South African-born billionaire Elon Musk is at the heart of a high-stakes $1 trillion Tesla pay deal that has divided shareholders ahead of a pivotal vote on November 5.
In a letter posted on X yesterday by Robyn Denholm, Chair of Tesla’s board has warned that Musk could leave the multinational automotive and clean energy company as CEO if his proposed jaw-dropping pay package is not approved.
“Tesla could lose his time, talent and vision, which have been essential to delivering extraordinary shareholder returns. The fundamental question for shareholders … is simple: Do you want to retain Elon as Tesla’s CEO and motivate him to drive Tesla to become the leading provider of autonomous solutions and the most valuable company in the world?”
The proposed plan would grant Musk up to $1 trillion in stock-based compensation if Tesla’s market value climbs to $10 trillion over the next decade, a package that would solidify his control over the company’s fast-growing AI and robotics divisions.
On October 22, Musk motivated that the unprecedented deal is crucial to maintaining his influence over Tesla’s long-term strategy as it transitions deeper into autonomous technology, AI-powered manufacturing and its ambitious Optimus humanoid robot programme.
“My fundamental concern is if I go ahead and build this enormous robot army, can I just be ousted at some point in the future. I don’t feel comfortable building that robot army if I don’t have at least a strong influence,” he said.
The deal would also see Musk’s stake in Tesla increase from roughly 20% to nearly 29% via new option tranches.
Starlink’s availability across Africa means Musk’s influence extends beyond cars into connectivity, infrastructure in this market and Tesla’s subsidiary that was launched in Morocco early this year.
According to eWeek, opposition to the proposal is growing among institutional investors, governance watchdogs, and shareholder groups such as Take Back Tesla, who warn that Musk’s proposed deal represents an excessive concentration of power.
The group argues that giving Musk greater control over Tesla’s AI and robotics operations could hand too much economic and strategic influence to a single individual.
In her letter, Denholm countered that without granting Musk greater equity control and influence, Tesla risks losing ground to rivals such as OpenAI, Google DeepMind, and Amazon Robotics, whose rapid advances in artificial intelligence could outpace the company if Musk were to step away.
Share