Elon Musk defends $1T pay package

“I just don’t feel comfortable building a robot army here and then being ousted because of some asinine recommendations from ISS and Glass Lewis who have no freaking clue. I mean, those guys are corporate terrorists,” Musk said Wednesday on Tesla’s quarterly earnings call, referring to the proxy advisory services who are urging investors to reject the pay plan.

The proposal would award Musk up to $1 trillion in stock if he meets key performance targets, including growing the company to an $8.5 trillion market cap, more than a 500% increase from today’s valuation. Musk insisted the package isn’t about personal gain—but rather about ensuring he retains enough influence to steer Tesla’s next chapter, focused on AI, robotaxis, and humanoid robots. If approved, Musk’s stake could rise from 13% to nearly 29%.

“It’s called compensation, but it’s not like I’m going to go spend the money,” Musk added. “It’s just, if we build this robot army, do I have at least a strong influence over that robot army, not current control, but a strong influence? That’s what it comes down to in a nutshell. I don’t feel comfortable wielding that robot army if I don’t have at least a strong influence.”

Musk conceded that having voting control in the “mid-20s” per cent range would help secure a “strong influence,” but gives shareholders enough control to fire him if he goes “insane.” 

Musk’s net worth is about $455 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index.

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Tesla’s board announced the ambitious executive pay plan for Musk in September. If approved at the company’s annual meeting on Nov. 6, Musk will be incrementally paid out over 420 million shares of the EV company—that is, only if he can achieve the company’s growth plans, which include the delivery of 20 million Tesla vehicles and 1 million robotaxis in commercial operation.

At the time of the announcement, Tesla stock price was down roughly 10% for the year, and the board felt the long-term CEO performance award would “retain and incentivize Elon to focus his energies.”

“While we believe Elon is the only person capable of leading Tesla at this critical inflection point, changing the world is neither an overnight process nor the work of a single person,” Tesla’s Board wrote in a letter to shareholders. “So, we also want your help in securing the team and strategy needed to achieve goals that others will perceive as impossible but that we know are possible for Tesla.”

Since then, Tesla’s stock has rebounded, now up more than 15% year-to-date.

Musk has long sought more control at Tesla, arguing complex innovations require significant influence over the company.

“I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having ~25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I can’t be overturned,” Musk wrote on X in early 2024. “Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla. You don’t seem to understand that Tesla is not one startup, but a dozen. Simply look at the delta between what Tesla does and GM.”