April 30 (Reuters) - Tesla board members

reached out about a month ago to several executive search firms

to find a successor to CEO Elon Musk, the Wall Street Journal

reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the

discussions.

The current status of the board's push, which, according to

the report, was sparked by Musk's heavy involvement with the

Trump administration, could not be determined, WSJ said.

Musk last week said he would cut back significantly on the

time he devotes to the Trump administration and spend more time

running Tesla.

Musk's work at his Department of Government Efficiency

(DOGE), where he has led efforts to cut federal jobs, has been

one of the most controversial aspects of the Trump presidency,

and his time away from Tesla has been an additional concern for

investors as sales of its aging EV lineup have been on the

decline.

His embrace of far-right politics in Europe has also led to

protests against Musk and the company as well as vandalism at

its showrooms and charging stations across the U.S. and Europe.

The board members met Musk and asked him to acknowledge

publicly that he would spend more time at Tesla, the report

said.

But it was unclear if Musk - also a member of the board -

was aware of succession planning, or if his pledge to spend more

time at Tesla has affected the efforts, the report added.

Tesla and Musk did not immediately respond to Reuters'

requests for comment.

Tesla is at a crucial juncture.

Amid rising competition globally, Musk has pivoted from his

promise of making a new affordable EV platform to rolling out

driverless taxis and humanoid robots, highlighting Tesla's

future as an AI and robotics company instead of an automaker.

Much of the company's valuation is based on that vision,

and some investors believe Trump will help further it. Last

week, federal regulators

eased rules for testing autonomous vehicles

, boosting Tesla's stock.

Some Tesla directors, including co-founder JB Straubel,

have been meeting with major investors to reassure them the

company is in good hands, the WSJ said.

Activist investors have long accused Tesla's board of

lacking independence and failing to rein in Musk.

Board chair Robyn Denholm, hand-picked by Musk whose

controversial pay package she defended, has also

drawn criticism for her own pay package

along with questions about whether that compromised her

oversight of Tesla and Musk. Denholm has dismissed the

allegations and a spokesperson has said her pay was fair.

The eight-person Tesla board, which also includes Musk's

brother Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert

Murdoch, has been looking to add an independent director, the

report said.