Tesla Shareholders Approve Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Pay Package
THURSDAY, Tesla shareholders have approved an unprecedented $1 trillion in compensation for CEO Elon Musk. The comprehensive compensation plan will come into effect by 2035, provided the company successfully achieves its ambitious financial and production targets. If that happens, Musk will also take control of about 25% of the company, up from 12% currently. More than 75% of Tesla shareholders approved the move in a preliminary vote.
Musk celebrated the news on stage at Tesla’s Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, alongside two dancing humanoid robots, the company’s Optimus products. “Look at us, it’s crazy,” he said.
However, to achieve its goals, Tesla will need to lead in areas well beyond electric cars and ensure that Optimus can do much more than dance. It will also have to beat all its competitors in autonomous driving technology and robotics. “Tesla will need to be the market leader not only in the United States, but also in Europe and other regions,” says Seth Goldstein, senior equity analyst at Morningstar, a financial services firm.
Specifically, Tesla must achieve a valuation of $8.5 trillion over the next 10 years, deliver 20 million vehicles to customers, dispatch 1 million robots, operate 1 million robotaxis, and sell 10 million subscriptions for its “Full Self-Driving” software over a three-month period, in addition to other financial goals.
Before the vote, Tesla’s board argued that the exorbitant pay package was necessary to retain Musk as CEO and keep him focused on the automaker. On a call with investors last month, Musk suggested he would struggle to advance Tesla in robotics and autonomy if he didn’t have strong influence over the automaker. “If we build this robot army, do I at least have a strong influence on this robot army? he asked. “I don’t feel comfortable building this robot army unless I have strong influence.”
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
