Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, used a Tesla earnings call as a bully pulpit, interrupting his CFO to attack critics of his $1 trillion pay package. He claimed the advisory firms opposing the deal “have no freaking clue.”
This fiery end to the 75-minute call was a stark contrast to the “ho-hum” discussion on AI and Optimus robots that came before it. Musk was directly addressing investors who will vote on the package at the Nov. 6 annual meeting in Austin.
Musk’s harshest words were for ISS and Glass Lewis, two proxy advisory services. He called their recommendations “asinine” and expressed fear they could lead to his ouster. “I just don’t feel comfortable building a robot army here and then being ousted,” he said.
Musk also tried to balance his desire for control with accountability. He argued for “enough voting control to give a strong influence,” but not so much that he “can’t be fired if I go insane.”
Tesla CFO Vaibhav Taneja closed the call by supporting the board’s plan. He assured investors the package was performance-based, tying Musk’s compensation to “substantial returns” for shareholders, and urged them to approve it.