Elon Musk reportedly fires Tesla’s top sales exec

Tesla’s Vice President Omead Afshar, who oversaw sales and manufacturing in North America and Europe, has been reportedly fired by Elon Musk, according to Forbes and Bloomberg News. Afshar was a close Musk confidant and had recently been involved in the limited rollout of Tesla’s robotaxi service in Austin, Texas. The reasons for his dismissal remain unclear, as neither Afshar, Musk, nor Tesla have commented. Afshar joined Tesla in 2017, contributed significantly to the construction of the Austin factory, and had previously faced an internal investigation related to a special material purchase for a glass building Musk wanted, which attracted scrutiny from the Department of Justice and SEC. Afshar’s departure coincides with a challenging period for Tesla, marked by a decline in sales—the first annual drop since Tesla began mass-producing electric vehicles over a decade ago. Sales struggles have persisted into 2025, with a 71% year-over-year profit drop in Q1 and a nearly