Elon Musk to Ditch DOGE? Here's What Tesla CEO Hinted During Q1 Earnings

After a tough Q1 performance, the Tesla CEO has hinted at his departure from DOGE. During Tesla's recent earnings call, Musk mentioned that his job in Washington is "mostly done," and said that his "time allocation to DOGE" might "drop significantly" in the coming months. He also added that he will not be spending more than 1-2 days per week in the administration.

This comes at a critical time for the luxury EV maker which failed to impress Wall Street with its quarterly results this week. A 71% drop in profit levels and a double-digit decline in overall deliveries, clearly didn't sit quite well with investors. On a year-to-date basis, Tesla shares have already plummeted over 30%, signalling heightened worries around the company's future amidst trade war tensions and heavy competition.

Many analysts have already pointed out that Musk's involvement in DOGE might have become the Achilles' heel for his luxury automobile company. Meanwhile, protests against his company have further dampened the overall sentiment. "Musk needs to leave the government, take a step back on DOGE, and get back to being CEO of Tesla full-time,” Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives reportedly said in a market note released earlier this week.

He also added the company might just see “potentially 15%-20% permanent demand destruction for future Tesla buyers due to the brand damage Musk has created with DOGE.”

While he maintained his balance by pointing out that Tesla (along with Nvidia), remains "two of the most disruptive technology companies on the globe over the coming years", he added that the EV company has become a "political symbol globally of the Trump Administration/DOGE."

Short-sellers bet big

The list of factors weighing down the overall outlook of the EV firm seems quite extensive, eventually pulling down the share price of Tesla from $420 (in January) to $238 currently. But some have won big amidst this fall.

According to data compiled by S3 partners cited by CNBC, short sellers made around $11.5 billion in mark-to-market profits in 2025. This eventually signals that the street was already counting on a year-on-year drop in the revenue figure. In the last 6 months, Tesla shares have struggled to remain above ground. The stock is down by over 46% from its 52-week-high price mark.

Plus, competition from Chinese EV-maker BYD has already surpassed Tesla in terms of deliveries. “(For Tesla) It’s turned into a nightmare for Tesla and for investors,” Ives told CNN. “The tariffs, the DOGE controversies, the brand damage — it’s been a perfect storm.”