--- title: "Tesla’s Head of Software Departs as Robotaxi Reveal Looms" description: "According to insiders who spoke to Bloomberg, longtime Tesla software VP David Lau is departing the company after nearly 13 years." date: "2025-04-11" modified: "2025-04-11" authors: - name: "Noor Al-Sibai" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/nooralsibai" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-software-vp-leaves-robotaxi" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "cybertruck" - "elon musk" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # Tesla’s Head of Software Departs as Robotaxi Reveal Looms ![]() *\Image: Robin Legrand / AFP via Getty / Futurism\* ## Softwearing Thin Elon Musk has been [saying for a decade]() that Tesla is a software company. But the man who helped make it that way is headed for greener pastures at perhaps the worst possible time. According to [insiders who spoke to *Bloomberg*](), longtime Tesla software VP David Lau is departing the company after nearly 13 years. Throughout his tenure at Tesla, Lau not only oversaw the electric vehicle company's "infotainment" systems and over-air updates, but also was one of the few C-suiters who would regularly appear with Musk at promotional events as, essentially, the face of its tech. And for [most of Lau's time]() at Tesla, his mercurial boss has over-promised and under-delivered on both autonomous vehicles and robotaxis. Now, Musk's [self-imposed deadline]() of June 2025 is hurtling ever closer — and the software czar that would be responsible for it is, apparently, heading for the hills. ## Departure Gate Though a lot remains unclear about this story, including who tipped *Bloomberg* off and exactly why Lau is leaving Tesla, it comes not only amid the looming robotaxi deadline, but also in the wake even more executive departures. As [*The Verge* reported]() based on insider intel at the end of March, Tesla's head of engineering, Haofei Wang, is also leaving the company. Similarly [undisclosed sources told *Axios*]() around the same time that the company's communications director, Dave Heinzinger, is also leaving after only three months in the role. While all of these reports remain tacitly unconfirmed, there is at very least something compelling alleged insiders to leak such stories to the press. During this same spate of reported departures, Tesla has also seen [historic stock losses]() amid [protests against Musk]() and his politicking on [both sides of the pond](). Earlier in the week, a [Cybertruck owner revealed on X]() that he'd been offered a mere $54,000, or roughly half of what he paid, from the used vehicle dealership Carvana — a post that the official [Cybertruck account took umbrage against](). Between Musk taking a [battering ram to Tesla's brand image]() and subsequently [tanking its share value](), it's not hard to see why anyone would want to leave the EV company — and we won't be surprised if this apparent executive exodus continues. **More on Tesla:** [*Tesla Is So Cooked That It's Now Refusing to Accept Cybertrucks as Trade-Ins*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've often been drawn to unpacking the narratives that underlie technological, scientific and medical progress, with a special interest in areas of conflict and ambiguity that end up setting agendas and steering the fates of both elites and the hoi polloi. I'm a committed generalist, but I often find myself returning to work involving NASA and the private space sector, the effects of AI on media and society, and the mechanics of the pharmaceutical industry, with a specific focus on the spread of GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy. Prior to Futurism, I worked for publications ranging from Media Matters and Truthdig to Raw Story and Bustle. I'm also the author of "Myspace Scene Queens," a 2024 title in Instar Books' acclaimed "Remember the Internet" series. My work at Futurism has been cited by outlets including the New Yorker, Slate, Nieman Lab, the Verge, the MIT Technology Review, the Sunday Times, and the Daily Beast. I grew up in North Carolina, attended the University of North Carolina at Asheville, and now live in Brooklyn, New York. In my free time, I'm an avid reader and music fan; you can probably find me at a local poetry reading, concert, underground rave, or DJ set. I'm the proud parent of an ineffable orange cat named Mee-Mow. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()