Tesla Hires Former Nike Engineering Specialist

Tesla Inc. has hired Tiffany Beers, who most recently was senior innovator for Nike Inc., as a staff technical program manager.

Beers, who joined Nike in 2004, is credited with bringing Back to the Future's self-lacing shoe technology to market. Introduced last year, the limited-edition shoes are equipped with sensors, batteries and small electric motors that automatically tighten the laces around a wearer's foot.

Beers has described the self-lacing program’s demands as being akin to developing a concept car, noting the complexity of squeezing the necessary electronics into a pair of shoes that weigh less than a pound. Prior to joining Nike, Beers once served as the crew chief of an amateur race team in Portland, Ore., according to her LinkedIn profile.