Elon Musk Pledges His Own RTO As Tesla Sales Continue To Weaken

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has said he is returning to his main companies—Tesla, SpaceX, and X—as Tesla faces a drop in sales in Europe. The decision was made as Tesla EV sales in Europe fell 49% in April compared to the same month last year, according to the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA). Meanwhile, the number of EVs registered in the region jumped by 34.1%, and Volkswagen, BMW, and BYD saw an increase in sales.

Tesla has now seen four straight months of declines in Europe, even after updating its top-selling Model Y. The new features in the vehicle did not help, leading to more questions about the demand and where the company stands in the market.

Musk, who recently said he would step back from his role in Washington’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), promised via his X platform to focus on his companies again. “Back to working all the time and sleeping in conference/server/factory rooms,” Musk said after the X platform had an outage. He stressed the importance of Tesla, xAI, and SpaceX, especially before the planned launch of the Starship.

Tesla is planning to start robotaxi trials in Austin, Texas, in July. The company’s robotaxi, the Cybercab, is scheduled to be released in 2026. In addition, the first half of the year will see the release of new, more affordable electric vehicles.

Even though investors are hopeful about Musk’s new pledge, others are still cautious. Gary Black, a Tesla investor, said that Elon’s announcement to focus on $TSLA X and xAI full-time is not significant due to ongoing delivery issues. Black was concerned that Tesla’s new low-cost car might not be innovative enough to make a big difference in the market. Musk has promised to stay on as Tesla CEO for at least another five years, but it is not yet clear if his return will help the company’s sales.