Tesla chair Robyn Denholm made it clear in a recent interview that the company’s future remains tethered to Elon Musk. “No one else can lead this next phase,” she said, pointing to Musk’s ability to blend vision in AI, robotics, and EVs in ways few leaders could replicate.
But Denholm also left the door open to change, hinting that Musk might not need to remain CEO forever. He could, instead, take on a more product-focused leadership role if the board decides day-to-day operations should fall to someone else.
Big Pay Packages Signal the Stakes
The timing of Denholm’s comments is telling. Just a couple weeks ago, Tesla approved what might be the boldest compensation plan in corporate history: a $1 trillion pay package for Musk, contingent on turning Tesla into a robotics and AI powerhouse with less reliance on traditional EV sales. It follows another award in August, when Tesla granted Musk $29 billion in stock to keep him as CEO through 2027, replacing a court-struck package from last year.
Together, these awards highlight Tesla’s conviction that Musk isn’t just a figurehead but the anchor for the company’s high-risk, high-reward transformation.
A CEO or Something Else?
Musk has said he expects to remain CEO for at least another five years. Yet Denholm’s suggestion of a possible title shift reflects Tesla’s need to balance Musk’s product genius with the realities of a company now worth hundreds of billions and facing increasing regulatory scrutiny. Some investors might prefer a seasoned operator in the CEO chair, while Musk continues to focus on the futuristic bets, AI-driven autonomy, humanoid robots, and energy systems, that Tesla argues will define its next decade.
But Musk’s leadership comes with turbulence. Only last week, Tesla was ordered to pay $183 million in a lawsuit settlement, another reminder of the legal and financial challenges shadowing its bold strategies.
Why This Moment Matters
For Tesla, Denholm’s statement is about more than loyalty to Musk, it’s about steadying investor nerves as the company navigates a volatile stretch. Global EV sales are slowing in key regions, lawsuits continue to pile up, and rivals like BYD, Ford, and GM are gaining ground. Against that backdrop, Denholm’s words underline the board’s belief that Tesla’s strength comes from Musk’s ability to bet where others hesitate.
Whether he remains CEO or transitions into a product role, Musk’s fingerprints will stay all over Tesla’s most ambitious projects. The real question is whether the company and its shareholders, can weather the risks that come with his unique style of leadership.
from Autoblog News https://ift.tt/B0XGxHm
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