Page 2 - Elon Musk

Tesla sales plunge globally as anti-Elon Musk backlash takes hold

In California, Tesla sales fell 12 per cent last year as Musk attacked leaders of a state that played a pivotal role in the carmaker surviving its tumultuous early years

Who is Amy Gleason, DOGE's acting administrator named by White House?

The White House has clarified that billionaire Elon Musk, despite his involvement in overseeing the initiative, does not hold the legal role of DOGE head

US lawmakers warn that China could use Elon Musk to influence Trump

China's Washington embassy said China welcomed mutually beneficial cooperation" with people from all walks of life in the United States

Musk's new ultimatum spurs fresh confusion among US federal workers

The confusing back-and-forth has rippled through the federal bureaucracy, with some agencies instructing workers to comply and others not

Federal technology staffers resign rather than help Elon Musk, DOGE

More than 20 civil service employees resigned Tuesday from billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, saying they were refusing to use their technical expertise to dismantle critical public services. We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations, the 21 staffers wrote in a joint resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press. However, it has become clear that we can no longer honour those commitments. The employees also warned that many of those enlisted by Musk to help him slash the size of the federal government under President Donald Trump's administration were political ideologues who did not have the necessary skills or experience for the task ahead of them. The mass resignation of engineers, data scientists and product managers is a temporary setback for Musk and the Republican president's tech-driven purge of the federal workforce. It comes amid a flur

Federal employees may get more demands to justify work at Musk's direction

The turmoil that enveloped the federal workforce over the last few days is unlikely to cease anytime soon as the US government's human resources agency considers how to fulfil Elon Musk's demands. The Office of Personnel Management told agency leaders Monday that their employees did not have to comply with a Musk-inspired edict for workers to report their recent accomplishments or risk getting fired. But later that evening, OPM sent out another memo suggesting that there could be similar requests going forward and workers might be sanctioned for noncompliance. Agencies should consider whether the expectation for employees to submit activity and/or accomplishment bullets should be integrated into the agency's Weekly Activity Report, wrote acting director Charles Ezell. He added that agencies should consider any appropriate actions regarding employees who fail to respond to activity/accomplishment requests. OPM originally sent employees an email over the weekend with the subject line

Elon Musk isn't running DOGE but Amy Gleason is, says White House official

Gleason, a health care technology executive, is serving as the acting administrator of DOGE, according to a White House official, who requested anonymity to discuss a matter that is not public

Elon Musk's India move shows the cracks in Donald Trump's coalition

Tesla has long wanted to sell cars in India, but Musk has balked at the high tariffs that would be applicable on imported high-end EVs

Musk has inside track to modernise air traffic communications system

A satellite company owned by Elon Musk has the inside track to potentially take over a large federal contract to modernize the nation's air traffic communications system. Equipment from Musk's Starlink has been installed in Federal Aviation Administration facilities as a prelude to a takeover of a $2 billion contract held by Verizon, according to government employees, contractors and people familiar with the work. Musk said that the network used by air traffic controllers is aging and requires drastic and quick action to modernize it. The Verizon system is not working and so is putting air travelers at serious risk, Musk on Monday posted on X, the social media site he has owned since 2022. The emergence of Starlink as a potential replacement for the Verizon-led effort underscores the extraordinary conflicts of interest inherent in Musk's position as both a senior White House adviser to President Donald Trump and a business mogul in charge of a sprawling array of companies. It is no

21 DOGE staffers resign over refusal to use their 'technical expertise'

More than 20 civil service employees resigned Tuesday from billionaire Trump adviser Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, saying they were refusing to use their technical expertise to dismantle critical public services. We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations, the 21 staffers wrote in a joint resignation letter, a copy of which was obtained by The Associated Press. However, it has become clear that we can no longer honour those commitments. The employees also warned that many of those enlisted by Musk to help him slash the size of the federal government under President Donald Trump's administration were political ideologues who did not have the necessary skills or experience for the task ahead of them. The mass resignation of engineers, data scientists and product managers is a temporary setback for Musk and the Republican president's tech-driven purge of the federal workforce. It comes amid a flur

Tesla's market capitalisation slips below $1 trillion as Europe sales sink

Tesla shares are now by far the biggest decliner among the mega-cap technology stocks, weighing heavily on the group's overall performance

Tesla sales crash in Europe, dropping 45% in Jan as EV competition heats up

Billionaire Elon Musk's increasing involvement in US politics and controversial stance on European leaders may have also attributed to the fall in Tesla sales

Trump kissing Musk's feet? AI video plays on screens at US govt office

An AI video of Donald Trump kissing Elon Musk's feet played at a US government office, sparking outrage and debate over Musk's growing influence in the new administration

Nearly 40% of contracts cancelled by DOGE expected to produce no savings

Nearly 40 per cent of the federal contracts that the Trump administration claims to have cancelled as part of its signature cost-cutting programme aren't expected to save the government any money, the administration's own data shows. The Department of Government Efficiency run by Elon Musk last week published an initial list of 1,125 contracts that it terminated in recent weeks across the federal government. Data published on DOGE's Wall of Receipts shows that more than one-third of the contract cancellations, 417 in all, are expected to yield no savings. That's usually because the total value of the contracts has already been fully obligated, which means the government has a legal requirement to spend the funds for the goods or services it purchased and in many cases has already done so. It's like confiscating used ammunition after it's been shot when there's nothing left in it. It doesn't accomplish any policy objective, said Charles Tiefer, a retired University of Baltimore law

Elon Musk renews firing threat after being obstructed by federal officials

The US agency that oversees federal employees said on Monday they could ignore a weekend email from Musk that required them to summarize their work or face losing their jobs

Elon Musk sees to install Starlink terminals in US airspace network

The people said it was unclear how the use of Starlink terminals might impact the existing Verizon contract

Never heard of Musk offer for early astronaut return: Ex-Nasa leader Melroy

The comments cast doubt on Musk's claims that his attempts to stage an early rescue mission were blocked by former US President Joe Biden's White House because of the billionaire's support of Trump

Trump backs Musk as he roils federal workforce with demands, threats

President Donald Trump voiced support for Elon Musk's demand that federal employees explain their recent accomplishments by the end of Monday or risk getting fired, an edict that has spawned new litigation and added to turmoil within the government workforce. What he's doing is saying, Are you actually working?' Trump said in the Oval Office during a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron. "And then, if you don't answer, like, you're sort of semi-fired or you're fired, because a lot of people aren't answering because they don't even exist. The Republican president said that Musk's Department of Government Efficiency has found hundreds of billions of dollars in fraud" as he suggested that federal paychecks are going to nonexistent employees. He did not present evidence for his claims. If people don't respond, it's very possible that there is no such person, or they aren't working," Trump said. Attorneys representing unions, businesses, veterans and conservation organisations

FDA to rehire probationary medical device staffers fired only days earlier

Barely a week after mass firings at the Food and Drug Administration, some probationary staffers received unexpected news over the weekend: The government wants them back. Beginning Friday night, FDA employees overseeing medical devices and other key areas received calls and emails notifying them that their recent terminations had been rescinded effective immediately, according to messages viewed by The Associated Press. Three FDA staffers impacted by the decisions spoke with the AP on condition of anonymity because they planned to continue working for the agency and weren't authorised to discuss its internal procedures. The reversal is the latest example of President Donald Trump and billionaire Elon Musk's chaotic approach to cost-cutting, which has resulted in several agencies firing, and then scrambling to rehire, employees responsible for nuclear weapons, national parks and other government services. The FDA reinstatements followed pushback by lobbyists for the medical device

Federal employees across US return to offices amid threat from Elon Musk

Federal employees across the country, many of whom have worked from home since the COVID-19 pandemic, were back at agency offices Monday under President Donald Trump's return-to-office mandate. Billionaire Elon Musk, who is leading Trump's Department of Government Efficiency scouring government agencies for suspected waste, delivered a warning Monday to workers on his platform X. Starting this week, those who still fail to return to office will be placed on administrative leave, Musk wrote. Lee Zeldin, Trump's new administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said Monday on X, formerly Twitter, Full-time, COVID-era remote work is DONE under @POTUS leadership. In a video he posted, Zeldin said average attendance at EPA headquarters on Mondays and Fridays last year was less than 9% of employees. Our spacious, beautiful EPA headquarters spans two city blocks in D.C. across five buildings, Zeldin said. But our hallways have been too vacant, desks empty and cubicles filled with