Tesla has firmly denied a media report claiming its board of directors had launched a search for a successor to CEO Elon Musk. In a statement issued by board chair Robyn Denholm and posted on Tesla’s official X account, the allegations were labelled as “absolutely false,” with Denholm adding that the board remains “highly confident” in Musk’s ability to lead the company going forward.
The denial follows a Wall Street Journal article that we reported on yesterday, and have since removed, claiming Tesla board members had contacted executive search firms about a month ago to begin the process of finding a new CEO. The article, which cited unnamed sources, claimed the board was reacting to growing concerns over Musk’s political involvement and the company’s recent financial performance.
In the report, it was said the board reportedly met with Musk personally, asking him to spend more time at Tesla, and say so publicly to reassure investors.
Denholm pushed back strongly, even saying that the board had informed The Wall Street Journal prior to publication that the claims were inaccurate.
Earlier today, there was a media report erroneously claiming that the Tesla Board had contacted recruitment firms to initiate a CEO search at the company.
— Tesla (@Tesla) May 1, 2025
This is absolutely false (and this was communicated to the media before the report was published).
The CEO of Tesla is…
Musk echoed the sentiment, also taking to X to condemn the report. “It is an EXTREMELY BAD BREACH OF ETHICS that the @WSJ would publish a DELIBERATELY FALSE ARTICLE and fail to include an unequivocal denial beforehand by the Tesla board of directors!” he wrote.
After a dip following the release of the original article, shares of Tesla (TSLA) have risen on Thursday morning, up over 2% at the time of publication.
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