Report: Tesla board looked to replace Elon Musk with new CEO

[dalton108]

Updated with Wall Street Journal article (original source):

https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/tesla-musk-ceo-search-board-0ce61af9


Secondary report:

https://electrek.co/2025/04/30/tesla-board-is-reportedly-floating-replacing-elon-musk-as-ceo/

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[devdrone6]

If this happens, I’ll be not purchasing tesla again. I only bought it after elon went crazy ?

Stock and cars.

 

[KuMX]

https://www.investing.com/news/stoc...earching-for-ceo-to-replace-musk--wsj-4015321

Not sure who these people are other than they’re based in Canada and what chat has told me:

“Treat it as a marketing-forward investment content site, not a neutral or investigative news source.”

This is the original source - Wall Street Journal article :

https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/tesla-musk-ceo-search-board-0ce61af9

 

[dalton108]

This isn’t really news… A writer searching for a story.

Say more please.

 

[dalton108]

This is the original source - Wall Street Journal article :

https://www.wsj.com/business/autos/tesla-musk-ceo-search-board-0ce61af9

Thanks but paywall and I can’t see it. Most mainstream media is blocked from all of my newsfeeds. I don’t watch cable news and I’ll never be on X. When I say I hate both sides of our current populist nightmare - I’m not kidding.

 

[KuMX]

Thanks but paywall and I can’t see it. Most mainstream media is blocked from all of my newsfeeds. I don’t watch cable news and I’ll never be on X. When I say I hate both sides - I’m not kidding.

Reuters:

https://www.reuters.com/business/au...ceo-succeed-elon-musk-wsj-reports-2025-05-01/

 

[Derektsla]

Say more please.

story lacks details, it’s written in PAST tense, and it’s a story about a WSJ story that is paywalled and likely won’t cite sources.

As an investor, I highly doubt they replace Elon unless he does something so awful they have no choice. The day he leaves, the stock plummets way more. Tesla is a very speculative stock and Elon is a very speculative person. It’s a good fit. Replacing him will be like when Apple had to replace Steve Jobs… What’s been their newest innovation? An Apple credit card!

This stagnation didn’t kill Apple because they rule the skies, but any appearance that innovation will slow at Tesla, would deal a big blow. I know this because I own a good bit of Tesla stock, and if he leaves, I probably cash out and move on. Not because I don’t like Tesla, but because I made a long term bet on their crazy innovation (that has paid off very well so far).

 

[dalton108]

If this happens, I’ll be not purchasing tesla again. I only bought it after elon went crazy ?

Stock and cars.

I’m actually already done. I expect all of my current cars, the oldest of which is a 2023 MSP, to last 500,000 miles and the only thing left on my list is (1) an actual long range (500mi) utility EV which will be my Scout, (2) my 1000mi solar/electric Aptera, (3) a Karmann Ghia for my wife [her favorite car] and (4) one special collectible exotic for me TBD.

I’ve already made it abundantly clear that I’m no sycophant, not a fan of the political BS and I am not down with the antagonize your core customer business strategy.

I have GREAT ADMIRATION for what the company has done and built. But I’m not down with the idiotic self-immolation. Besides the five that I’ve bought myself, I’ve sold at least a baker’s dozen of Teslas through my influence and evangelizing. Those days are over.

I can’t and won’t abide lies and FUD against Tesla (or at all on any subject) and I’ll always push back against BS, but that’s as far as it goes for me.

 

[dalton108]

Replacing him will be like when Apple had to replace Steve Jobs… What’s been their newest innovation? An Apple credit card!

This is a complaint straight out of Elon‘s mouth. I’ve never agreed with it and it sounds like sour grapes from him. He’s a very petty man.

Innovations since Job’s death:

Apple Watch - just the best selling watch in the world.

Airpods - just the best selling headphones in the world.

Vision Pro - unparalleled even if people don’t know about it and it’s as well received generally as my Cybertruck but I have one of each and I can tell you all about either one and how awesome they are.

“Tim Apple” is no Jobs, but as he himself (Steve) said his greatest creation was actually Apple.

If Tesla only works because of one man, it’s not sustainable. That’s business 101.

*AND, in case you didn’t notice, everybody has been conceding that. Contrary to the idiom, “one monkey don’t stop no show.” This is a show that one monkey can, in fact, apparently stop.

Folks, that’s bad!!!

 

[jasonclu]

This is a complaint straight out of Elon‘s mouth. I’ve never agreed with it and it sounds like sour grapes from him. He’s a very petty man.

Innovations since Job’s death:

Apple Watch - just the best selling watch in the world.

Airpods - just the best selling headphones in the world.

Vision Pro - unparalleled even if people don’t know about it and it’s as well received generally as my Cybertruck but I have one of each and I can tell you all about either one and how awesome they are.

Tim Apple is no Jobs, but as he himself said his greatest creation was actually Apple.

If Tesla only works because of one man, it’s not sustainable. That’s business 101.

Eh you'd be surprised to know that Steve Job's philosophies still carries on to this day. He really set the culture for their product design. I think it's the same about Elon.

 

[dalton108]

Eh you'd be surprised to know that Steve Job's philosophies still carries on to this day. He really set the culture for their product design. I think it's the same about Elon.

You’re literally just saying what I just said, but presenting it as if though it’s a counterpoint (or “surprising” new information that I didn’t have when I just said it above). What he built was a way of thinking that is Apple - “Think different.” Of course, that’s infused into the company!

That was my UNAMBIGUOUS thesis! ?

And the proof of this claim, despite Elon’s protestations to the contrary, is that they created at least two wildly successful, category defining products after his death! This doesn’t even touch Apple Silicon which was a bold move that has had huge benefits and is the very definition of innovation. Apple was the creation! That machine is Jobs’ ultimate legacy - per, him!

Elon has not done that. The best comparison between the two would be Jobs before he got fired - at best. Even then Jobs was never distracted his eyes were always on the prize.

Elon has been completely distracted of late no denying it -even he admits it. And if the company doesn’t work without him it’s doomed if not now later he will die. Tesla is shedding KEY executives left and right. *The most recent, I think announced today is the head of battery architecture. Healthy companies don’t continue to shed key talent like this.

There is no credible comparison between this and Jobs 2.0.


*

https://www.reuters.com/business/au...rs) - Tesla's,people familiar with the matter.

 

[OldDirtyRobot]

Every company does this. I wouldn't take this at face value. If they dont have a CEO succession plan, the board isnt doing its job.

 

[dalton108]

Every company does this. I wouldn't take this at face value. If they dont have a CEO succession plan, the board isnt doing its job.

True.

If they aren’t actually still looking I would expect Elon to come out by tomorrow and say that it’s fake news or whatever. If he’s silent - it’s going down, you can be sure of that.

Note: I’m not saying he has to say something tomorrow, and even if it is going down that doesn’t mean it’s not some long-term succession plan. Personally, I think it’s more urgent than that but that’s pretty irrelevant.

In my opinion even if it’s a totally bogus move like at X, he needs to lower his profile. I do agree with various market analyst who say that the worldwide damage to the brand is probably permanent. The company is definitely uncool and toxic to swaths of people in Canada, here (US) and in the EU, Germany and France specifically, along with Switzerland and the Nordic bloc. But again since China is the future of the company this may not be relevant if they play it right.

 

[CyberGus]

Elon would not need to leave Tesla just because he is not CEO. He'd have a little trouble letting go, even though he's stated that his least favorite tasks are the Executive roles (investor calls, etc.)

Michael Dell stepped down as CEO of his eponymous company when he realized that he was out of his depth. He instead focused on his strengths (tinkering and ideating).

Elon's public image is tarnishing the Tesla brand. There's a reason that CEOs give politicking a wide berth. Just ask Mr. Pillow

 

[Mal]

Looks like Tesla refutes the rumor.

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