Elon Musk closed Tesla’s latest earnings call with a tirade about his proposed $1 trillion payday — and the people trying to block it.
The CEO said he doesn’t even want to call it “compensation,” insisting that the real issue is whether he will have enough voting power to control Tesla’s next chapter in AI, robotaxis and humanoid robots.
“I just don’t feel comfortable building a robot army here and then being ousted because of stupid recommendations from the ISS and Glass Lewis,” Musk said, calling proxy advisory firms “corporate terrorists.”
He said he needed about “something like 20” vote percentage to maintain “strong influence” at Tesla, but could still be fired if he went “crazy.”
Musk’s comments come as Tesla executives urged shareholders to support the Nov. 6 vote on his compensation proposal, a package that would be the largest in the company’s history.
The deal would award Musk up to $1 trillion in stock if he meets performance goals, including pushing Tesla’s market value to $8.5 trillion and hitting 12 “operational milestones.”
This ranges from selling 12 million cars and a million humanoid robots to launching a million robotaxis and increasing adjusted profit from $16.6 billion in 2024 to $400 billion.
Musk’s stake in Tesla could rise from 13% to nearly 29% if the new package passes, giving him significantly greater control over the company.
The company’s board has warned that if shareholders reject the deal, Musk could reduce his involvement or even withdraw altogether.
ISS and Glass Lewis urged investors to vote against all or part of the proposed $1 trillion pay package. But supporters like Ark Invest’s Cathie Wood said the plan would be passed “decisively.”
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Shortly after the call, Musk took to
They “often vote along random political lines, unrelated to shareholder interests,” Musk said.
He added that they should be registered as investment advisers, calling it absurd and arguably illegal that they are not.
Musk did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.
The fight over Musk’s salary
The controversy over Elon Musk’s salary didn’t start this quarter. It started last year, when a Delaware judge overturned his 2018 compensation plan — a deal then valued at about $56 billion — ruling that Tesla’s board was unduly influenced by Musk when it approved it.
Tesla then sought to re-ratify the package through a shareholder vote, arguing that it was right and necessary to keep Musk focused on the automaker. The company has done everything it can to rally investors, including running advertisements and sending letters to shareholders.
In June 2024, investors voted in favor of Elon Musk’s salary plan.
Some critics say the plan gives Musk too much control and too little responsibility as he juggles multiple projects. Others wonder whether its push toward AI and humanoid robots distracts from Tesla’s core business of electric vehicles.
