When he talks at the electric carmaker’s annual shareholder meeting on Tuesday, Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk will be under pressure to allay investor fears about the absence of a clear succession, decreasing demand, and delays of some new models.
Despite Musk’s assurances that he will focus more on Tesla after learning that Linda Yaccarino, the former head of NBCUniversal’s advertising department, will succeed him as CEO of Twitter, his commitments to projects like a new AI firm continue to raise concerns.
Musk nevertheless intends to concentrate on products and technology at the social media company.
On Tuesday, Tesla stock was up 1.7% to $169.
The following subjects are anticipated to be covered at the shareholder meeting, which begins at 4:00 p.m. ET.
Investors will vote on a shareholder resolution that reflects worries that the automaker significantly depends on Musk’s leadership and calls for the publication of a report on “Key-Person Risk” by the corporation. The concept aims to identify important individuals and create succession plans.
At a shareholder meeting last year, Musk declared that he would work for the automaker for as long as he was useful. James Murdoch, the director of Tesla, stated in court testimony in November that Musk had named a prospective replacement.
According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the Tesla board has mentioned CFO Zach Kirkhorn as a potential replacement for Musk as CEO.
The appointment of JB Straubel, a co-founder of Tesla and its chief technology officer, as a board member.
Glass Lewis, a proxy advisory company, has advised shareholders to vote against his appointment due to concerns about his independence.
According to Munster of Deepwater, Straubel, the CEO of the battery recycling and materials company Redwood Materials, is seen as Musk’s possible replacement.
The re-election of Musk and board chair Robyn Denholm will also be decided by shareholders.
