire spent at least $277 million to help Donald Trump's reelection bid last year, only to split with the former president in a very public fallout.
Trump initially threatened to cancel the government contracts Musk's businesses had received, though he eventually struck a more conciliatory tone with Musk. Tesla has warned of a further hit to revenue from Trump's trade war and anti-electric vehicle policies.
Balestrieri isn't the first Tesla employee to slam Musk's leadership.
A former Tesla employee who had worked for the company for seven years told Business Insider in June that he quit because he couldn't support Musk anymore.
"His involvement in Twitter, his involvement in the election — all of that was detracting from the company's mission," he said.
"What I took issue with the most was the giveaway for prospective voters. It seemed so morally wrong," he added.
