xAI Engineer Works 36 Hours, Uses FSD-Enabled Tesla for Commute

An xAI engineer recently completed a 36-hour work sprint, garnering both praise from colleagues and public concern over driving while sleep-deprived. Parsa Tajik, an xAI employee, posted on X after working for 36 consecutive hours following Thanksgiving, stating he was "tired and excited." He shared a photo from inside a Cybertruck.

Tajik's post drew immediate reactions from colleagues, who commended his dedication. One colleague described his effort as "equivalent to 192 hours of work for an ordinary person," while another reposted the message, jokingly suggesting competitors adopt similar work habits. Elon Musk responded to the post with a "laughing-crying" emoji.

xAI's Demanding Work Environment

The incident highlights a demanding period for xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence company. The autumn months have been marked by significant organizational changes, including layoffs and leadership shifts. In September, an executive reportedly informed employees there would be no further layoffs, yet the company subsequently cut over 100 positions.

Starting September 5, the data labeling team experienced leadership departures, and at least 500 employees were affected by layoffs. Employees were required to attend one-on-one meetings to discuss their work, and team leaders issued announcements about tests to determine future roles.

This intense work culture is not unique to xAI among Musk's ventures. During Tesla's "production ramp-up," some employees reportedly slept in their cars, and Musk himself was known to sleep on the factory floor. When Musk acquired Twitter, he reportedly informed employees they would need to embrace an "extremely hardcore" work schedule. Esther Crawford, a former Director of Product Management at Twitter, posted a photo of herself sleeping on the company floor after Musk's takeover. According to the book "Character Limit," Crawford later described the photo as "a bit of a tease" and was subsequently laid off.

Safety Concerns and Personal Justification

Tajik's post, which received over 11,000 likes, also prompted concerns from some online users regarding the safety of driving after such a long period without sleep. Jason Ginsberg, Head of Product Engineering at Cursor, commented that "36 hours without sleep is equivalent to a blood alcohol content of 0.16%," exceeding the legal limit for driving.

Three days later, Tajik responded to the criticism, stating he did not feel the need to apologize. He clarified that he carpooled with two other engineers in a Tesla equipped with Full Self-Driving (FSD) capabilities and arrived home safely.

Tajik explained his long work hours, stating, "This is how I went from being almost homeless in 2020 to xAI. Extraordinary results require extraordinary effort. Now is not the time to slow down."

xAI's rapid development pace, potentially fueled by this work culture, saw the company release Grok-1 in November 2023, approximately four months after its inception. Despite being founded shortly after ChatGPT's release, xAI's valuation had reportedly reached $113 billion by July, according to PitchBook data.