Elon Musk's empire is in trouble (Photo: The Globe and Mail).
Billionaire Elon Musk's business empire is facing a series of serious challenges, from the departure of X (formerly Twitter) CEO Linda Yaccarino to Tesla's falling sales.
Notably, many of these issues are said to stem from the founder's own controversial actions and decisions.
Linda Yaccarino's departure from her position as head of social network X, just two years after her appointment, has raised many questions.
Ms. Yaccarino was expected to repair the damage that Elon Musk had done to the platform’s advertising business. However, Musk’s “tantrums,” including a profane post targeting advertisers in 2023, have put X in a difficult position.
Although Ms. Yaccarino is a well-known figure in the advertising industry with more than a decade of experience at NBCUniversal, the damage appears to have been irreparable.
Musk’s $44 billion acquisition of X in 2022 is seen as the start of a series of troubles. Since he took over, the platform has been flooded with hateful content, from homophobic, transphobic, and racist slurs to a recent anti-Semitic post about his AI tool Grok.
From Strength to Weakness: The Consequences of Billionaire Personality
Ms. Yaccarino’s failure to smooth over Musk’s mistakes has become increasingly apparent. The personality traits that once defined his success—his laser-like focus, his absolute confidence, his impulsive and domineering behavior—have become his downfalls as he has moved beyond his familiar spheres, such as Tesla and SpaceX.
Reports of Musk’s alleged drug use also add context to his erratic behavior. Clearly, Musk doesn’t get along with many people.
In most other companies, this is where the board or senior advisers would step in. Ms. Yaccarino’s case is not an isolated incident. Things are getting serious, damaging not only reputations but also financial interests.
Consequences for Tesla: Falling Sales and Musk's Distractions
The strongest backlash against Musk's behavior has been directed at Tesla.
The global backlash has been fierce over Elon Musk's close relationship with former President Donald Trump, his controversial behavior at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), and his scathing emails to federal employees demanding accountability for the work his companies are doing.
As a result, Tesla's sales have been hit hard, falling 13% in the first quarter of this year (globally).
Tesla is facing a sharp decline in sales (Photo: Reuters).
While there are many other factors that have contributed to Tesla's slowing sales, such as the rise of Chinese competitors and the maturing of the electric vehicle market, the company's slow pace of updating its product lineup is also a factor.
Many investors blamed the delay on Musk being preoccupied with other things, namely politics, which kept him from focusing on Tesla. Even Musk admitted this when he left DOGE, saying he needed to focus more on his business.
Who has the guts to tell the Emperor straight? Elon Musk’s closest advisers face a difficult, perhaps impossible, task: Convince their leader that he need look no further than the company to understand its problems and that he needs to rein in his behavior.
But that's not easy when dealing with someone who has an impressive business record and is ranked as the richest person in the world .
Yaccarino’s departure raises pressing questions: Is there a crisis in his empire? And more importantly, will Elon Musk listen, acknowledge it, and change?
Source: https://dantri.com.vn/cong-nghe/de-che-cua-ty-phu-elon-musk-gap-hoa-do-chinh-ong-gay-ra-20250714111214178.htm
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