Published on: Nov 07, 2025 06:37 am IST
Tesla shareholders approved a $1 trillion payout for CEO Elon Musk, the largest ever awarded to a corporate leader.
Elon Musk’s $1 trillion pay package was approved by Tesla shareholders on Thursday, and will see the largest payout to a corporate leader. The decision came amid worries that Musk might step down from the role of Chief Executive Office (CEO) if the proposal didn’t go through.
The new pay agreement makes way for Musk to become the world’s first trillionaire. He is already the richest man in the world with a net worth of $491.4 billion at the time of writing, as per Forbes. In comparison, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has a net worth of $253.3 billion and is the third richest person in the world. This has led many to wonder what Bezos’ payout is like, as the Amazon CEO.
How much does Jeff Bezos get as Amazon CEO?
As Amazon CEO, Bezos reportedly takes home only a modest amount. He’s spoken about this in the past, explaining why he’s refused additional compensation.
Speaking at the 2024 New York Times DealBook Summit, Bezos said, “I already owned a significant amount of the company, and I just didn’t feel good about taking more… I just felt how could I possibly need more incentive?”.
Bezos, reportedly, took a paycheck of $80,000 per year as the CEO of Amazon.
What to know about Musk’s new pay package
The new package will expand Musk’s stake in Tesla to 25% or more over the next decade. In order to get the full payout, Musk will have to deliver on targets to significantly expand Tesla’s market value, revive its flagging car business and get the fledgling robotaxi and robotics efforts off the ground.
After the announcement Tesla shares rose 1.8% as of 4:54 p.m. in postmarket trading Thursday in New York. The stock was up 14% this year through Wednesday’s close, narrowly trailing the 16% advance in the S&P 500 Index.
(With Bloomberg inputs)
