(12 Jun 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARCHIVE: Grünheide, Germany – 13 March 2024
1. STILL of Tesla CEO Elon Musk
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARCHIVE: Washington – 9 March 2020
2. STILL of Musk speaking
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Pittsfield Township, Michigan – 12 June 2024
3. Tesla charger with the Texas flag flying in the distance
4. Tesla vehicle being charged
5. SOUNDBITE (English) Tom Krisher, The Associated Press:
“What’s happening Thursday is Tesla shareholders will meet virtually and physically in Austin, at the big factory and headquarters down there, to vote on Elon Musk’s $44.9 billion pay package that was approved in 2019 by both shareholders and the Tesla board. However, it was thrown out by a Delaware judge, who said that Musk basically controlled the board and that he had too much control and it was unfair to shareholders to give him that pay package. Also on the ballot is moving the Tesla legal home from Delaware to Texas, the theory being that Tesla could get out of control or out of the scrutiny of the Delaware judge where they lost this case. Tesla could appeal the $44.9 billion judgment, throwing that pay package out. They could appeal that to the Delaware Supreme Court. They could also try to move it to Texas, and get that legal dispute set up in Texas, although that’s going to be logistically very difficult and Tesla’s lawyers have said they don’t want to do that. Musk wants the pay package, in part for the money. It’s an all-stock pay package, but he also wants to get up to a 25% stake in the company. He says that he needs that to develop artificial intelligence at Tesla and has threatened on his social media platform, X, that he might move AI development to a different company, another one of his companies, if he doesn’t get a 25% stake. He’s got about 13% now and would go to about 20 if he gets this pay package restored. But he wants to get up to 25, so that would take a new pay package. Why it’s important to shareholders is Musk is kind of the company. He developed Tesla, joined shortly after the company was started and turned it into basically from nothing to the world’s largest electric vehicle maker and the world’s most valuable carmaker. And without him, without his persona, Tesla has a very uncertain future. And so, all the investors are very closely watching this to see what might happen.”
6. Close of a Tesla charger
7. Various of a sign that indicates it is an electric vehicle charging station
8. Various of a Tesla charging station
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARCHIVE: Littleton, Colorado – 9 May 2021
9. STILL of a Tesla
ASSOCIATED PRESS
ARCHIVE: Charlotte, North Carolina – 27 February 2024
10. Close STILL of the Tesla logo
STORYLINE:
If Tesla shareholders vote against restoring Elon Musk’s $44.9 billion pay package Thursday, the CEO could deliver on threats to take artificial intelligence research to one of his other companies.
Or he could even could walk away.
If they approve the all-stock compensation package that was thrown out by a Delaware judge in January, it would almost guarantee he would remain at the company he grew to be the world leader in electric vehicles, shifting to AI and robotics including autonomous vehicles, which Musk says is Tesla’s future.
But even with reapproval at Thursday’s annual shareholders’ meeting, which many analysts say is likely, there would be uncertainty.
Musk has threatened on X, his social media platform, to develop AI elsewhere if he doesn’t get a 25% stake in Tesla (He owns about 13% now). Musk’s xAI recently received $6 billion in funding to develop artificial intelligence.
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