Will Elon Musk's new Tesla deal make him the world's first trillionaire?

Tesla has just given Elon Musk the opportunity to become the first trillionaire in the world thanks to a significant pay package.

Currently, there are no trillionaires (a million million), but people predict there could be one by as early as 2027, with billionaire Musk’s name often thrown around.

In a recent move, the board of electric car company Tesla decided to offer its CEO Musk a new pay package that shareholders are considering, which would include giving him 423.7 million additional shares over the next 10 years.

While these shares are valued in the millions currently, the pay package forecasts they could appreciate and be worth close to $1 trillion if the company hits its intended milestones to reach a value of $8.5 trillion – more than any single company has ever been worth.

According to a filing to its shareholders, Tesla argues it needs to offer Musk a substantial package in order to keep him as CEO.

The board claimed that during negotiations, “Musk also raised the possibility that he may pursue other interests that may afford him greater influence if he did not receive such assurances”.

It is thought that the move is also to encourage Musk’s attention back to Tesla, with his work in the US government department DOGE turning his head earlier this year.

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“The simple message the board is sending to Elon: ‘We want your attention on Tesla,’” Gene Munster, managing partner at Deepwater Asset Management wrote in a note Friday. “Implicit in that message is the promise that he’ll have the control he’s been seeking (a 25 per cent stake) and that it will be worth his time.”

Back in January, in a post on his social media site X/Twitter, Musk stated himself that he would not want any less than a 25 per cent share in the company.

“I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having ~25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I can’t be overturned,” he wrote.

“Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla.”

However, critics of Musk say it is unlikely that the targets will be met because of a track record of broken promises on new tech.

“Elon Musk has been saying since 2014 ‘we will have a fully autonomous car next year.’ It hasn’t happened, but that promise has been valued in the billions by Wall Street,” analyst Gordon Johnson said.

“Elon Musk is a master manipulator. He’s been able to keep the stock elevated. The reason the board is paying him is he’s willing to say things that other CEOs aren’t willing to say or get away with.”

Despite this, it is widely considered to be likely the pay package will be approved by the board. But, Musk won’t see any of the money until the company almost doubles in its current value, to $2 trillion – the company’s first target.

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