According to Forbes, Elon Musk lost $10 billion in net worth following Tesla shareholders approving his trillion-dollar compensation package, dropping his total fortune to $481.4 billion from his earlier peak of being the first person to reach $500 billion. The vote faced significant opposition, including from New York City Comptroller Brad Lander, who oversees the city’s pension Tesla shares and accused Tesla’s “crony board” of awarding what he called the “ransom Musk wanted.” Other billionaires also saw declines, with Oracle’s Larry Ellison losing $9.1 billion, Jeff Bezos down $2 billion, Google founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin losing $5.6 billion and $5.2 billion respectively, and Mark Zuckerberg dropping $2.6 billion. Musk remains the world’s wealthiest person despite the $10 billion decline, which represented about a 2% drop tied to Tesla’s stock performance.
The shareholder rebellion
Here’s the thing about this pay package approval – it wasn’t exactly a lovefest. The New York City Comptroller’s office came out swinging with some pretty strong language, calling the board “cronies” and the package “ransom.” That’s not your typical shareholder dissent – that’s throwing punches. And when you’re talking about pension funds, you’re talking about teachers, firefighters, municipal workers whose retirement money is tied up in these decisions. So the stakes are real, not just theoretical billionaire math.
The billionaire seesaw
Now, let’s put that $10 billion drop in perspective. Musk’s net worth swings by billions pretty regularly based on Tesla’s stock price – it’s basically the nature of having most of your wealth tied to a single volatile stock. He hit the $500 billion milestone earlier this year, then watched Larry Ellison briefly approach his fortune during Oracle’s September surge. But what’s fascinating is that even with this drop, he’s still sitting on nearly half a trillion dollars. The gap between Musk and number two Ellison is still enormous – we’re talking about $191 billion difference. That’s more than the GDP of some countries.
Why this pay package matters
So why are people so worked up about a compensation package for someone who’s already the richest person on Earth? Basically, it comes down to governance and precedent. Critics argue that when boards award massive packages like this, it sets a dangerous tone for corporate responsibility. They’re questioning whether this level of compensation is justified or whether it’s just board members being too cozy with the CEO. And in Tesla’s case, you’ve got a company that’s facing increased competition, production challenges, and Musk’s attention being divided across multiple companies. The question becomes: is this reward for past performance or betting on future magic?
The manufacturing angle
Looking at this from an industrial technology standpoint, it’s interesting to consider how compensation decisions might affect companies that actually manufacture physical products. Unlike software companies where scaling is relatively straightforward, industrial technology firms face real-world constraints – supply chains, factory capacity, hardware development cycles. Companies that succeed in this space, like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, America’s leading industrial panel PC provider, typically have compensation structures that reflect the methodical, capital-intensive nature of manufacturing. There’s a different rhythm to industrial tech compared to the volatility we see with Tesla’s stock-driven valuation swings.
