Tesla And SpaceX Make Key Apple Hire

(NASDAQ:

CEO Elon Musk hired

(NASDAQ:

)'s alloy expert Charles Kuehmann, according to

. The report suggested that Kuehmann left Apple last year and started his new role in December. Electrek, citing its sources, noted that Kuehmann will split his time between Tesla and Musk's other business, SpaceX. He will hold the title of Vice President of Materials Engineering at both companies and will be tasked with delivering materials innovation - a task he is "very familiar with" given his 20 years of experience in materials science. Electrek added that while Tesla and SpaceX shared board members, Kuehmann's hire marks the first senior executive who will be splitting his time between the two companies. Finally, the report suggested that Kuehmann's experience could be useful to Tesla's battery research efforts and future battery cell manufacturing. Shares of Tesla were trading lower by around 1 percent Thursday morning at $177.35.