Former Tesla Optimus Engineer quits to Found Robotics Startup in Palo Alto and Shenzhen

W. Syaban

April 17, 2025

Shuo Yang founded Mondo Tech with the aim of developing 'more compact and user-friendly robots.' This initiative was driven by his wish to create a companion for his son, drawing inspiration from this personal aspiration.

A former Tesla An engineer has departed from the company's humanoid robot initiative, known as Optimus, to jointly establish a new robotics startup based in Palo Alto, California, and Shenzhen, due to increasing rivalry within the sector.

Shuo Yang, a robotics and machine learning engineer at Tesla, shared in several online postings X On Wednesday, LinkedIn announced that he had left the electric vehicle firm to launch Mondo Tech alongside a previous coworker from DJI, China’s leading drone manufacturer.

Mondo Tech plans to develop "more compact and user-friendly robots" for consumers, he stated. These devices will act as "tiny companions in individuals' daily routines," said the engineer, noting that his motivation stemmed from wanting to create a robotic friend for his own child.

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The newly formed company was set up in Shenzhen back in January, boasting a registered capital of 1 million yuan (approximately US$136,500), as per records from the Chinese business registry platform Qichacha. The entrepreneurial venture lists Gao Jianrong, previously a director at DJI responsible for managing their RoboMaster robotics contest, as the startup’s head, based on information provided by the corporate insights provider ITJuzi.

Mondo Tech has become one of many robotics initiatives luring talent away from U.S. technology corporations in China, reflecting the competition to develop new technologies. artificial intelligence (AI) Electrically powered devices — suitable for both industrial and domestic applications — become warm.

Yang, who holds degrees from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology and Carnegie Mellon University, is among a group of engineers transitioning to develop consumer-focused robotics.

In December, ex-OpenAI employee Roger Jiang launched Light Robotics , a startup based in Singapore and Shenzhen that specializes in companion robots.

The previous month, former Google researcher Luo Jianlan did joined the Chinese humanoid robotics firm AgiBot to head its new AI research center. Shanghai-based AgiBot was founded in 2023 by former Huawei Technologies The "Genius Youth" program has recruited Peng Zhihui.

In March, a report from the US-based research company SemiAnalysis cautioned that China's supremacy in manufacturing supply chains might present an "existential threat" to the US in the field of robotics. The document stated that China is presently "the sole nation poised" to attain a significant degree of automation.

Humanoid robots have garnered significant public interest in China this year. In February, a Chinese startup company Unitree participated in the yearly event Spring Festival Gala Through showcasing multiple versatile H1 humanoid robots performing a dance sequence arranged by renowned director Zhang Yimou, much to the pleasure of the event’s 1 billion spectators.

Not long ago, Chinese venture capitalist Allen Zhu Xiaohu openly challenged the economic feasibility of humanoid robots. In doing so, he disclosed that his firm had divested from multiple companies within this industry, igniting an intense discussion across China. robotics community.