CBS News reported that on April 22, billionaire Elon Musk said he would significantly reduce his workload at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from May to spend more time on Tesla.
However, speaking at Tesla's first quarter business results announcement meeting, Musk noted that he will continue to participate in DOGE throughout Donald Trump's term, with a plan to spend about 1 to 2 days a week on government issues.
Tesla's Q1 business results released on April 22 were also disappointing, with revenue falling 9% and profit falling 71%, compared to the same period last year.
Previously, on March 30, Mr. Musk admitted that the work at DOGE was negatively affecting Tesla's stock, calling it a "very expensive job".
According to CBS News, Musk's role at DOGE has sparked many protests from those opposing the agency's operations, including access to sensitive data from millions of Americans and the closure of a series of government agencies in an effort to cut spending.
About a third of Musks total estimated $3030 billion in assets are in Tesla shares. Previously, Tesla's stock price reached a record high of 479 USD on December 17 after Mr. Donald Trump was elected President of the United States. However, up to now, the stock price has decreased to about 200 USD.
Although Tesla's stock has risen 4%, reaching $247.53 after Musk pledged to reduce work at DOGE, analyst Adam Crisafulli from Vital Knowledge still believes that this move is not enough to overcome the losses Tesla is suffering due to the technology billionaire's controversial political decisions.
However, according to CBS News, Tesla's current problems far exceed the political factor. This car company that once dominated the electric vehicle market is currently facing fierce competition from American manufacturers such as Ford, as well as European competitors are launching many new models with advanced technology and strong competition.
Earlier this year, Chinese electric car company BYD announced that it had developed a battery charging system that could fully charge the car in just a few minutes.
Not stopping there, China's tariff retaliations could also hurt Tesla. In early April, the company was forced to stop accepting orders in mainland China for the Model S and Model X models while continuing with the Model Y and Model 3 models for the Chinese market at the Shanghai factory.
