# Chris Walti

> Chris Walti is co-founder and CEO of Mytra, the Brisbane, CA-based robotics company rebuilding industrial material flow from the software up. Before founding Mytra in 2022, he spent 7.5 years at Tesla leading Model 3 material flow engineering, building the company's internal mobile robotics team, and becoming the first lead of what would become the Optimus humanoid robot program. Mytra has since raised $198M in total funding including a $120M Series C in January 2026, and its 3D robotic storage systems are deployed at Albertsons distribution centers, delivering up to 88% labor hour savings versus conventional solutions.

- **Role:** Co-Founder and CEO at Mytra
- **Organizations:** Mytra, Tesla, Rivian (connected), Tastebud Technologies, A123Systems, ACCIONA, Accenture
- **From:** Alexandria, Virginia, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, MBA (Media Lab specialization), MIT Sloan School of Management
- **Known for:** Founded Mytra in 2022; raised $198M in total funding by January 2026, First lead of Tesla's Optimus (TeslaBot) humanoid robot program, Built Tesla's internal mobile robotics team from scratch serving global factory operations

## Career timeline

- **2004-2008** — Consultant, Technology Labs at Accenture - worked across energy, supply chain, and government sectors
- **2008** — Product Manager for Grid Storage Systems at A123Systems
- **2010-2012** — Originator/Commercial Manager at ACCIONA, renewable energy sector
- **2012-2016** — Co-founded Tastebud Technologies (marketing automation), raised venture funding, scaled to profitability, acquired by Raise
- **2014-2022** — Joined Tesla, rising through engineering to lead Model 3 material flow automation
- **2017-2022** — Started and led Tesla's internal mobile robotics team developing factory robots
- **2021-2022** — Became first lead of Tesla's TeslaBot (Optimus) humanoid robot program
- **2022** — Left Tesla and co-founded Mytra with Ahmad Baitalmal; raised seed funding
- **2024-07** — Mytra launched publicly with $78M in total financing through Series B; Albertsons deployment announced
- **2025** — Mytra deployed system 60x larger than previous biggest installation; expanded team 78%; signed Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 contracts
- **2026-01** — Mytra raised $120M Series C led by Avenir Growth; total funding reaches $198M

## Achievements

- Founded Mytra in 2022; raised $198M in total funding by January 2026
- First lead of Tesla's Optimus (TeslaBot) humanoid robot program
- Built Tesla's internal mobile robotics team from scratch serving global factory operations
- Led Model 3 material flow automation during one of automotive's most demanding production ramps
- Co-founded Tastebud Technologies; built to profitability and achieved acquisition by Raise
- Mytra's system deployed at Albertsons, saving customers up to 88% of labor hours vs. existing solutions
- Scaled Mytra team 78% in 2025; secured Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 commercial contracts
- Raised $120M Series C with backing from Avenir Growth, D.E. Shaw, Lineage, and RyderVentures

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Mytra raised $120M Series C led by Avenir Growth with new investors including D.E. Shaw, Liquid 2, Kivu Ventures, and Offline Ventures, plus strategic investors Lineage and RyderVentures. Total funding reaches $198M.
- **2025-12** — Mytra deployed a system 60x larger than its previous largest installation, expanded team by 78%, and signed contracts with a Fortune 100 food company and a Fortune 500 industrial-supply distributor.
- **2024-10** — Chris Walti published insights in Fortune on how it has become attainable for deep-tech startups to recruit experienced engineers from large companies like Tesla and Rivian.
- **2024-07** — Mytra launched publicly with $78M in total financing through Series B, announcing Albertsons as a commercial deployment partner and a pipeline of Fortune 50 customers.

## Links

- Website: https://mytra.ai
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/chriswalti

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/chris-walti
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-05-27