--- title: "A Tesla Vice President Just Quit and Sold $181 Million of Its Stock" description: "  Tesla is going through a crisis. The company, which posted disastrous first-quarter results earlier this month, isn't just losing the over ten percent of its global workforce due to layoffs, a number of high-profile insiders are also looking to jump ship. Longtime Tesla executive Drew Baglino, who joined Tesla in 2006, has sold $181.5 […]" date: "2024-04-26" modified: "2024-04-26" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/tesla-vice-president-quit-sold-181-million-stock" categories: - "Advanced Transport" - "Tesla" tags: - "elon musk" - "tesla" - "the digest" --- # A Tesla Vice President Just Quit and Sold $181 Million of Its Stock ![Longtime Tesla executive Drew Baglino, who joined Tesla in 2006, has sold $181.5 million worth of Tesla shares.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Abandon Ship Tesla is going through a crisis right now. The company, which posted disastrous first-quarter results earlier this month, isn't just losing over ten percent of its [rank-and-file workforce]() due to layoffs. A number of high-profile insiders have also abandoned ship. Take longtime Tesla executive Drew Baglino, who joined Tesla in 2006 — and now, just ten days after announcing his resignation, he's sold a staggering $181.5 million worth of Tesla shares, according to a Thursday [filing]() with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Baglino is [one of three top executives]() who resigned this month, including VP of investor relations Martin Viecha and longtime public policy VP Rohan Patel. It doesn't take much reading between the lines to see that the EV maker is in for some big changes — [and a very tough year ahead](). Even the company's stalwart executives, who have stood by CEO Elon Musk's side for well over a decade, are looking to leave for greener pastures — and, strikingly, cashing out on the way out the door. "I made the difficult decision to move on from Tesla after 18 years yesterday," Baglino [tweeted]() earlier this month, making no mention of a stock dump. "I am so thankful to have worked with and learned from the countless incredibly talented people at Tesla over the years." ## Hands-Free Leadership Baglino became the company's VP of powertrain and energy engineering in 2016 and started reporting to Musk directly at the time, as [*CNBC* reports](). Many colleagues saw him as the unofficial chief of operations. "Thanks for everything you’ve done for Tesla," Musk [tweeted]() in response to Baglino's announcement. "Few have contributed as much as you." Baglino and his two fellow executives' departures highlight a signifcant shift in strategy, with Musk announcing that the company is [doubling down]() on realizing a "robotaxi" nicknamed "Cybercab" — which likely won't materialize for a [number of years](), given the billionaire's [long-established track record]() of making empty promises and overly optimistic predictions. "If somebody doesn’t believe Tesla’s going to solve autonomy, I think they should not be an investor in the company," Musk told investors during this month's earnings call. For their part, however, investors are seemingly unimpressed with Musk's plans. The company's stock is down around 40 percent so far this year — and analysts [fear the worst is still to come](). **More on Tesla:** *[Facebook Cofounder Says Tesla Has Committed "Consumer Fraud on a Massive Scale," Will End in Jail]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()