Ian Kettle
senior vehicle design manager
Tesla

Ian Kettle is Senior Vehicle Design Manager at Tesla. Ian is responsible for the exterior and interior design of Tesla vehicles, most recently leading the team that created Tesla Cybercab, the world's first mass produced, purpose built autonomous robotaxi. He has also led the design teams of the all-new Roadster, refreshed Model Y family, Robovan concept and recently announced production version of the Tesla Semi. Prior to being appointed to his current role, Ian was the lead exterior designer of the Tesla Cybertruck and also led the early phases of the Tesla Optimus humanoid robot program. 

Ian is proud to lead the team of talented exterior and interior designers at Tesla under the guidance and leadership of Tesla Chief Designer Franz Von Holzhausen at the studio in Hawthorne, California. Alongside this, Ian is responsible for Tesla's design operations in China and also leads a team of in-studio software engineers who help create AI tools that optimize Tesla's design workflow.

Before joining Tesla in 2018, Ian spent a number of years working for Volvo Cars in both Sweden and the USA where he was lead designer of the Volvo XC40, Volvo Concept 40.1 and Volvo Concept 360C, as well as contributing to various Volvo programs during its resurgence under Geely ownership. Ian graduated from the Royal College of Art in London in 2011 with an MA in Vehicle Design.