Saudi Press

Saudi Arabia and the world
Monday, Feb 09, 2026

Tesla is still recruiting despite Elon Musk telling managers to pause hiring and cut the workforce by 10%

Tesla is still recruiting despite Elon Musk telling managers to pause hiring and cut the workforce by 10%

Tesla employees have expressed their disappointment about being let go on LinkedIn, while the latest recruits are sharing their new roles.
Tesla is still hiring despite Elon Musk telling executives to stop recruiting worldwide.

The electric car maker has been laying off both long-serving employees and some who only just joined after the founder and chief executive called for a 10% reduction in the workforce. Some have even had their job offers rescinded.

Insider found a number of recent LinkedIn posts from those who recently started working at Tesla, while others expressed their disappointment about being let go.

The new joiners included a materials handler, fire alarm technician and product specialists. Another signalled his promotion to lead materials handler.

One new employee shared his excitement about starting as a quality engineer in the new German gigafactory.

Tesla was contacted for comment.

The company laid off an estimated 200 workers in its Autopilot division and closed an entire office in San Mateo, California, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday.

A former supervisor in the unit, who worked for Tesla for almost three years before being axed, said in a post: "What I can say from my experience is that the layoffs are not performance related."

She added: "For the past two years, I have worked 50+ hours every week, many weekends, and too many weeks with 16hours days and all for one purpose I truly believed in. I still do – better future for our next generations and being a great example for my six-year-old twins."

Another former Autopilot employee wrote: "I have put in so many hours at this company. Every end of quarter I would finish my data vision work and drive to the factory and support by prepping the vehicles until 3am, on the weekends I would help deliver the vehicles to the customers."

Musk previously told Tesla executives to pause all hiring because he had a "super bad feeling" about the economy and needed to cut a tenth of the workforce. He later tweeted that the headcount would increase, but that the number of salaried staff would not rise.

More are likely to be laid off after Musk said at the Qatar Economic Forum last month that the cuts would take effect over the next three months.
Newsletter

Related Articles

Saudi Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Syria and Saudi Arabia Seal Multibillion-Dollar Investment Agreements to Drive Post-War Economic Reconstruction
Apple iPhone Lockdown Mode blocks FBI data access in journalist device seizure
Foreign Governments and Corporations Spend Millions with Trump-Linked Lobbying Firm in Washington
KPMG Urges Auditor to Relay AI Cost Savings
Saudi Arabia Quietly Allows Wealthy Foreign Residents to Buy Alcohol, Signalling Policy Shift
US and Iran to Begin Nuclear Talks in Oman
China unveils plans for a 'Death Star' capable of launching missile strikes from space
Investigation Launched at Winter Olympics Over Ski Jumpers Injecting Hyaluronic Acid
U.S. State Department Issues Urgent Travel Warning for Citizens to Leave Iran Immediately
Wall Street Erases All Gains of 2026; Bitcoin Plummets 14% to $63,000
Eighty-one-year-old man in the United States fatally shoots Uber driver after scam threat
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz Begins Strategic Gulf Tour with Saudi Arabia Visit
Dubai Awards Tunnel Contract for Dubai Loop as Boring Company Plans Pilot Network
Five Key Takeaways From President Erdoğan’s Strategic Visit to Saudi Arabia
AI Invented “Hot Springs” — Tourists Arrived and Were Shocked
Erdoğan’s Saudi Arabia Visit Focuses on Trade, Investment and Strategic Cooperation
Germany and Saudi Arabia Move to Deepen Energy Cooperation Amid Global Transition
Saudi Aviation Records Historic Passenger Traffic in 2025 and Sets Sights on Further Growth in 2026
Tech Market Shifts and AI Investment Surge Drive Global Innovation and Layoffs
Global Shifts in War, Trade, Energy and Security Mark Major International Developments
Tesla Ends Model S and X Production and Sends $2 Billion to xAI as 2025 Revenue Declines
The AI Hiring Doom Loop — Algorithmic Recruiting Filters Out Top Talent and Rewards Average or Fake Candidates
Federal Reserve Holds Interest Rate at 3.75% as Powell Faces DOJ Criminal Investigation During 2026 Decision
Putin’s Four-Year Ukraine Invasion Cost: Russia’s Mass Casualty Attrition and the Donbas Security-Guarantee Tradeoff
Saudi Crown Prince Tells Iranian President: Kingdom Will Not Host Attacks Against Iran
U.S. Central Command Announces Regional Air Exercise as Iran Unveils Drone Carrier Footage
Trump Defends Saudi Crown Prince in Heated Exchange After Reporter Questions Khashoggi Murder and 9/11 Links
Saudi Stocks Rally as Kingdom Prepares to Fully Open Capital Market to Global Investors
Air France and KLM Suspend Multiple Middle East Routes as Regional Tensions Disrupt Aviation
Saudi Arabia scales back Neom as The Line is redesigned and Trojena downsized
Saudi Industrial Group Completes One Point Three Billion Dollar Acquisition of South Africa’s Barloworld
Saudi-Backed LIV Golf Confirms Return to Trump National Bedminster for 2026 Season
Gold Jumps More Than 8% in a Week as the Dollar Slides Amid Greenland Tariff Dispute
Boston Dynamics Atlas humanoid robot and LG CLOiD home robot: the platform lock-in fight to control Physical AI
United States under President Donald Trump completes withdrawal from the World Health Organization: health sovereignty versus global outbreak early-warning access
Trump Administration’s Iran Military Buildup and Sanctions Campaign Puts Deterrence Credibility on the Line
Tech Brief: AI Compute, Chips, and Platform Power Moves Driving Today’s Market Narrative
NATO’s Stress Test Under Trump: Alliance Credibility, Burden-Sharing, and the Fight Over Strategic Territory
Saudi Arabia’s Careful Balancing Act in Relations with Israel Amid Regional and Domestic Pressures
Greenland, Gaza, and Global Leverage: Today’s 10 Power Stories Shaping Markets and Security
America’s Venezuela Oil Grip Meets China’s Demand: Market Power, Legal Shockwaves, and the New Rules of Energy Leverage
Trump’s Board of Peace: Breakthrough Diplomacy or a Hostile Takeover of Global Order?
Prince William to Make Official Visit to Saudi Arabia in February
Saudi Arabia Advances Ambitious Artificial River Mega-Project to Transform Water Security
Saudi Crown Prince and Syrian President Discuss Stabilisation, Reconstruction and Regional Ties in Riyadh Talks
Mohammed bin Salman Confronts the ‘Iranian Moment’ as Saudi Leadership Faces Regional Test
Cybercrime, Inc.: When Crime Becomes an Economy. How the World Accidentally Built a Twenty-Trillion-Dollar Criminal Economy
Strategic Restraint, Credible Force, and the Discipline of Power
Donald Trump Organization Unveils Championship Golf Course and Luxury Resort Project in Saudi Arabia
Inside Diriyah: Saudi Arabia’s $63.2 Billion Vision to Transform Its Historic Heart into a Global Tourism Powerhouse
×