‘It’s a crisis’ - Top Tesla investor calls for ‘divisive’ Elon Musk to step down as CEO as stocks keep plunging

By Josef Al Shemary

One of Tesla’s earliest investors has called for Elon Musk to step down as CEO, saying the ‘divisive’ billionaire has ‘destroyed the company’s reputation’.

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Wealth manager Ross Gerber has called for Elon Musk to step down as Tesla’s CEO, citing his other businesses and involvement in Donald Trump’s administration.

The millionaire’s wealth management company owns about 260,000 shares of Tesla stock - worth around $105 million, or just over £80 million.

He has recently sold off a large amount of Tesla shares, but it still makes up a significant part of his company’s portfolio, estimated to be worth about $2.3 billion.

Gerber said Tesla had been ‘neglected for too long’ and that Musk’s behaviour had led to the company being ‘absolutely’ in crisis.

Musk has sparked widespread outrage in recent months, after performing a gesture that many likened to a Hitler salute, slashing a huge number of US government jobs, and expressing his support for the German far-right party AfD.

Tesla’s market value, meanwhile, has plummeted by more than $800 billion since December, and is down a further 4% in the US on Tuesday.

Tesla is also struggling as demand for electric vehicles falls across the West, and Chinese competitors offer cheaper options that attract many consumers with smaller budgets.

Gerber told Sky News: "I think Tesla needs a new CEO … It's time for somebody to run Tesla.

“The business has been neglected for too long. There are too many important things Tesla is doing, so either Elon should come back to Tesla and be the CEO of Tesla and give up his other jobs or he should focus on the government and keep doing what he is doing but find a suitable CEO of Tesla."

He added that Musk might just not have enough time to run the company, as he balances running the social media platform X, and his job as head of the US Department for Government Efficiency.

The investor said Musk’s frequent, and often controversial social media posts, as well as his highly criticised function in Trump’s government has brought negative publicity to Tesla, affecting its stock price.

"The company's reputation has just been destroyed by Elon Musk," he said.

"Sales are plummeting so, yeah, it's a crisis. You literally can't sell the best product in the market place because the CEO is so divisive".

It comes as demonstrators have been gathering outside Tesla stores across the US to protest against Musk's push to slash government spending on behalf of President Trump.

The demonstrations are part of a growing backlash in North America and Europe to Musk's disruptive role in Washington.

Critics of Trump and Musk hope to discourage and stigmatise purchases of Tesla, the electric car company that is the world's most valuable automaker.

Musk is taking direction from Mr Trump to slash federal spending and sharply reduce the workforce, arguing that victory gave the president and him a mandate to restructure the US government.

Doge officials have swiftly gained access to sensitive databases, directed thousands of federal job cuts, cancelled contracts and shut down sections of the government, including the US Agency for International Development.

Musk's critics say his actions defy Congress's power to control the US budget and present a host of ways for him to enrich himself.