After Sunday Robotics emerged from stealth mode last week, it revealed a team stocked with Tesla alums.
At least 10 former Tesla employees work at the robotics startup, including several longtime employees who were involved in Tesla’s humanoid robot and self-driving efforts, according to a LinkedIn analysis.
Perry Jia, who worked on Tesla’s Autopilot and Optimus programs for nearly six years, announced last week that he’d left the electric-car maker during the summer to work at the startup.
Nadeesha Amarasinghe also joined Sunday Robotics during the summer, his LinkedIn profile shows. He’d previously worked at Tesla for more than seven years, serving as an engineering lead for AI infrastructure, where he assisted with both Optimus and Autopilot.
Tesla’s Autopilot and Optimus programs are among the company’s most high-profile efforts. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said the carmaker’s ability to solve autonomous driving will determine its long-term value. He has also placed a heavy emphasis on the Optimus humanoid robot, saying the company aims to eventually ship millions of units capable of tasks ranging from factory work to personal care.
Sunday Robotics also has an array of former Tesla interns and Autopilot employees who have worked at Tesla over the past five years, including Jason Peterson, a former Optimus and robotaxi talent employee, according to his LinkedIn profile.
In total, the startup employs around 50 people, including engineers and “memory developers” who assist in training the robot, according to Sunday Robotics’ LinkedIn page.
Tesla and Sunday Robotics did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Cheng Chi and Tony Zhao cofounded Sunday Robotics in 2024. Zhao interned on Tesla’s Autopilot team in 2022, according to his LinkedIn profile.
On November 19, Sunday Robotics unveiled its home robot, Memo. Zhao posted a video on X that showed Memo picking up wine glasses, loading a dishwasher, and folding socks.
Today, we present a step-change in robotic AI @sundayrobotics.
Introducing ACT-1: A frontier robot foundation model trained on zero robot data.
– Ultra long-horizon tasks
– Zero-shot generalization
– Advanced dexterity🧵-> pic.twitter.com/kaj1bwyFyY
— Tony Zhao (@tonyzzhao) November 19, 2025
Sunday Robotics is one of many robotics startups that is building a home robot.
Most recently, robotics startup 1X unveiled the consumer-ready version of its Neo home robot in October. The company has said it plans to begin shipping the robot to customers next year.
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