ELON MUSK AT SPACEX with occupy mars shirt

Elon Musk being photographed at SpaceX, one of the other companies he’d been neglecting while at DOGE (Marvin Joseph/Getty Images)

Present Tense

Elon Musk really wants you to know he’s back at Tesla

The gentleman doth attest too much.

Rani Molla

5/29/25 9:44AM

Did you know Tesla CEO Elon Musk would be returning his full attention to his companies instead of his government position at the Department of Government Efficiency? You should, because he can’t stop talking about it — a move likely geared at Tesla bulls.

Last night, Musk tweeted that his time at DOGE was coming “to an end” and that he was thankful “for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending.”

Per The Wall Street Journal, a White House official said the “off boarding” of the world’s richest man started Wednesday.

As my scheduled time as a Special Government Employee comes to an end, I would like to thank President @realDonaldTrump for the opportunity to reduce wasteful spending.

The @DOGE mission will only strengthen over time as it becomes a way of life throughout the government.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 29, 2025

The media-wary Musk has been on a press blitz over the past few days, taking interviews at his factories and telling everyone he can that he’s back at the office.

“I’m physically here. This is the focus, and especially around launch,” Musk told The Washington Post from a SpaceX facility in Texas this week.

“It’s not like I left the companies,” Musk also attested to Ars Technica. “It was just relative time allocation that probably was a little too high on the government side, and I’ve reduced that significantly in recent weeks.

Over the weekend, Musk tweeted, “Back to spending 24/7 at work and sleeping in conference/server/factory rooms. I must be super focused on 𝕏/xAI and Tesla (plus Starship launch next week), as we have critical technologies rolling out. ”

Back to spending 24/7 at work and sleeping in conference/server/factory rooms.

I must be super focused on 𝕏/xAI and Tesla (plus Starship launch next week), as we have critical technologies rolling out.

As evidenced by the 𝕏 uptime issues this week, major operational…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 24, 2025

This is all after a special “live company update” at the top of Tesla’s earnings call last month, where Musk already announced that he would be significantly cutting back his time at DOGE. At the time, he said, “Starting next month, I’ll be allocating far more of my time to Tesla.”

Why is he beating this drum so hard?

For many Tesla investors, Musk is Tesla, so his return is perceived as good news for the company. Tesla bull Dan Ives has been calling for Musk’s return since he started at DOGE earlier this year. Since the initial DOGE exit announcement, the stock has been on a tear, leaving its 2025 lows far away in the rear-view mirror.

Of course, Tesla’s stock price is even less tethered to its financial performance these days than usual. Despite terrible earnings and a spate of bad news, Tesla’s stock is up more than 30% this month.

Meta posts record revenue but misses on earnings

The company reported earnings Wednesday.

Rani Molla12h

Rani Molla

19h

It turns out Tesla’s Cybercab might need to have a steering wheel and pedals after all

Tesla’s Cybercab was supposed to be a steering-wheel-less alternative to its affordable mass market car.

Matt Phillips10/28/25

Intel romps amid reported attempt to poach a 21-year Taiwan Semiconductor veteran

A report in the Taiwanese press that Intel is attempting to recruit a recently retired top Taiwan Semiconductor executive, Wei-Jen Lo, to lead R&D at Intel’s troubled foundry division may account for the bump in Intel shares Tuesday, one analyst told us.

A synopsis of the report from technology analysis and news outlet TrendForce News notes:

“If confirmed, the move could have significant implications for TSMC and the broader Taiwanese semiconductor industry, especially as Intel aggressively expands its foundry business with support from Washington and backing from tech giants like NVIDIA and SoftBank, the report adds.”

But some skepticism about Lo, 75 years old, returning to Intel, where he worked before joining TSMC in 2004, is also warranted, TrendForce says:

“Industry insiders cited by the report say it is unlikely he would join Intel again, given TSMC’s non-compete rules, Intel’s status as a direct competitor, Lo’s advanced age, health considerations, and his long-standing loyalty to TSMC founder Morris Chang. On the other hand, some industry observers warn that Lo, a U.S. citizen, would be difficult for TSMC to restrict, even with non-compete clauses.”

Intel shares have doubled over the last three months, since the US government took a 10% stake in the company in August. Intel is the best-performing stock in the S&P 500 over that period.

Intel Reportedly Eyes Retired TSMC Veteran Wei-Jen Lo, Advanced Node Pioneer, to Lead R&D

“If confirmed, the move could have significant implications for TSMC and the broader Taiwanese semiconductor industry, especially as Intel aggressively expands its foundry business with support from Washington and backing from tech giants like NVIDIA and SoftBank, the report adds.”

But some skepticism about Lo, 75 years old, returning to Intel, where he worked before joining TSMC in 2004, is also warranted, TrendForce says:

“Industry insiders cited by the report say it is unlikely he would join Intel again, given TSMC’s non-compete rules, Intel’s status as a direct competitor, Lo’s advanced age, health considerations, and his long-standing loyalty to TSMC founder Morris Chang. On the other hand, some industry observers warn that Lo, a U.S. citizen, would be difficult for TSMC to restrict, even with non-compete clauses.”

Intel shares have doubled over the last three months, since the US government took a 10% stake in the company in August. Intel is the best-performing stock in the S&P 500 over that period.

Rani Molla

Eye on AI

10/28/25

All eyes on Google Search revenue

It’s hard to tell what’s happening with Search.