Tesla AI boss tells staff 2026 will be the 'hardest year' of their lives in all-hands meeting - Business Insider

Leaders from across the AI division spoke to staffers during the nearly two-hour meeting, insiders said.

Workers were given aggressive timelines for Optimus production, as well as targets for Tesla's Robotaxi service. As Tesla races to launch Robotaxis across the nation and ramp up production of the company's humanoid robot, the two divisions are at the center of CEO Elon Musk's biggest bets.

Elluswamy and a spokesperson for Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. "That production ramp will take a while to get to annualized rate of 1 million because it's going to move as fast as the slowest, dumbest, least lucky thing out of 10,000 unique items," he said in the October call.

Tesla shareholders approved a pay package for Musk earlier this month that could make the Tesla CEO the world's first trillionaire. It includes several ambitious Robotaxi and Optimus milestones, including deploying 1 million Robotaxis on public roads and 1 million humanoid robots. Tesla AI chief Ashok Elluswamy warned his staff 2026 will be a difficult year in an all-hands. Tesla has aggressive timelines set for Optimus robot production and Robotaxi service expansion. Elon Musk's pay package hinges on Robotaxi and Optimus success.

If you work on Tesla's AI teams, next year will be the "hardest year" of your life.