JB Straubel

Co-founder & former CTO

Jeffrey B. Straubel (born 1975) joined Tesla as its fifth employee in 2004 and is a named co-founder. As CTO for 15 years he led battery cell design, the supply chain, and the original Gigafactory concept through the Model 3 ramp, and is listed on many of Tesla’s battery patents. He now leads Redwood Materials, which he founded to recycle lithium-ion batteries, and rejoined Tesla’s board in 2023.