One of Tesla’s early investors thinks it’s time for Elon Musk to either fully commit to running the company or step aside. Ross Gerber, a well-known wealth manager, told Sky News that Musk has too much on his plate and isn’t paying enough attention to Tesla.
Between his role in the Trump administration and everything else he’s involved in, Gerber believes the company is suffering.
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A lot of people are not happy about it, and there have already been protests over the deep cuts planned for federal government jobs.
A call for leadership change at Tesla
Gerber didn’t hold back in his interview. “I think Tesla needs a new CEO,” he said. “The business has been neglected for too long.”
He made it clear that he’s not saying Musk is bad for Tesla — but if he wants to keep working for the government, he should step down and let someone else handle things.
Either that, or he needs to ditch his other commitments and focus 100% on Tesla.
Tesla’s investor confidence is shaken
Gerber isn’t the only one worried. He’s actually sold off a big chunk of his Tesla shares recently, partly because he thinks the company is in trouble.
And he’s not alone. Investors have been uneasy ever since Trump took office and started throwing around trade war threats.
Tesla’s market value takes a major hit
Tesla’s stock has taken a serious beating. Since December, the company has lost more than $800 billion in market value.
And on Tuesday, it dropped another 4%. Not exactly reassuring news for shareholders.
The electric car market faces new struggles
It’s not just Musk’s distractions causing problems. The whole electric car industry is in a weird spot right now. Demand seems to be slowing down in key markets, even with all the discounts Tesla has been offering.
Consumers are feeling the financial squeeze, and on top of that, Tesla is now facing serious competition from Chinese EV makers offering cheaper alternatives. Oh, and let’s not forget the potential extra costs from Trump’s trade war. It’s a messy situation.
Musk’s divided attention is hurting Tesla
Gerber pointed out that Musk only has so many hours in a day, and lately, Tesla isn’t getting enough of them. Ever since he bought Twitter (now called X) in 2022, he’s been stretched too thin.
And his tweets? They’re not exactly helping Tesla’s image. In fact, they might be doing more harm than good.
Tesla’s reputation suffers due to Musk’s actions
“The company’s reputation has just been destroyed by Elon Musk,” Gerber said. “Sales are plummeting.”
He thinks Tesla’s cars are still the best on the market, but the CEO has become so controversial that it’s actually hurting sales.
