Musk Announces DOGE Scale-Back to 1-2 Days Per Week Starting May; Tesla Q1 Profit Down 71%

Elon Musk announced on April 1, 2026 that he will significantly curtail his involvement with DOGE beginning in May, planning to devote only one to two days per week to the initiative. Musk cited the need to refocus on his business interests — particularly Tesla, which reported a 71% plunge in Q1 2026 profit and a 20% decline in vehicle sales, attributed in part to consumer boycotts tied to his role in the Trump administration. Musk had departed his formal DOGE leadership role in May 2025 but remained an informal White House adviser. DOGE claims it saved $215 billion in federal spending during his tenure, a figure disputed by the Cato Institute and GAO, which found no measurable reduction in federal expenditure trajectories. A nonpartisan analysis concluded DOGE's actions would actually cost taxpayers $135 billion in FY2026 due to paid administrative leave, re-hiring costs, and lost productivity. The organization is set to expire by its founding executive order on July 4, 2026. The announcement comes as DOGE-related personnel cuts at DHS cybersecurity and State Department were cited in an April CNN report as hampering US ability to monitor Iranian cyber threats during the ongoing war.