Tesla is proposing a $1 trillion pay package for Elon Musk

Published: Friday, September 5, 2025 at 11:14 am

Tesla Proposes Massive Pay Package for Elon Musk

Tesla has put forward a new compensation plan for CEO Elon Musk, potentially worth up to $1 trillion. The proposal, detailed in a recent SEC filing, hinges on Musk achieving a series of aggressive performance targets over the next decade.

The plan's most significant goal is to increase Tesla's market capitalization to $8.5 trillion by 2035, representing an additional $7.5 trillion in value. Other key objectives include delivering a cumulative total of 20 million vehicles and producing one million Optimus robots. Furthermore, the plan requires Musk to deploy one million robotaxis, increase subscribers to Tesla's Full Self-Driving service by 10 million, and grow the company's earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization to $400 billion over the next decade, a significant increase from $16.6 billion last year.

The proposed package is structured to keep Musk tied to Tesla for at least a decade, with the first shares vesting after a minimum of seven and a half years. The compensation will be released in tranches as specific goals are met. A final requirement for unlocking the full package is the development of a "CEO succession framework."

This new proposal follows the invalidation of Musk's previous $46.8 billion pay package by a Delaware judge last year, a decision Tesla is appealing. The company's board recently awarded Musk $29 billion in shares as an interim performance award. The new plan will be put to a shareholder vote at Tesla's annual meeting in November.

The announcement comes amid a challenging period for Tesla, which is facing a global sales slump and a 16% drop in share price this year. These challenges are partly attributed to controversies surrounding Musk's public statements.

BNN's Perspective:

This proposed pay package is a bold move by Tesla, reflecting both the company's ambition and its reliance on Elon Musk's leadership. While the targets are ambitious, they could significantly benefit shareholders if achieved. However, the size of the package and the conditions attached raise questions about corporate governance and the potential for conflicts of interest. Shareholders will need to carefully weigh the risks and rewards when voting on this proposal.

Keywords: Tesla, Elon Musk, pay package, compensation, market capitalization, robotaxis, Full Self-Driving, shareholders, SEC filing, performance targets, EV, electric vehicles, Optimus, CEO succession, sales slump, share price

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