Tesla’s AI leadership has warned employees that 2026 will be the most demanding year of their careers, according to insiders who attended an all-hands meeting for teams working on Autopilot and the company’s humanoid robot, Optimus. Ashok Elluswamy, Tesla’s vice president of AI software, delivered the message during the nearly two-hour session, emphasizing that the coming year will test the limits of the company’s engineering and operational capabilities. Elluswamy told staff that 2026 would be a pivotal moment for Tesla, requiring unprecedented effort and dedication to meet ambitious goals. The meeting, described by one attendee as a “rallying cry,” brought together leaders from across Tesla’s AI divisions to align on aggressive timelines for both the Robotaxi service and Optimus production. Tesla has set aggressive targets for its autonomous vehicle ambitions. CEO Elon Musk previously stated that the company aims to launch its Robotaxi service in eight to ten major metropolitan areas by the end of 2025, with more than 1,000 vehicles on public roads by year’s end. Meanwhile, Musk has indicated that production of the Optimus robot will begin toward the end of 2026, with full-scale manufacturing ramping up over time. “The production ramp will take a while to reach an annualized rate of 1 million because it’s going to move as fast as the slowest, dumbest, least lucky thing out of 10,000 unique parts,” Musk said during Tesla’s October earnings call, underscoring the complexity of scaling the humanoid robot. The stakes are high: Tesla shareholders recently approved a performance-based compensation package for Musk that could make him the world’s first trillionaire. The package includes milestones tied directly to the success of Robotaxi deployments and Optimus production—specifically, 1 million Robotaxis on public roads and 1 million humanoid robots manufactured annually. Compensation experts told Business Insider that such a pay structure is rare and designed to keep Musk intensely focused on Tesla’s most ambitious projects. Musk joked during the earnings call that he needed additional Tesla shares to maintain influence over the company’s future, especially as he pushes forward with plans for a “robot army.” Tesla’s Autopilot team, housed in the same facility as the Optimus team, remains one of the company’s top priorities. Known for long hours and tight-knit operations, the team operates largely independently from other engineering groups. Its organizational structure remains confidential, and employees have historically attended weekly meetings with Musk. Elluswamy took over leadership of the Optimus team earlier this year following the departure of former vice president Milan Kovac. Since then, the team has refocused its strategy on a camera-centric approach—mirroring the methodology used in developing Tesla’s Full Self-Driving software. The Optimus team also meets regularly with Musk, who has said he holds weekly Friday sessions with the group, sometimes extending past midnight. Despite the pressure, Tesla continues to push forward with its vision of integrating autonomous vehicles and humanoid robotics into everyday life. The upcoming year will be a critical test of whether the company can deliver on its most audacious promises.