Elon Musk is once again in the crosshairs of investors, and this time, the numbers are truly astronomical. A powerful alliance of US public pension funds and the SOC Investment Group is urging Tesla shareholders to reject a new compensation package for the CEO that could be worth up to one trillion dollars.
In an open letter, the group also calls for the removal of three board members, accusing them of being too cozy with Musk and too passive in overseeing the company. The letter paints a grim picture: declining sales, missed goals, and a board that behaves more like a fan club than a watchdog.
According to the investors, Tesla’s obsession with keeping Musk at any cost has damaged its reputation and delayed strategic milestones like full self-driving Level 5. The company’s numbers tell the story, global sales dropped 13% in the first half of 2025, and in Europe, they fell by more than a third. Operating income plunged by over 50%, and Tesla’s EV market share in Europe shrank from 21.6% to 14.5%. After years of hypergrowth, 2024 saw just 1% revenue growth, its slowest pace since 2010.
The board, meanwhile, faces criticism for its lack of independence and lavish pay. Chair Robyn Denholm reportedly earned an average of $62 million per year, nearly two hundred times the median S&P 500 director, a number that would make even Hollywood blush.
At the heart of the controversy lies the “2025 CEO Performance Award”, modeled after Musk’s contentious 2018 package. It could grant him stock options worth up to a trillion dollars if he meets targets that critics say are “vague, recycled, or conveniently defined”. Among them: 20 million vehicle deliveries and 10 million FSD subscriptions, metrics so flexible they might include past sales or one-time payments.
The letter also blasts the board for allowing Musk to divide his time between Tesla and his other ventures, SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, and The Boring Company, calling for a “full-time CEO” rather than a multitasking visionary.
If approved, the package would raise Musk’s voting power from 13.6% to 28.8%, drastically cutting the influence of independent shareholders. For critics, it’s not just a pay issue, it’s a quiet consolidation of power behind the wheel of Tesla.
