Trillion-dollar man: Elon Musk offered record pay deal

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been offered a salary package potentially worth around US$1 trillion (A$1.5 trillion) according to business news outlet Bloomberg.

The 10-year deal would require Mr Musk to hit several ambitious targets for the organisation before banking his paycheques, including growing the company’s robotaxi business to one million vehicles in operation, delivering one million robots, and increasing Tesla’s market capitalisation value from US$1 trillion to US$8.5 trillion (AU$12.9 trillion).

Currently, the highest-valued company in the world is Nvidia, with a market cap worth around US$4.15 trillion (AU$6.28 trillion).

While the hurdles are high, Mr Musk has so far been able to clear those required for his US$56 billion (AU$84 billion) pay packet, as set back in 2018.

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However, the Tesla CEO has so far unsuccessfully fought to receive his billion-dollar payday after company shareholders attempted to block the deal in court – despite a majority of shareholders voting to uphold the package in 2024.

It’s possible a trillion-dollar deal would see similar pushback for those who deem the deal to be excessive.

Tesla’s filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) acknowledges criticism of the company’s CEO.

“We also acknowledge that Musk’s high public profile attracts significant scrutiny, and that some have questioned whether his personal views or outside activities might be a distraction from his leadership of Tesla,” the filing reads.

“While media coverage often emphasises these concerns, our direct experience with Musk does not support that characterisation.

“During our many years of working alongside him in the boardroom, we have consistently observed his dedication to Tesla and its mission, demonstrated by his willingness to take bold strategic actions in pursuit of long-term goals.

“He demands a high standard of conduct, not only from employees but also from himself. Although Musk can be direct and unscripted at times, we view this as emblematic of his authenticity.”

Already the world’s richest person, the latest package would see Mr Musk’s ownership of Tesla increase to 25 per cent, as well as putting in place a succession plan for a new CEO to eventually take over from Musk.

The 54-year-old has previously stated he wants a stake of approximately 25 per cent in Tesla, threatening to otherwise work on artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics at another company – likely of his own creation.

“Simply put, retaining and incentivising Elon [Musk] is fundamental to Tesla achieving these goals and becoming the most valuable company in history,” Tesla said in a statement signed by company chair, Australian Robyn Denholm, and director Kathleen Wilson-Thompson.