The board of directors of the electric car manufacturer Tesla has begun searching for a new CEO to replace the company's founder Elon Musk, writes the Wall Street Journal.
According to the publication, this is due to the decline in Tesla shares and the dissatisfaction of some of its investors, who believe that Musk pays too much attention to his activities as head of the US government's efficiency improvement department.
The board members have previously asked Musk to take a more active role in Tesla's affairs, but it is not clear whether they informed him of the search for a successor.
A week ago it became clear that, according to the company's financial report, the net profit of the American electric car manufacturer Tesla in the first quarter of 2025 amounted to $409 million.
This is 71% less than a year ago. In the first quarter of 2024, Tesla's net profit reached $1.39 billion. The company's revenue decreased by 9% and amounted to $19.34 billion from $21.3 billion in the first quarter of 2024. Tesla then attributed the decrease to costs for the modernization of production lines at factories in Shanghai, Berlin, Fremont, California, and Austin, Texas, as well as a decrease in the average price of electric vehicles, which was intended to stimulate sales.
„Uncertainty in the automotive and energy markets continues to increase as rapidly changing trade policies negatively affect Tesla's global supply chain and cost structure. These dynamics, as well as changing political sentiment, could significantly impact demand for our products in the near future,” the company said in a statement.
According to The Wall Street Journal, the company has been hurt by tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump
The Tesla brand is closely associated with Musk, and his vocal support for Trump has alienated some customers from the company. Buyers in Europe and the US have called for a boycott of Tesla products. Tesla owners and dealerships in the US have faced acts of vandalism in recent weeks, with their cars being burned in parking lots by radical protest activists.