Battery technology engineer Ernest Villanueva—who has helped design the battery models powering all of Tesla’s models—has left the electric vehicle maker, CNBC reports, citing a person familiar with the matter.
Mr. Villanueva’s LinkedIn profile still states that he is Manager of Battery Module Design at Tesla Motors. He has worked at Tesla since 2006 at various roles in battery module design.
According to CNBC, Villanueva holds eight patents and is credited with the design of the battery modules for all Tesla vehicles. Tesla declined comment for CNBC, while Villanueva did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
If Villanueva’s departure is confirmed, it would be yet another senior manager at Tesla who has left the EV carmaker over the course of several months.
Earlier this month, Uber hired Tesla’s lead battery expert Celina Mikolajczak as Director of Engineering and Energy Storage Systems to work on the ride-hail company’s ‘flying car’ project.
Also this month, another two senior engineers at Tesla were reported to have left the company—Jason Mendez and Will McColl, Jalopnik reported two weeks ago. McColl confirmed he had left Tesla, saying “I’m continually inspired by my colleagues’ resolve, and I wish them strength as they ramp and refine Model 3. It’s an amazing car!”
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