Senior Engineers Charles Mwangi and Shen Jackson quit their jobs last week, raising questions about whether Cloudkitchens could lose more engineers. The two were part of a team of 50, designing and overseeing prefabricated materials used to build kitchens.
Mwangi and Jackson left Tesla for Cloudkitchens last year, joining former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick in the nascent startup.
SEE ALSO: Tesla’s Charles Mwangi Quits to Join a Stealth Startup
According to The Information, their exit comes at a critical time when the startup plans its expansion in the U.S. Recently, the company launched in Denver, with over 70 locations worldwide.
Cloudkitchens is a nascent company that buys properties and renovates them to build virtual kitchens. Later, the company leases the spaces to restaurateurs who share the areas to offer catering and delivery services. Former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick started Cloudkitchens in 2017 in an attempt to gain a share of the $35 billion per year industry. Last year, Forbes reported that the startup received generous amounts of funding, including $300m from Kalanick as well as $400 million from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign-wealth fund. As of November Last year, the company’s value stood at $5 billion.
Experts expect virtual kitchens to thrive during the Coronavirus in tandem with the growth of the delivery services market.