With Tesla board members reportedly discussing the possibility of replacing Elon Musk as CEO, a number of candidates have emerged to best replace the richest man in the world at the top of the electric vehicle company.
It's hard to imagine Tesla without Elon Musk, as while he didn't actually create the company (despite being named a 'founder'), the billionaire has been intrinsically tied to the car manufacturer's brand for many years now.
He has placed increasing emphasis on his role at SpaceX with plans for a Mars mission, and many would argue that his position as head of the newly established Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has consumed most of his focus since the turn of the year, to the point where analysts deemed it essential for him to leave the federal position to save Tesla.
A combination of many key factors, including Musk's more outspoken far-right politics, his actions within government, and President Trump's punishing tariff plan have led to a major downturn in Tesla's stock market fortunes though, as the vehicle company has seen significant losses across the first few months of 2025.
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Tesla has seen a 38% decline since its price peaked at $479.86 in December last year, and was struggling significantly before Musk announced his plans to depart from DOGE and return to Tesla 'full time'.
However, reported from the Wall Street Journal indicate that certain Tesla board members were reaching out to recruiters in search of a potential new CEO, and while both Tesla's board Chair and Musk himself have denied these claims, it does propose an intriguing question as to who would actually replace the billionaire at the helm.
Many have immediately looked inwards to the company's key existing staff just below Musk, and names like Senior Vice President of Automotive Tom Zhu, CFO Vaibhav Taneja, and Musk's own 'right-hand man' Omead Afshar are among the most likely to claim the role, as per Business Insider.
Afshar, for example, is seen by many as the 'final boss' you have to pass before speaking to Musk directly, although some former employees have revealed that they were 'forced to resign' after voicing their concerns to Musk and his team about certain products.
Additionally, one key individual currently outside of the company that some important analysts favor is Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, who was one of the company's first employees and served as CTO until 2019.
"I could see that being a big win on the level that he knows Tesla," outlined Gene Munster, Managing Partner at Deepwater Asset Management, when speaking to BI. "He's also probably the person who has the best working relationship with Elon [...] and I think it's unique in Elon's orbit, the mutual respect that they have for each other."
Departing from Musk, despite current issues at the company, could spell disaster for Tesla though as the billionaire is so entwined with the company's current identity.
Munster estimated that its stock market valuation could decline by 25% or more if Musk were to depart, and venture capitalist Bradley Tusk illustrated that "the only reason why Tesla has [the biggest market cap] is because of this faith in Elon, both from institutional and retail investors. Without him, they're just another car company."
It might also be a struggle to forcibly remove Musk from his post either, as he owns 13% of the company and has a number of key relationships with board members which include his own brother Kimbal.
Musk would likely need to depart of his own volition, which would be a major move that many could not see happening any time soon.