He claims the 'company would die' without him
Elon Musk shocked a courtroom earlier this week after admitting he ‘rather hates’ being the CEO of Tesla. Musk made the comments during the ongoing Tesla court case, which will decide whether or not the chief executive forced his company into a $2.6bn acquisition.
Speaking to the court, Musk claimed that he dislikes being the CEO of Tesla, and that he’d much rather focus on designing and engineering issues. However, he also claimed that he felt he had to remain in the CEO post or else the ‘company was going to die’.
The heated remarks came as the court is poised to decide whether or not the multibillion-dollar deal to buy solar panel company SolarCity was unlawful. SolarCity was founded by Musk and two of his cousins – however, Musk argued that the deal was a natural fit and that there was no financial gain for him.
Musk also denied placing pressure on Tesla board members – adding that this deal was part of an overall ‘master plan’ to facilitate greener energy supplies. Shareholders have brought Musk to court and are asking that her personally repay the $2.6bn – which would be one of, if not the, largest judgments placed against an individual person.
Musk is no stranger to controversial media attention – at one point lighting up and smoking a joint of cannabis during a live podcast. In one of his more infamous moments, Musk managed to single-handedly wipe $14bn off of Tesla’s market value after tweeting the thought the car maker’s share price was ‘too high’.
However, the CEO is also something of a leadership pioneer – known for his transformational, innovative style, and ground-breaking creativity. Earlier this year, Musk launched a study of COVID-19 with help from employee at SpaceX. The research helped to define infection and reinfection rates of the virus, helping medical staff to better understand antibodies.
