Tesla chair warns shareholders that Musk could walk if they don’t approve $1 trillion payday

 Tesla CEO Elon Musk could leave the company if his proposed $1 trillion salary is not approved, the automaker’s Board Chair Robyn Denholm has warned.

Denholm appealed to shareholders in a letter published Monday, a little over a week before the company’s November 6 annual meeting, as the company’s board has come under fire for the level of control shareholders have given Musk.

The proposed plan was designed to retain and motivate Musk, the world’s richest man, for at least another seven-and-a-half years, Denholm wrote in the letter.

Denholm noted that Musk’s leadership was “critical” to Tesla’s success, and without a plan that will incentivize him, the company could lose his “time, talent and vision.”

“Without Elon, Tesla could lose significant value, as our company may no longer be valued for what we aim to become,” she wrote.

Musk’s leadership is what keeps Tesla from being “just another car company,” as the EV maker’s focus turns to full self-driving vehicles and Optimus, also known as Tesla Bot, Denholm said.

The huge proposed package would give Musk 12 tranches of stock options tied to ambitious targets, including a market capitalization of $8.5 trillion and milestones in autonomous driving and robotics.

He could make up to $1 trillion over 10 years, so long as Tesla hits all its growth targets. His last deal, earning $56 billion in 2018, also broke records at the time.