Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Tesla Pay Package Approved: How It Compares To Other Top CEO Salaries

Tesla shareholders on Thursday overwhelmingly approved CEO Elon Musk’s record-breaking pay package, potentially worth up to $1 trillion, reaffirming support for the billionaire entrepreneur as the company pivots toward artificial intelligence and robotics.

According to AFP, nearly 75% of Tesla shareholders voted in favour of the compensation plan, which had been introduced by the board last September to secure Musk’s continued leadership. The package, structured around 12 tranches of stock options, will vest only if Tesla meets a series of ambitious operational and market-cap milestones over the next decade.

If fully realized, Musk’s stake in Tesla would rise from 13% to 25%, adding roughly 423 million shares to his holdings — a potential windfall

valued at around $1 trillion, assuming Tesla achieves an $8.5 trillion market capitalization.

The Tesla board, which recommended the approval, argued that Musk’s continued leadership is vital as the company seeks breakthroughs in AI, robotics, and autonomous vehicles. However, the plan drew criticism from major proxy advisory firms Glass Lewis and ISS, both of which advised shareholders to vote against it, citing its sheer size and governance implications.

A rejection could have had far-reaching consequences. Tesla had disclosed that Musk hinted at leaving his CEO role without a renewed compensation plan that ensured greater control.

Musk thanked investors after the vote. “I super appreciate it,” he said, addressing shareholders. According to CNN, if Musk achieves all targets, the payout would equate to earning $275 million per day — eclipsing any executive compensation in corporate history.

Musk’s net worth already stands at about $473 billion, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, largely driven by his holdings in Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI.

How Musk’s Pay Package Compares

Musk’s potential payout dwarfs compensation across the world’s largest corporations. By comparison, Microsoft’s Satya Nadella earned $79.1 million, while Apple’s Tim Cook and Nvidia’s Jensen Huang made $74.6 million and $49.9 million, respectively.

CEO Compensation Of The Biggest US Companies By Market Capitalisation

Rank	Company	CEO	Compensation
1	Microsoft	Satya Nadella	$79.1 million
2	Apple	Tim Cook	$74.6 million
3	Nvidia	Jensen Huang	$49.9 million
4	Eli Lilly	David Ricks	$29.2 million
5	Meta Platforms	Mark Zuckerberg	$27.2 million
6	Visa	Ryan McInerney	$26.0 million
7	Alphabet	Sundar Pichai	$10.7 million
8	Broadcom	Hock Tan	$2.6 million
9	Amazon	Andy Jassy	$1.6 million
10	Berkshire Hathaway	Warren Buffett	$0.4 million

(Data Source- Reuters)