Musk's Twitter deal could test Tesla executive bench

Tesla is big or bigger than the biggest companies in the world, but it doesn’t have the management infrastructure like other companies, point out investors

Elon Musk's move to buy Twitter for $44 billion has raised concerns about the depth of executive talent at his more valuable company, electric carmaker Tesla Inc., in case his attention is further divided by the social media platform.

In announcing the deal on Monday, Mr. Musk called Twitter the world's "digital town square" and talked about protecting free speech, but he also rekindled fears that a man who once acknowledged sleeping on the factory floor during the launch of the Model 3 sedan and last year talked of working "crazy hours" only has so much energy to spare.

"Tesla feels very much like a start-up despite it being a trillion dollar company," said Tesla investor Ross Gerber, chief executive of wealth management firm Gerber Kawasaki. "It's as big or bigger than the biggest companies in the world, but it doesn't have the management infrastructure like other companies."

On top of that, Tesla is racing to boost production at new plants in Texas and Berlin amid supply-chain snarls and higher raw materials costs, as well as get work at its biggest factory in Shanghai back on track during a spike in COVID-19 cases there. Mr. Musk said in January Tesla had too much on its plate and would not introduce new models like Cybertruck this year.

Tesla has managed to outrace its problems, but a heavier pull of his focus by Twitter worries investors.

"I fear this is going to be a distraction," said one fund manager with a significant position in Tesla who asked not to be identified. "He's juggling supply chains and factory delays and the expansion of the energy storage business and this doesn't fit at all."

Shares of Tesla have slid 8% since Musk first disclosed his initial stake in Twitter.