Why Elon Musk went without Tesla salary for 8 years: Billion-dollar pay puzzle
The richest person on earth has gone unpaid not for one, two, or three months, or even years, but for exactly eight straight years.
Did it surprise you? Here’s everything you need to know about why Elon Musk hasn’t received a salary. This information hasn’t come from an outsider, but from his own brother, Kimbal Musk.
Recently, Tesla has approved a $29 billion interim package to retain him as CEO, while Musk pursues AI startups and other ventures, raising questions about executive pay structures.
Tesla CEO Musk has reportedly not drawn a salary from the company for the past six to eight years. Elon Musk younger brother, Kimbal Musk has revealed this shocking why has Musk not drawn salary from Tesla for 6–8 years.
Kimbal said: “I think my brother deserves to be paid. He has zero pay for the past six to eight years. I don’t think that’s right. I’ll let Tesla shareholders make that decision, but I believe that it does need to be. He needs to be paid.”
Despite Musk’s unpaid streak, Tesla recently granted an interim pay package of 96 million shares, valued at roughly $29 billion. But it will all depend on if Musk continues as CEO for another two years.
The award was approved by a special Tesla board committee from which both Elon and Kimbal draw their salaries.
Backgrounder on Tesla pay structure
Tesla’s board recently approved an interim pay package for Elon Musk worth around $29 billion, following the revocation of his 2018, $56 billion pay deal by a Delaware court.
The new package aims to retain Musk’s leadership while addressing legal concerns and restructuring the compensation framework.
Last year, Musk expressed he wanted greater influence at Tesla, especially regarding AI and robotics development. He observed that without 25% voting control, he might prefer to build products outside the company.
Elon Musk ventures beyond Tesla
In line with his statement, Musk has focused on projects beyond Tesla. He founded xAI, which produces the Grok AI chatbot, and later merged it with his social media platform X.
Over the past months, Musk has shared updates on new features and upcoming launches for Grok.
Despite this, Musk revealed a new startup, “Macrohard,” which aims to replicate Microsoft’s companies like Microsoft do not themselves manufacture any physical hardware, it should be possible to simulate them entirely with AI.
Elon Musk’s billion-dollar pay puzzle: A debate worth billion
Elon Musk’s scenario sheds light on the non-traditional world of executive compensation, where billionaire CEO like Musk can forgo traditional salaries but receive massive stock awards worth billions.
Despite his $1 annual salary, Musk earned $2.3 billion in stock options and awards in 2023, sparking debates about income inequality and fairness in executive pay structures.
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