Tesla Adds Chipotle Exec Jack Hartung To Board Amid Musk Pay Battle

Tesla Inc. TSLA disclosed on Friday that it had elected John R. (Jack) Hartung to the Board of Directors and the Audit Committee, effective June 1, 2025.

Hartung is the president and chief strategy officer of Chipotle Mexican Grill CMG. He joined the company in 2002 and previously served as its CFO. Before Chipotle, he spent almost 20 years at McDonald’s Corp MCD.

Also Read: Tesla’s Future Hinges On China FSD: Goldman Sachs

Tesla stock is down 8% year-to-date as it grappled with declining sales and a broad consumer backlash against CEO Elon Musk’s work for and association with U.S. President Donald Trump and the DOGE.

Some shareholders also criticized the company’s lack of independence among Tesla directors, Bloomberg reported on Friday.

The board addition implied Tesla is boosting its eight-member board, which currently includes Musk, Airbnb Inc. ABNB co-founder Joe Gebbia, Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, and business executive Robyn Denholm, who serves as chair.

Last April, Tesla disclosed that its board had established a special committee to consider compensation matters involving Musk after a Delaware court ruled against Tesla’s pay package set up by the directors for the CEO in 2018.

Recent reports indicated that the Tesla board began searching for a successor to Musk after the company faced significant financial setbacks. However, the company denied the report.

Musk is still fighting to reinstate a $56 billion Tesla compensation package that was struck down by a Delaware court last year. 

Price Action: TSLA stock is up 0.70% to $345.22 at the last check on Friday.

Read Next:

• Nvidia, Amazon, Tesla, Palantir Among Top Beneficiaries Of $1 Trillion Saudi Arabia AI Push, Analyst Says

Image via Shutterstock