Elon Musk has responded after disgruntled Tesla shareholders demanded he get back to work.
Musk famously threw himself into politics to help Donald Trump win the 2024 election and then set up and headed the cost-cutting task force DOGE. His time in government as a “special government employee,” however, was bound by a 130-day limit—which expires on May 30.
With that in mind, Trump announced earlier this month that the Tesla CEO would “go back home to his cars” and Musk himself confirmed his departure Wednesday with a rallying call. “The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government,” he said.
Musk also admitted in an interview, published Wednesday, that he “probably did spend a bit too much time on politics.” In the interview with Ars Technica, he said: “It’s not like I left the companies. It was just relative time allocation that probably was a little too high on the government side, and I’ve reduced that significantly in recent weeks.”
Indeed (sigh)
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 29, 2025
Despite claims that he has recalibrated his interests, a group of Tesla investors—whose 7.9 million shares make up around 0.2 percent of the company stock—still feel jilted by Musk. In a letter seen by CNN the group argued that Musk’s attention is still elsewhere, and demanded that he return to work at the EV maker for at least 40 hours every week.
“Mr. Musk’s outside endeavors appear to have diverted his time and attention from actively managing Tesla’s operations, as any other chief executive officer of a publicly traded company would be expected to do,” the shareholders said.
Musk has now replied, throwing shade at the dissenters. Amplifying an X post to his almost 220 million followers, Musk agreed with a message that stated the investors showed “nerve” in demanding the boss return to the hot seat.
“It’s funny we have investors demanding Elon work a certain amount of hours per week when we haven’t even PAID HIM TO DO SO since 2018. You got to have some nerve,” the fan of the billionaire, who runs eight companies, reasoned.
Musk, who took the reins as the automaker’s CEO in 2008, replied in agreement, writing: “Indeed (sigh).”
The letter called Tesla’s situation a “crisis” and called for the billionaire to come in and steady the ship. “The current crisis at Tesla puts into sharp focus the long-term problems at the company stemming from the CEO’s absence, which is amplified by a Board that appears largely uninterested and unwilling to act in the best interest of all Tesla shareholders by demanding Mr. Musk’s full-time attention on Tesla,” it read.
The message, addressed to board chair Robyn Denholm, also called for a clear succession plan, suggesting the company is not “adequately prepared” to find a new CEO if required.
It also called for one of the board members to be removed and replaced by a “truly independent director” with no direct ties to Musk.
The eight-person board’s independence has been criticized in the past, with several members having close personal or business ties with Musk.
They includes his brother Kimbal and longtime friend and financier Ira Ehrenpreis.
Tesla sales in Europe, meanwhile, almost halved in April year on year, despite overall battery-powered car sales on the continent climbing by more than a third, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA).
Analysts have suggested the downturn is due in no small part to Musk’s close involvement with the Trump administration.
His work there appears to have caused severe reputational damage to some of his companies.
Protests at Tesla dealerships and charging stations erupted across the U.S. in response. Cars were spray-painted, banged up, carved into, and burned.
Musk’s absence risks giving competitors an advantage. In the same period that saw Tesla’s European sales fall by 49 percent, Chinese manufacturer BYD saw its battery EV sales rise by 169 percent and overall sales including hybrids up by a staggering 359 percent, according to data provider JATO.
The Daily Beast has reached out to Tesla for comment.
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