Tesla Shareholders Approve Elon Musk’s Record $1 Trillion Pay Package, Paving Way for AI-Driven Growth

Tesla shareholders have voted overwhelmingly in favor of CEO Elon Musk’s highly debated pay package, valued at up to $1 trillion over the next decade if performance targets are achieved. More than 75% of Tesla shares supported the compensation plan in a shareholder vote on Thursday, signaling strong confidence in Musk’s leadership and long-term vision for the electric vehicle (EV) giant. Following the announcement, Tesla’s stock rose 0.6% in after-hours trading.

The approval marks a significant victory for Musk and Tesla’s board, who emphasized that retaining Musk was crucial to the company’s future. Prior to the vote, board members warned that Musk might consider stepping away from Tesla if the package was rejected. The decision comes after Tesla relocated its headquarters from Delaware to Texas, a move that enabled Musk to exercise full voting power over his roughly 15% ownership stake. In Delaware, a legal dispute had previously blocked the compensation deal from proceeding.

Despite opposition from some institutional investors, including Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, shareholders endorsed the record-setting package—reflecting strong belief in Musk’s plan to transform Tesla into a leader in artificial intelligence and robotics. Analysts also view the approval as a catalyst for Tesla’s next phase of growth. Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives praised the decision, calling Musk Tesla’s “biggest asset” and predicting that the company’s AI-driven value will surge in the coming months.

Ives projected Tesla could achieve a $2 trillion market capitalization by early 2026 in a bullish scenario, potentially climbing to $3 trillion by year-end as innovations like Full Self-Driving (FSD), the Cybercab, and the humanoid robot Optimus accelerate Tesla’s technological expansion.