Running one company is hard enough, but Elon Musk seems to like a challenge. Musk's most prominent company, Tesla (TSLA -0.88%), is a fast-growing, purely electric vehicle (EV) maker. With Tesla producing more than 300,000 vehicles during the first quarter of 2022, there's a lot to manage. After factoring in two more production facilities nearing completion, it's a wonder Musk has any time for side projects.
Still, that didn't stop Musk from offering to purchase Twitter (TWTR). After a lot of back and forth, the board accepted the buyout offer, giving Musk another responsibility to juggle with his already full workload.
So should investors be worried about this new pet project? Or is this just par for the course for Elon Musk?
Image source: Getty Images.
More than just Tesla and Twitter?
Musk's responsibilities don't just end with Tesla and Twitter. He's the CEO of SpaceX, a private company with the goal of populating Mars. While this is a lofty goal, the company has launched more than 150 rockets, which have done various tasks like putting satellites into space or supplying the International Space Station.
Musk also owns 90% of The Boring Company. This business has the lofty goal of solving traffic congestion by moving some of the traffic to tunnels underground. It has several ongoing contracts, including one with Las Vegas, which will link convention centers with hotels.
Musk has a couple of other side projects, like NeuraLink and OpenAI, but these aren't his primary endeavors.
So in summary, Musk owns, runs, or assists:
- Tesla
- SpaceX
- The Boring Company
- NeuraLink
- OpenAI
- Twitter (potentially)
That's an exhausting schedule. However, Twitter will be a much more ambitious endeavor than most of his projects (I'd place it beneath Tesla and SpaceX). Will it add too much responsibility to Musk's plate?
Tesla no longer needs babysitting
Tesla has been executing strongly for the last couple of years. With Q1 automotive revenue increasing 87% year over year, his company is hitting its stride. No longer unprofitable, Tesla posted an operating margin of 19.2% in Q1, among the best in the industry and on par with luxury brands like Ferrari.
Image source: Tesla.
Musk has done something no one else has done in several decades: launch a lasting, successful American auto brand. While the company still has to navigate opening more facilities and rising input costs, it is no longer worried about day-to-day survival.
Does this mean Musk can shift his focus to Twitter? I think so. Musk has already demonstrated his ability to manage multiple companies successfully. With Twitter, he doesn't need to worry about maximizing profitability -- only keeping the lights on.
One of a public company's goals is to maximize shareholder value. As a private company, Twitter isn't required to accomplish this. Instead, it can focus on its new owner's vision of making Twitter the "public square" in today's digital society.
That doesn't seem as ambitious as launching rockets into space (and re-landing them so SpaceX can use them again) or drilling holes underneath cities to reduce traffic. Instead, Musk will likely do some house cleaning, put content moderation guidelines in place, hire leadership who fits his vision, and then check in every now and again. If it's done right, Musk may spend a significant chunk of time modifying Twitter over the next year and then let the company run itself.
Didn't Jack Dorsey fail at running Twitter and Block?
Former CEO and Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey also runs Block (formerly known as Square). In November 2021, he decided to step down from Twitter and focus on running Block. While critics might say this was because the task of handling two companies was too much for Dorsey, Dorsey revealed Twitter's board of directors may have made running the business difficult for him.
With Dorsey urging Musk to take Twitter private, the former executive believes Musk can handle this task. Although I'm not a Tesla shareholder, I think Musk can easily pull off this juggling act.
When it comes to Elon Musk, you're better off betting with him than against him. While Twitter will be private and investors can no longer purchase shares, Tesla shareholders have no reason to worry and should continue holding their positions.
