Elon brought him in, which is quite the irony. Funny even. It also is the reason Elon and Larry Page don’t get along anymore.

Ilya is certainly world class in his field, and maybe good to listen to what he has to say

Looks like he was hired.

https://www.nytimes.com/2018/04/19/technology/artificial-int...

No he was hired early, but not there from the beginning. Elon recruited him after public announcement of funding.