Shareholders have called Elon Musk’s focus into question in the past, so Tesla, one of a handful of companies Musk leads, has devised a trillion-dollar plan to keep Musk engaged.
Tesla has proposed the biggest pay package in modern history, which could potentially pay Musk an unprecedented $1 trillion if he reaches some serious benchmarks.
The company believes this carrot will help Musk turn his attention back to building Tesla, and away from things that have nothing to do with his business, like politics and online trolling.
While investors won’t vote on this proposal until the company’s November 6 annual shareholder meeting, the strategy has not worked in the short-term. Musk still spends a lot of time tweeting far-right conspiracy theories and propaganda to his millions of loyal followers.
While Musk claims he has more than enough bandwidth to troll online while also running Tesla, SpaceX, X, xAI, Neuralink, The Boring Company, and other ventures, one government official says one of his most valuable companies is already dropping the ball.
Image source: Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy calls out Elon Musk, SpaceX
NASA has had a very fruitful relationship with SpaceX, but on Oct. 20, acting chief Sean Duffy said he is growing so frustrated with the company that NASA could start looking for alternative contractors.
Duffy told CNBC that SpaceX is behind schedule on its commitment to build the lunar lander that astronauts would take to the moon as part of its $2.9 billion contract with the government. He said NASA may soon seek a different partner if the company doesn’t get its act together.
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“They push their timelines out, and we’re in a race against China,” Duffy told CNBC. “So, I’m going to open up the contract. I’m going to let other space companies compete with SpaceX.”
SpaceX signed the nearly $3 billion government contract in 2021. It helped solidify the fledgling company as a powerhouse in space travel as the country with the most advanced space program gave it the stamp of approval.
Since then, SpaceX’s valuation has ballooned from $100 billion to reports of over $400 billion.
But it has recently run into trouble as Starship, the vessel that will lead NASA’s lunar push, blew up in flight three times this year, although it’s also had a few successful suborbital flight tests.
Meanwhile, this isn’t the first time Duffy has called out Elon Musk this year.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy has a history with Elon Musk
President Donald Trump handpicked Sean Duffy to lead the Department of Transportation. Since Duffy took the job, the president in July also promoted him to serve as acting administrator of NASA.
Duffy has butted heads with Musk over cuts the Department of Government Efficiency tried to make at the Department of Transportation, the government agency tasked with regulating electric vehicle maker Tesla, among other responsibilities.
Apparently, Musk wanted Duffy to fire air traffic controllers at a time when the DOT is facing staffing issues.
“Safety-critical positions are not going to be fired within the Department of Transportation. We can do things more efficiently … but we are not going to fire air controllers,” Duffy said earlier this year.
“Elon — or no one else — is the Secretary. I am. The Senate confirmed me.”
Related: Tesla shareholders respond to latest push against Elon Musk
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