Elon Musk Says Only Two Things Could Make Him Leave Tesla
Tesla CEO Musk discusses succession plans and Twitter with shareholders.
Musk told shareholders that “I intend to stay with Tesla as long as I can be useful.” He added that “I can be most useful, I think, on the product design and manufacturing. So basically factory design, product design and sort of manufacturing optimization.”
Nevertheless, he said, “Tesla’s definitely gathering a lot of momentum and it has a very exciting product road map that will last a long time.”
He added, jokingly one presumes, that “we do have a very talented team here, so I think Tesla would continue to do very well even if I was kidnapped by aliens or went back to my home planet.”
He added that “I’m definitely working as hard as I can and I’m very excited about the future of the company. I think it’s got a very bright future even without me.” But “I’m not leaving, just to be clear.”
About Twitter…
Musk appeared not to have given up completely on the Twitter acquisition, or at least his interest in the company. “I have to be a little careful about what I say about Twitter cause there’s like this, you know, lawsuit and stuff.”
He went on to note that “the only two publicly traded securities I own are Tesla and Twitter. That’s it.”
“I think in the case of Twitter, since I use it a lot, shoot myself in the foot a lot, dig my grave etc., I do understand the product quite well. So I think I’ve got a good sense of where to point the engineering team at Twitter to make it radically better.”
Whether he really wants to, or will be forced to try, remains the $44 billion question.