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Tesla’s board has proposed a record-breaking compensation package that could put Elon Musk on course to possibly become a trillionaire.
Getting into it: The proposed pay package is structured entirely around performance-based rewards, meaning Musk would not receive a salary or cash bonuses. Instead, he would earn shares of Tesla stock if the company meets a series of extremely ambitious goals. The core of the plan grants Musk the potential to earn 423.7 million new shares over the next decade. However, he only receives these shares if Tesla’s value skyrockets to specific levels, with the ultimate goal being a market capitalization of $8.5 trillion (roughly eight times Tesla’s current valuation of about $1.1 trillion). To put that in perspective, $8.5 trillion would make Tesla the most valuable company in history.
The new package is broken down into “tranches” or steps, with each one giving Musk a chunk of the 423.7 million shares but only if Tesla meets both financial targets (like profitability or revenue) and operational goals (like delivering a certain number of vehicles or deploying self-driving technology). For example, one milestone includes putting 1 million self-driving robotaxis on the road. If these targets are hit, and Tesla’s stock rises accordingly, the shares Musk earns could be worth close to $1 trillion (making him the world’s first trillionaire).
Importantly, Musk doesn’t get all the shares at once, and he doesn’t get any if Tesla fails to meet the goals. This setup means the package is entirely tied to Tesla’s performance: if the company doesn’t grow massively, Musk gets nothing. But if it does, his total ownership of Tesla could soar to around 25%, giving him more influence over the company’s direction (something he has publicly said he wants in order to guide Tesla’s long-term strategy, especially in AI and robotics).
This all comes as Musk has kept a relatively low profile in recent months following his departure from the Trump administration, where he briefly served as a “special government employee” tasked with cutting federal spending. During and after his time in that role, public polling showed a sharp decline in Musk’s favorability, particularly among younger and more progressive consumers who had previously supported Tesla. This led to organized boycotts and protests at dealerships around the world, with the company later acknowledging in investor communications that the political fallout was negatively affecting sales (especially in key European markets).
