Is Elon Musk's $1 Trillion Pay Package Worth It for His 'Robot Army' Vision?

Elon Musk, known as the world's richest person, defended his call for a $1 trillion pay package during Tesla Inc.'s quarterly earnings call, and strongly accused those who refuse to agree of being 'corporate terrorists'.

Musk directed his tirade at two proxy advisory firms — ISS and Glass Lewis, which urged investors of his electric car empire to vote against some of the proponents of his record-breaking pay package proposal.

According to the Tesla CEO, the advisory firms 'have no freaking clue' and called them 'corporate terrorists.'

He also said that the way things stand, they might as well convince the Tesla shareholders to boot him out of his office.

Musk's Pay Package Demand

Tesla Inc. shareholders are expected to vote to give Musk an astounding $1 trillion pay despite his latest poor performance as the company's CEO.

Musk repeatedly reiterated that he wants the $1 trillion pay package not for the money, but for stronger control over Tesla because he is uncomfortable building AI unless he has maximum control over it.

Building a Robot Army

Musk's real intention was exposed when a shareholder raised a question about Optimus, the oft-remote-controlled humanoid robot from Tesla.

The company CEO said during the meeting as reported by Electrek, 'My fundamental concern with regard to how much money and control I have at Tesla is if I go ahead and build this enormous robot army, can I just be ousted at some point in the future? Um, that's my biggest concern, that is really the only thing I'm trying to address with this... what's called compensation but it's not like I'm gonna go spend the money, it's just if we build this robot army do I have at least a strong influence over that robot army? Not control but a strong influence.'

Tesla CFO Backs Pay Structure

Vaibhav Taneja, the CFO of Tesla, tried to pacify the nerves of the investors at the end of the call, saying that Musk will only get what he wants if the shareholders see 'substantial returns'.

'The plan has been designed so that Elon gains nothing unless our investors gain first,' Taneja stated.

He also asked shareholders to support Musk's pay package proposal, claiming that it is crucial to retain the company's momentum in developing autonomous vehicles, AI, and robotics.

'Corporate Terrorism'

The comment from the Tesla CEO, who also owns X (formerly Twitter) and SpaceX, highlighted the growing animosity between corporate power leaders and the advisory firms that shape the way investors think.

Both Glass Lewis and ISS are strongly supported by index funds and pension managers, whose votes can affect corporate governance decisions.

Musk's decision to call them 'corporate terrorists' led the way to boost scrutiny over the influence while also painting the pay challenge as a bigger fight between bureaucratic oversight and the vision of a businessman.

'This is a fundamental problem for corporate governance, because they're not voting along the lines that are actually good for shareholders. That's the big issue, I mean, that's what it comes down to. ISS Glass Lewis corporate terrorism,' Musk said.