chris lattner portraitSwift creator Chris Lattner, who left Apple to become vice president of Tesla's autopilot program, has parted ways with the electric car maker after just six months in the job.

"Chris just wasn't the right fit for Tesla, and we've decided to make a change," Tesla said Tuesday, according to The Wall Street Journal. Lattner followed Tesla's statement with a post on his Twitter account announcing his interest in available roles for a "seasoned engineering leader".

The parting of ways will come as a surprise to some observers, given Lattner's previous standing at Apple and his stated enthusiasm for a new challenge. Back in January, Lattner told MacRumors how much he loved writing code at Apple, and that leaving had been a "very difficult decision" but ultimately he was "ready to move onto something else" and the prospect of working on Tesla's Autopilot team was "irresistible".


However, as noted by WSJ, Lattner is just the latest departure in an recent exodus of talent from the program, which has been under increasing pressure from Tesla CEO Elon Musk to develop an autonomous car system, with a company target to demonstrate a car that can drive itself by the end of 2017 inching ever closer.

The program has also faced questions about the safety of the proposed technology, following a fatal crash last year in Florida involving a Tesla equipped with a semiautonomous system, which assists drivers during tasks like steering, braking, and changing lanes.

Lattner’s hiring in January coincided with the departure of Autopilot program director Sterling Anderson. Tesla sued Anderson after he tried to create a competing startup, but the lawsuit was settled in April.

Tag: Tesla

Top Rated Comments

JosephAW Avatar
109 months ago
Well, there's an open desk in the server room at Apple. The last guy was dismissed when he unplugged the servers to make way for his bonsai fountain. :p
Score: 21 Votes (Like | Disagree)
bitfactory Avatar
109 months ago
const grass !== greener
In a story about Chris, you should have used 'let'.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
mejsric Avatar
109 months ago
He is spying.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)
djcerla Avatar
109 months ago
Elon's vanity hire went south sooner than expected.
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Rogifan Avatar
109 months ago
But I thought Apple was doomed because he went to Tesla. :p
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
atomic.flip Avatar
109 months ago
Yeah, no. He didn't quit. As another posted mentioned earlier Tesla wouldn't have volunteered the "not a good fit" statement had he been eligible for rehire. Which is a very polite way of saying, "we aren't interested in this person and have let him go".

Also, no one in their right mind quits a job without another lined up, unless there's a major issue with the current position they're in. This affair will make him far less palatable a hire to many companies but I'm sure there's bound to be someone who's willing to snatch him up. It's not like he lacks talent as a developer.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

10

Apple to Launch New Products Starting Next Week, Claims Dubious Leak [Updated]

Friday October 10, 2025 5:57 am PDT by
Update: the Naver account appears to be referencing a speculative post on X by Vadim Yuryev, dated October 6. The original article follows. Apple will announce new products through a series of press releases beginning as soon as next week, according to a dubious claim posted on the Korean blog Naver. The Naver blog account yeux1122, which aggregates rather than originates Apple...
apple invite colorado%402x

Apple Hosts Unusual Colorado Event to Showcase Latest Hardware

Thursday October 9, 2025 1:17 pm PDT by
Apple has invited a group of social media influencers to Colorado this week for an unusual event involving group hiking, trail running, and other outdoor activities designed to showcase the company's recently launched iPhone 17 Pro Max, AirPods Pro 3, and Apple Watch Ultra 3. An invitation was shared on X (Twitter) by photographer Johnny Hawk, featuring a simple message: "Hi Johnny. We're so ...
iPhone 17 Pro Colors

iPhone 18 Pro Already Rumored to Have These 6 New Features

Saturday October 11, 2025 10:10 am PDT by
While the iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max are still nearly a year away, a handful of new features and changes have already been rumored for the devices. Below, we have recapped some of the early iPhone 18 Pro rumors so far. Smaller Dynamic Island The standard iPhone 18, iPhone 18 Pro, and iPhone 18 Pro Max will be equipped with a slightly smaller Dynamic Island, but the devices will...
10

Apple Event This October? Here's the Latest on What to Expect

Thursday October 9, 2025 7:00 am PDT by
While it is unclear if Apple will host an October event this year, or stick to press releases, rumors suggest it will announce several new products this month. The graphic for Apple's "Unleashed" event in October 2021 Below, we have recapped everything to know about a potential Apple event this October. When The table below outlines when Apple teased its October launches over the past...
spring 2022 possible macs

When Will Apple's Macs Get M5 Chips? 2025-2026 Launch Timeline

Wednesday October 8, 2025 3:59 pm PDT by
We're just about due for the next-generation Apple silicon chip, which will kick off a new wave of Mac refreshes. The M5 chip is expected to make an appearance in some new products before the end of the year, but most Mac refreshes will happen in 2026. We've rounded up current rumors on when we might see updates for Apple's notebook and desktop machines. MacBook Pro The MacBook Pro could ...
AirPods Pro Firmware Feature

Apple Releases New Firmware for AirPods Pro 3, AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4

Tuesday October 7, 2025 11:27 am PDT by
Apple today released new firmware designed for the AirPods Pro 3, prior-generation AirPods Pro 2, and the AirPods 4 models. The firmware has a build number of 8A358, up from 8A356. There's no word on what's include in the updated firmware, but the prior 8A356 update added iOS 26 features to the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods Pro 3, and AirPods 4 with ANC. The software introduced better audio quality ...
vivo liquid glass

iOS 26 Liquid Glass Design Copied by Android Smartphone Maker

Thursday October 9, 2025 4:07 pm PDT by
Chinese smartphone maker Vivo has taken some inspiration from Apple's Liquid Glass design language for its latest operating system update, OriginOS 6. Unveiled this week, OriginOS 6 has the same rounded buttons and translucent glass look as iOS 26. In a demo video, a Vivo smartphone features an interface that could be easily mistaken for iOS 26. There's a Liquid Glass clock, Control Center,...
iOS 26 Feature

Apple Preparing iOS 26.0.2 Update for iPhones

Saturday October 11, 2025 6:59 pm PDT by
Apple's software engineers are internally testing iOS 26.0.2, according to MacRumors logs, which have been a reliable indicator of upcoming iOS versions. iOS 26.0.2 will likely be a minor update that addresses bugs and/or security vulnerabilities, but we do not know any specific details yet. The update will likely be released within the next few weeks. Last month, Apple released iOS...
CarPlay Ultra Aston Martin

These Vehicle Brands Plan to Offer Apple's CarPlay Ultra

Thursday October 9, 2025 8:17 am PDT by
Earlier this year, Apple finally launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. However, now nearly five months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to just one luxury vehicle brand. CarPlay Ultra features deeper integration with a vehicle's instrument cluster and systems, built-in apps for radio and climate controls, rear-view...