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A deal that could make Elon Musk the world’s first trillionaire has been branded "beyond grotesque". Shareholders in US electric car maker Tesla have approved a potential mega-deal for its maverick boss. Already the world ’s richest man, with an estimated wealth of £380billion, the set-up could hand him nearly $1trillion (£760bn) worth of Tesla shares over the next decade. Bagging the biggest ever payout in corporate history is far from certain, and depends on Tesla meeting a host of tough targets. They include achieving a five-fold increase in Tesla’s stock market value, selling a million self-driving Robotaxis, and developing humanoid robots. But even the prospect of one person - especially someone as controversial as Mr Musk - being paid such as a fortune has triggered an immediate backlash. Andy Prendergast, National Secretary of the GMB union, said: “A trillion pounds for a man like Elon Musk is beyond grotesque, it is a prime example of everything that is wrong with the world. At a time of rising inequality and increasing social problems, this pay packet is a slap in the face to every hard working man and woman who has seen their wages flat line as prices rise ever higher. “How long before he learns that all the money in the world won’t buy him the respect or love he so obviously craves? He makes King Midas look restrained.” Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at broker Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “A $1trillion CEO pay package is outrageous – but so are the Everest-sized milestones Tesla must conquer to unlock it.” Mr Musk’s pay package would, if it happens, be worth almost as much as the economy of Poland, a nation of 36 million people. It comes hot on the heels of Mr Musk, who also owns rocket company SpaceX and social media platform X, formerly Twitter , becoming the first person to see their personal fortune exceed $500billion. Tesla shareholder Ross Gerber told BBC News that Mr Musk’s pay deal was “another notch in the unbelievable things that you see in business.” Mr Gerber, chief executive of investment firm Gerber Kawasaki, said his company recently lowered its stake in Tesla due to concerns over “the polarisation of [Mr Musk’s] persona”. He added: “Elon seems to be divorced from the reality that his opinion among the public is so low.” Andrew Speke, spokesperson for think tank the High Pay Centre, said: “Musk’s $1trillion pay package is a truly bleak milestone. While we can’t blame all of the world’s ills on the existence of the super-rich, awarding so much to one individual reflects a model of capitalism that feels increasingly dystopian - massively rewarding a tiny few while many people’s living standards continue to decline. Those who believe in capitalist economics should be the first to call out this excess and argue for a fairer model if they want the system to survive.” Tesla shareholders are hoping Mr Musk will refocus on the car maker after his brief, but controversial, foray into front-line politics, when he enthusiastically backed Donald Trump before US election and became a right hand man after his Presidential victory. President Trump picked the Tesla CEO to lead his newly-formed Department of Government Efficiency. And Mr Musk’s four-year-old - the unusually named “Lil X” - even visited the Oval Office of the White House. But the pair have a very public falling out, during which they traded verbal insults. Mr Musk’s eccentricity, and colourful private life, have also made him a household name. The billionaire is said to have 12 children with three different women, though other reports have put the number at 14, or higher. The rubber stamping of the pay deal comes as Tesla has seen sales hit by a lack of new models, a backlash to his political views - he has backed Reform UK leader Nigel Farage - and competition from rival Chinese car makers. If Mr Musk were to reach trillionaire status, it would put him head and shoulders above anyone else, at these based on current standings. He would be four times richer than Larry Ellison, the world’s second wealthiest person and co-founder of software giant Oracle, on £226billon, and dwarf Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s paltry by comparison £192billion.
