# Tesla's Cybercab assembly manager Jody Kerns moves to Rivian to lead R2 general assembly

Canonical page: https://technooptimist.io/stories/tesla-s-cybercab-assembly-manager-jody-kerns-moves-to-rivian-to-lead-r2-7e3d2fcd
Date: 15 Oct 2026
About: [Tesla](https://technooptimist.io/companies/tesla.md) · [Cybercab](https://technooptimist.io/vehicles/cybercab.md)
Original source: https://electrek.co/2026/10/15/tesla-cybercab-assembly-lead-leaves-rivian-r2/

Jody Kerns, who ran Cybercab general assembly at Tesla's Gigafactory Texas, says on LinkedIn that he is joining Rivian as Director of General Assembly for the R2 at Normal, Illinois. It is the second senior Cybercab departure this year, after the former head of Cybercab NPI left in May. The article includes no official statement from either company.

## Key facts

- Kerns joined Tesla in January 2024 and took over Cybercab general assembly in Austin in February 2026, after 14 years at Volkswagen of America.
- At Volkswagen he ended as Director of Assembly (2021 to 2024), managing about 1,200 people and integrating the ID.4 at Chattanooga.
- Cybercab commercial rides began in Austin on September 3; a week later NHTSA issued a Special Order demanding sworn proof of federal safety compliance.
- Rivian began R2 deliveries on June 9 from Normal and kept its 2026 delivery guidance at 65,000 to 70,000 vehicles.
- Michael So, Tesla's former Head of Cybercab NPI, left in May for a VP role at nuclear reactor startup Aalo Atomics.

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