‘I love you!’: Elon Musk reaches US$44.9 billion payment deal after Tesla vote | Technology

Musk praises ‘impressive shareholder base’ after vote to restore compensation deal rejected by US judge.

Elon Musk has reclaimed electric car maker Tesla’s $44.9 billion pay package after shareholders voted to restore the compensation deal, in a strong endorsement of his leadership.

The vote at Tesla’s annual meeting on Thursday came after a judge in the US state of Delaware rejected the deal after finding that the company’s board was too close to Musk and had failed to protect shareholders’ interests.

“I just want to start off by saying, damn, I love you guys!” said an elated Musk as he appeared on stage after the vote.

“We have the most incredible shareholder base. I mean, it’s just amazing.”

Musk’s pay deal was valued at about $56 billion at the peak of Tesla’s share price in late 2021, but its value has since fallen by about a quarter, along with the company’s share price decline.

The shareholder vote does not necessarily mean Musk will receive the pay package, but it could bolster Tesla’s appeal of Delaware’s ruling against the deal.

In her January ruling, Delaware Judge Kathaleen McCormick described the pay package as “incomprehensible.”

“Swept away by the ‘all perks’ rhetoric, or perhaps fascinated by Musk’s superstar appeal, the board never asked the $55.8 billion question: Was the plan really necessary for Tesla to retain Musk and achieve its goals? ” McCormick wrote in his ruling.

Musk, who founded Tesla in 2003, does not receive a salary for leading the automaker.

Under the terms of his 2018 salary agreement, Musk agreed to receive shares worth about 1% of Tesla’s equity each time the company met one of its operational and financial objectives.

While Tesla’s business has soared under Musk’s leadership, at one point boosting the company’s market value to $1.24 billion, sales have slowed sharply due to growing competition from Chinese electric vehicle makers.

Musk has also attracted controversy with his outspoken views on politics and has fought against the perception that he is too spread thin due to his involvement in six companies, including rocket company SpaceX and social media platform X.

Tesla shares rose 0.7 percent in trading on Thursday, after previously rising 2.9 percent following Musk’s announcement on social media that investors supported the deal.

Before Thursday’s vote, Musk expressed doubts about his future at Tesla.

In January, Musk said in a post on his social media platform X that he would prefer to build artificial intelligence and robotics products outside of Tesla if he could not have a 25% stake in the company.

Musk is already by far Tesla’s largest shareholder, holding more than 20% of its capital.

Tesla shareholders on Thursday also approved proposals to move the company’s incorporation from Delaware to Texas and reappoint Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch — Musk’s brother and son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, respectively — to the company’s board.

Tesla did not announce the vote count, but several large institutional investors opposed the deal, including Norges Bank Investment Management, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund.