Close Menu
TechCentralTechCentral

    Subscribe to the newsletter

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    Facebook X (Twitter) YouTube LinkedIn
    WhatsApp Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube
    TechCentralTechCentral
    • News

      Nissan doubles down on South Africa despite plant uncertainty

      11 July 2025

      MultiChoice is working on a wholesale overhaul of DStv

      10 July 2025

      Spam call epidemic: operators say their hands are tied

      10 July 2025

      Britehouse unit breaks free from NTT Data

      10 July 2025

      Samsung’s bet on folding phones faces major test

      10 July 2025
    • World

      Grok 4 arrives with bold claims and fresh controversy

      10 July 2025

      Bitcoin pushes higher into record territory

      10 July 2025

      Cupertino vs Brussels: Apple challenges Big Tech crackdown

      7 July 2025

      Grammarly acquires e-mail start-up Superhuman

      1 July 2025

      Apple considers ditching its own AI in Siri overhaul

      1 July 2025
    • In-depth

      Siemens is battling Big Tech for AI supremacy in factories

      24 June 2025

      The algorithm will sing now: why musicians should be worried about AI

      20 June 2025

      Meta bets $72-billion on AI – and investors love it

      17 June 2025

      MultiChoice may unbundle SuperSport from DStv

      12 June 2025

      Grok promised bias-free chat. Then came the edits

      2 June 2025
    • TCS

      TCS | Connecting Saffas – Renier Lombard on The Lekker Network

      7 July 2025

      TechCentral Nexus S0E4: Takealot’s big Post Office jobs plan

      4 July 2025

      TCS | Tech, townships and tenacity: Spar’s plan to win with Spar2U

      3 July 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on the latest and greatest cloud technologies

      27 June 2025

      TCS+ | First Distribution on data governance in hybrid cloud environments

      27 June 2025
    • Opinion

      In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

      30 June 2025

      E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

      30 June 2025

      South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

      17 June 2025

      AI and the future of ICT distribution

      16 June 2025

      Singapore soared – why can’t we? Lessons South Africa refuses to learn

      13 June 2025
    • Company Hubs
      • Africa Data Centres
      • AfriGIS
      • Altron Digital Business
      • Altron Document Solutions
      • Altron Group
      • Arctic Wolf
      • AvertITD
      • Braintree
      • CallMiner
      • CambriLearn
      • CYBER1 Solutions
      • Digicloud Africa
      • Digimune
      • Domains.co.za
      • ESET
      • Euphoria Telecom
      • Incredible Business
      • iONLINE
      • Iris Network Systems
      • LSD Open
      • NEC XON
      • Network Platforms
      • Next DLP
      • Ovations
      • Paracon
      • Paratus
      • Q-KON
      • SevenC
      • SkyWire
      • Solid8 Technologies
      • Telit Cinterion
      • Tenable
      • Vertiv
      • Videri Digital
      • Wipro
      • Workday
    • Sections
      • AI and machine learning
      • Banking
      • Broadcasting and Media
      • Cloud services
      • Contact centres and CX
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Education and skills
      • Electronics and hardware
      • Energy and sustainability
      • Enterprise software
      • Fintech
      • Information security
      • Internet and connectivity
      • Internet of Things
      • Investment
      • IT services
      • Lifestyle
      • Motoring
      • Public sector
      • Retail and e-commerce
      • Science
      • SMEs and start-ups
      • Social media
      • Talent and leadership
      • Telecoms
    • Events
    • Advertise
    TechCentralTechCentral
    Home » Motoring » Musk says he will stay at Tesla as long as he is useful

    Musk says he will stay at Tesla as long as he is useful

    By Agency Staff11 May 2022
    Twitter LinkedIn Facebook WhatsApp Email Telegram Copy Link
    News Alerts
    WhatsApp
    Elon Musk

    Tesla CEO Elon Musk will stay at the electric car company as long as he is useful amid investor concerns that buying Twitter would distract him from his job at Tesla.

    He also said China’s Covid-19 lockdown measures would not be “a significant issue in the coming weeks” at a time when its Shanghai factory is struggling to ramp up production following a suspension last month.

    When asked about how long he expects to stay at Tesla, he said: “As long as I can be useful.” He was speaking at the FT Future of the Car 2022 conference on Tuesday.

    In late April, Musk clinched a deal to buy Twitter for US$44-billion in cash in a transaction that sparked concerns that the social media platform would divert Musk’s attention from Tesla, SpaceX and other companies. He recently sold $8.5-billion worth of his Tesla shares and plans to borrow against some Tesla stock to help finance the Twitter deal.

    Musk is expected to become Twitter’s temporary CEO after closing the deal, according to a source familiar with the matter. Musk tweeted in December that he was “thinking of” leaving his jobs and becoming an influencer full-time, although it was not clear whether he was being serious about quitting his roles.

    He also said last July that he has tried “very hard not to be the CEO of Tesla, but I have to or frankly Tesla is going to die”. Musk also said he does not see “a ton of merit in combining” Tesla, SpaceX and other affiliates under one umbrella, saying they have different objectives and shareholder bases.

    Tesla operated its Shanghai plant well below capacity early this week, after reopening it in late April after a 22-day closure.

    “I had conversations with the Chinese government in recent days and it’s clear that the lockdowns are being lifted rapidly,” he said.

    The car maker’s sales in China had already slumped by 98% in April from a month earlier, data released by the China Passenger Car Association showed, underscoring the hit from China’s hard Covid-19 lockdowns.

    He said Tesla does not expect to open additional factories in China in the near future, adding that it will expand its Shanghai factory. He said China is a significant market, but expected China to account for about 30% of Tesla’s total market in the long term.

    Asked if China would interfere and block Tesla’s operations in the country due to Musk owning Twitter, the billionaire said: “I’ve seen no indication of that effect.”

    He also said Tesla is open to buying a mining company if necessary. He expected constraints in lithium production in about three years, adding that raw materials are one of the problems to reaching its goal of selling 20 million vehicles by 2030, from fewer than a million last year. He said that target is “an aspiration” not a “promise”.

    Musk believes the biggest constraints to raw materials is equipment necessary to convert raw materials like lithium, nickel and iron into battery-grade materials, adding that Tesla is working with suppliers to address the issue.  — Hyunjoo Jin and Eva Mathews and Ben Klayman, (c) 2022 Reuters



    Elon Musk SpaceX Tesla Twitter
    Subscribe to TechCentral Subscribe to TechCentral
    Share. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn WhatsApp Telegram Email Copy Link
    Previous ArticleEA, Fifa to end their lucrative videogame partnership
    Next Article Google I/O highlights: Search and Maps get big updates

    Related Posts

    Grok 4 arrives with bold claims and fresh controversy

    10 July 2025

    The satellite broadband operators taking on Starlink

    9 July 2025

    Yaccarino out: Musk’s handpicked CEO quits X suddenly

    9 July 2025
    Company News

    NEC XON welcomes HPE acquisition of Juniper Networks

    11 July 2025

    AI in project management: a new era of efficiency and transformation

    10 July 2025

    Samsung unfolds the future with thinnest, lightest Galaxy Z Fold yet

    9 July 2025
    Opinion

    In defence of equity alternatives for BEE

    30 June 2025

    E-commerce in ICT distribution: enabler or disruptor?

    30 June 2025

    South Africa pioneered drone laws a decade ago – now it must catch up

    17 June 2025

    Subscribe to Updates

    Get the best South African technology news and analysis delivered to your e-mail inbox every morning.

    © 2009 - 2025 NewsCentral Media

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.