Tesla's Indian-Origin Vice President Shares Insights On Working With Elon Musk: "Very Funny, Works Hard"

Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla's Vice President of AI Software, recently appeared on a podcast hosted by YouTuber Gobinath, where he offered insights into his experience working closely with Elon Musk, the company's CEO. Mr Elluswamy described Musk as a highly driven individual with a sharp sense of humour, emphasising his relentless work ethic and hands-on approach to leadership. During the conversation, Mr Elluswamy also delved into his personal journey, reflecting on his Tamil heritage and the path that led him to a pivotal role at one of the world's most innovative companies.

Mr Elluswamy further attributed his success at the company to sharing similar traits with Elon Musk, such as a strong work ethic and technical intuition. 

Sawyer Merritt, a Tesla investor, shared a snippet of the interview on X.  "Tesla's VP of AI Software Ashok Elluswamy on what it's like to work with Elon Musk: "I meet with him every week. He is really smart in the sense that he can predict the future very early; He works really hard. easily 80-90 hours per week. I feel fortunate to work for him. He is not afraid of taking risks. He is very funny. You can see it in person," the caption of the video read. 

Watch the video here:

Tesla's VP of AI Software Ashok Elluswamy on what it's like to work with Elon Musk: "I meet with him every week. He is really smart in the sense that he can predict the future very early; He works really hard. Easily 80-90 hours per week. I feel fortunate to work for him. He is… https://t.co/dB5l6EbxEx pic.twitter.com/qLPB0v0hUd

— Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) May 14, 2025

In the past, Musk has also publicly praised Mr Elluswamy for his pivotal role in developing Tesla's Autopilot technology.  "Without him and our awesome team, we would just be another car company looking for an autonomous supplier that doesn't exist," Musk said.

Who is Ashok Elluswamy?

Ashok Elluswamy is a robotics engineer. He holds a bachelor's degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the College of Engineering Guindy, Chennai and a Master's in Robotics System Development from Carnegie Mellon University. He has vast experience in computer vision and perception, as well as planning and control, according to his LinkedIn

Currently living in San Francisco, he was the first engineer to be hired for Tesla's Autopilot team.  Mr Elluswamy has been with Tesla for 10 years, starting in June 2014. After 2.5 years, he advanced to a senior software engineer position. In May 2019, he was promoted to Director of Tesla Autopilot Software, a role he holds to this day. Before joining Tesla, Mr Elluswamy was associated with Volkswagen Electronic Research Lab and WABCO Vehicle Control System.