Tesla Board Urges Shareholders to Back Musk’s $1T Pay Plan Amid AI Push
Tesla’s board chair Robyn Denholm is rallying shareholders to approve Elon Musk’s nearly $1 trillion compensation package ahead of the November 6 annual meeting. Denholm framed the pay plan as critical to retaining Musk’s leadership during the company’s pivot toward AI-driven electric vehicles and robotics, particularly the Optimus project. "This is about performance, not compensation," she asserted, noting the package ties Musk’s equity rewards to operational milestones and market cap growth.
The board warned rejection could prompt Musk’s departure, jeopardizing Tesla’s ambitions in autonomous driving and humanoid robotics. A special committee is designing incentive structures to align Musk’s efforts with what Denholm called "unprecedented shareholder value creation" over the next decade. Failure to meet targets WOULD leave the CEO with no equity or salary—a high-stakes gamble reflecting Tesla’s transformative phase.
