Tesla stock rises as Musk-Trump feud cools, robotaxi hopes ignite
Tesla stock extended its rally for a fourth straight session Wednesday, climbing another 0.1% and gaining more than 10% for the week, as tensions between CEO Elon Musk and President Donald Trump appeared to ease.
The cooldown in their public feud coincided with renewed optimism for Tesla’s robotaxi ambitions. Musk announced via X that the company will “tentatively” launch its driverless ride-hailing service in Austin, Texas, on June 22. He added that the first robotaxi would travel from the factory to a customer’s home on June 28.
The streets will change very rapidly.
Autonomous cars will be very common throughout the world in 2 to 3 years.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2025
Investors took the developments as a positive signal after weeks of volatility. Overnight, Musk admitted that some of his recent social media attacks on Trump “went too far”—an apparent attempt to mend fences with the president after a bitter exchange that had alarmed markets.
The feud began when Musk publicly denounced a Trump-backed tax and spending package, calling it a “disgusting abomination” that would further balloon the deficit. Trump responded with threats to reevaluate government contracts with Musk’s companies, triggering Tesla’s largest single-day market cap loss.
Until then, Musk had maintained close ties with the Trump administration, including financial contributions to the reelection campaign and a key advisory role in the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). With relations now showing signs of recovery, investor sentiment appears to be stabilizing.