In addition to being CEO of Tesla, Musk also heads up X, SpaceX, Neuralink, and, most recently, Washington’s DOGE
- Tesla’s stock has dropped by 55% since its record high in December
- Some investors say CEO Elon Musk is “spread too thin” with his new position with DOGE in Washington
- It doesn’t help sales are down, and vandalism against Tesla vehicles and stores is on the rise worldwide
Reports are Tesla’s stocks have fallen every week for the seven weeks Musk has been involved with the White House since the presidential inauguration on January 20, 2025. From a record high in mid-December, its shares have fallen by 55%, and by more than 40% overall from a year ago—they were around US$480 during that December high-mark, but fell to around US$220 at the beginning of March.
While Musk was a major force in Tesla’s success, he didn’t actually create the company. It was founded by in 2003 by two engineers, Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning. Musk, who had made his money by co-founding PayPal, was one of its early investors. He first became a board member; and then in 2008, its CEO.
Musk purchased Twitter in 2022 and renamed it “X.” While he previously spoke poorly of Donald Trump, he became actively involved with him during the 2024 presidential campaign, including donating an estimated US$132 million to Trump and other Republican candidates, and using X to promote them. Upon winning office, Trump created a Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and put Musk in charge of it.
On the Washington scene, along with managing DOGE, which has fired or offered buyouts to an estimated 100,000 U.S. federal employees – some of whom had to be rehired when it was discovered they were vital for security, including for nuclear weapons – Musk was present at the administration’s first cabinet meeting. He also answered reporters’ questions in the Oval Office during a press conference in Trump’s presence. Online videos have shown him frequently flying on government planes and helicopters to Trump’s Mar-A-Lago resort in Florida, often alongside the president.
Earlier in March, some investors took to Twitter/X to ask Musk to describe five things he’d done recently for shareholders. That was a dig at Musk, who through DOGE in February demanded that all federal workers answer emails asking them to list five things they had done in the week to justify their employment; and noting failure to respond would be considered their “resignation” from their jobs.
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