Shareholders at Tesla has approved a record-breaking pay package of $1tn (£760bn), for owner, Elon Musk.

The deal which drew applause from the audience at the firm’s annual general meeting on Thursday, was approved by 75% of votes.

Musk, who is already the world’s richest man, must drastically raise the electric car firm’s market value over 10 years. If he does this and meets various targets, he will be rewarded with hundreds of millions of new shares.

The scale of the potential payout has drawn criticism, but the Tesla board argued that Musk might leave the company if it was not approved and that it could not afford to lose him.

Following the announcement, Musk took to the stage in Austin, Texas and danced to chants of his name.

“What we’re about to embark upon is not merely a new chapter of the future of Tesla, but a whole new book,” he said.

“Other shareholder meetings are snoozefests but ours are bangers. Look at this. This is sick,” he added.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *