In a video conference interview at the Bloomberg Qatar Economic Forum on Tuesday, Elon Musk said he intends to continue leading Tesla for the foreseeable future. The billionaire dismissed all claims that he is now focused on his role in Washington and promised to “spend less” of his resources on political matters.
When asked if he sees himself committed to be the electric car manufacturer’s CEO in the next five years, Musk responded. “Yes, no doubt about that at all.”
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) co-founder admitted that Tesla had lost some support from left-leaning consumers, but he claimed gains from conservatives offset the decline.
“Yes, we’ve lost some sales perhaps on the left, but we’ve gained them on the right,” Musk said. “The sales numbers at this point are strong, and we see no problem with demand.”
After weeks of trading in the red, Tesla’s stock was changing hands at $343.54 on Wednesday’s pre-market sessions, up $1.75 or 0.51 percent from Tuesday’s close. Over the past month, Tesla shares have gone up by 50.93%, with a year-over-year increase of 84.17%.
“Our sales are doing well at this point,” Musk added. “We don’t anticipate any meaningful sales shortfall. Just look at the stock price.”
Taking steps back from political spending
Musk addressed the personal toll from backlash related to his ties with the Trump administration, noting he and Tesla have been the target of threats and acts of violence.
“Well, it’s certainly fine to object to political things. But it’s not fine to resort to violence, hanging someone in effigy, and death threats,” he argued.
The CEO promised to reduce his political campaign spending by “a lot less,” moving forward, and he was glad that those who vandalized Tesla property are now facing prison terms.
Asked whether recent criticism of his executive compensation influences his decisions to stay or leave Tesla, Musk reckoned, “Obviously there should be compensation if something incredible is done.”
He bashed Delaware’s Court Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick, the presiding judge who threw out his appeal for a $56 billion compensation package. Musk called the judge “an activist posing as a judge,” insisting the outcome would not affect Tesla’s competitiveness.
SpaceX, Starlink, and the IPO question
Musk was also questioned about SpaceX, which he boasted about, claiming it was dominating the global launch market. When asked if the company would pick up defense contracts to build drones, he said: “SpaceX doesn’t do drones. SpaceX explodes rockets, satellites, and Internet terminals.”
According to Musk, SpaceX will be responsible for roughly 90% of orbital launches this year, leaving the rest of the world combined with only about 5%.
The CEO made it clear he is in “no rush” of taking SpaceX public, due to the burdens that come with being a public company. Still, he left the door open for a possible IPO of Starlink, its satellite internet division.
The billionaire mentioned that he was frustrated with the “abusive legal practices in the United States,” adding that shareholder derivative lawsuits are problematic.
The battle with OpenAI continues
Musk confirmed he is pushing ahead with his lawsuit against OpenAI, the organization he helped found and which now operates the popular AI tool, ChatGPT.
He accused OpenAI of abandoning its original non-profit and open-source principles. “I came up with the name OpenAI as open-source,” he continued, “now, they’re trying to change that for their own financial benefit into a for-profit company that is closed-source.”
On the topic of AI oversight, Musk reiterated his support for regulation but warned of excessive bureaucratic interference.
“There should be some number of referees, but not so many that you can’t kick the ball without hitting one. In many fields, we now have more referees than players on the field,” he propounded.
