British News Agency

Tesla announced at its annual shareholder meeting that more than 75% of shares voted in favor of the package. The vote excluded the 15% of the company’s shares already owned by Musk.

The crowd cheered and chanted when the results were announced. Musk soon thanked shareholders and Tesla’s board of directors, saying, “I’m very grateful.”

Musk does not take a salary, but the approved package grants him 423.7 million additional Tesla shares over the next 10 years.

If the company reaches a market capitalization of $8.5 trillion — required for Musk to receive full payment — those shares could be worth around $1 trillion. Tesla must also meet a series of operational and financial milestones to receive all 12 equal tranches of stock.

Earning all the shares over 10 years would equal a daily income of $275 million — surpassing all previous executive pay packages in history.

To reach the required $8.5 trillion market value, Tesla shares would need to rise by 466% from their current price — about 70% higher than Nvidia, which last week became the world’s most valuable company at $5 trillion.

If Thursday’s vote had rejected the package, Musk might have stepped down as Tesla’s CEO. The Tesla board stated that Musk had raised the possibility of leaving if he didn’t receive the control assurances provided by the package.

However, the company has had a volatile year: sales and profits fell in the first half, and Tesla is facing billions in losses due to reduced U.S. government support for electric vehicles.

In his address to shareholders, Musk spoke more about robots — not yet on sale — than cars, saying the robotics business would eventually surpass the automotive division and any other segment.

Musk insisted he needed more shares to maintain control of the company, not to gain additional wealth.

Last month, during a call with investors, he said: “I’m not going to spend the money. I just need enough voting control to have influence — but not so much that I can’t be fired if I go crazy.”