Musk's Epic Pay Package Elicits Analyst Chuckles
By Reuters | 07 Nov, 2025

The package is seen as a common-sense way to incentivize Musk not to abandon a sinking ship and work to build the staggering $8.5-trillion valuation required to unlock his big payday.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has won shareholder approval for the largest corporate pay package in history.

At the EV maker's annual meeting at its factory in Austin, Texas, Musk bounded to the stage accompanied by dancing robots. The proposal was approved with more than 75% support, allowing Musk to get as much as $1 trillion in stock over the next decade. 

Here are some comments from analysts and experts:

MATT BRITZMAN, SENIOR EQUITY ANALYST, HARGREAVES LANSDOWN

"A $1 trillion CEO pay package is outrageous – but so are the Everest-sized milestones Tesla must conquer to unlock it. For shareholders, it's the ultimate alignment: Musk earns nothing unless he creates staggering value, and if he pulls off the unimaginable, investors will be sitting atop an $8.5 trillion titan."

"2026 looms as a watershed moment ... Critics cry 'key man risk', and they're not wrong, but investors have spoken. The Musk premium is alive and well."

MIKE O'ROURKE, CHIEF MARKET STRATEGIST, JONES TRADING

"There is no doubt Musk has the ability to execute the impossible in the business world ... With Tesla's EV business on the decline, we are surprised Musk has not abandoned ship and simply used his genius in his private companies. For that reason alone, it was worth it for shareholders to grant the package."

"Nonetheless, it is highly unlikely this works out well when a $1.5 trillion company needs to award a $1 trillion pay package to the richest man in the world."

CHRIS BEAUCHAMP, CHIEF MARKET ANALYST, IG MARKETS

"If it's performance-based stock options, then it's not necessarily the requirement to provide it (the pay) all upfront. And if he grows the company to $8.5 trillion, then the questions will answer themselves in due course. So I don't think it's a particular concern about how they will pay for this."

"(The board) has taken some steps. But the question is really where Musk sees his focus lie. The lofty goals he's been given requires a lot of attention and whether he continues to keep so many plates spinning is another matter entirely."

RUSS MOULD, INVESTMENT DIRECTOR AT AJ BELL

"There are logical reasons for shareholders to have given their assent. To reach the astronomical headline figure Musk must hit some extremely demanding targets... In this sense there was little to lose for most Tesla holders in approving the deal. If Musk does get the $1 trillion, shareholders will have done very nicely indeed."

BRIAN DUNN, DIRECTOR OF INSTITUTE FOR COMPENSATION STUDIES IN CORNELL UNIVERSITY'S SCHOOL OF INDUSTRIAL AND LABOR RELATIONS

"Is Elon Musk an extraordinary individual? Yes, he is. Does the stock price reflect a reasonable multiple of earnings? No. The value of Tesla's stock is clearly tied to a belief that something extraordinary will happen in the future... Is it worth $1 trillion of shareholders' money to hope that that will actually occur? I think not."

(Reporting by Sruthi Shankar, Johann M Cherian, Zaheer Kachwala and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)