Tesla’s Autopilot chief has decided to depart from the company. Back in 2016, Tesla hired Jim Keller from AMB before announcing that it was working on its own AI chip. Before AMD, Keller worked for Apple and was a key figure in the development of the A4 and A5 chips found in iPhones and iPads.
A spokesperson that confirmed the news to Electrek said that he’s leaving Tesla to join a company where he can once again focus on his core passion: microprocessor engineering. What company is it exactly? According to The Wall Street Journal, that company appears to be Intel.
Here’s what the spokesperson said:
“Today is Jim Keller’s last day at Tesla, where he has overseen low-voltage hardware, Autopilot software and infotainment. Prior to joining Tesla, Jim’s core passion was microprocessor engineering and he’s now joining a company where he’ll be able to once again focus on this exclusively. We appreciate his contributions to Tesla and wish him the best.”
Now that Kelly has left, another Apple alum, Pete Bannon, will lead Tesla’s Autopilot hardware ambitions and efforts. In addition, the company has promoted Andrej Karapathy, the Director of AI and Autopilot Vision, and will now be in charge of Autopilot‘s software development.
