ISS Urges Shareholders to Reject Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk’s $1 Trillion Pay Plan
A powerful proxy advisory firm, ISS (Institutional Shareholder Services), has advised Tesla investors to vote against Elon Musk’s proposed $1 trillion compensation plan. The recommendation comes ahead of a critical shareholder vote scheduled for November 6.
The controversial plan would reward Musk if Tesla hits extremely aggressive performance targets, including:
- Lifting Tesla’s market value to $8.5 trillion
- Producing 20 million vehicles a year
- Generating $400 billion in annual earnings
ISS says the package is excessive and could allow Musk to earn large payouts even if Tesla falls short of the full targets. The firm also raised concerns about Musk’s attention being split across his other companies, including SpaceX, xAI, Neuralink, and X (formerly Twitter).
Tesla’s board defends the proposal, arguing that the record-breaking package is necessary to keep Musk committed to Tesla and to push ambitious goals in electric vehicles and AI. The company stressed that Musk’s leadership has driven massive growth in the past decade.
Musk currently holds around 13.5% of Tesla’s voting power, giving him notable influence over the outcome. However, a rejection by investors would be a rare and significant setback for him in a governance battle.
