Caution: Elon Musk Warns About Lucid CEO Rawlinson's Pay

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【Summary】Lucid Group CEO Peter Rawlinson was the highest-paid automotive CEO in 2022, earning $379 million, according to a survey. Tesla CEO Elon Musk cautioned against companies where leadership compensation is not linked to performance. Rawlinson was formerly a chief engineer at Tesla. In contrast, Musk took no salary from Tesla in 2022 but holds shares and options in the company. Musk is currently the richest person in the world with a net worth of $248.8 billion.

FutureCar Staff Sep 05, 2023 9:21 AM PT

Caution: Elon Musk Warns About Lucid CEO Rawlinson's Pay

According to a survey, Lucid Group Inc CEO Peter Rawlinson was the highest-paid automotive CEO in 2022. This news has caught the attention of Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk, who has a word of caution about it.

The Equilar CEO Compensation Survey reveals that Rawlinson's total compensation reached $379 million in 2022. This amount is 11 times higher than the total compensation of General Motors Co CEO Mary Barra, who received about $34 million. Ford Motor Co CEO James Farley ranks third among automaker CEOs, with a total compensation of $18 million.

Musk responded to the survey by stating, "Beware any company where leadership compensation is not linked to performance." It is worth noting that Rawlinson was previously the chief engineer for Tesla's Model S.

In terms of Lucid's performance, the company exceeded its 2022 annual production guidance by producing 7,180 vehicles. Additionally, they delivered 4,369 vehicles and reported an annual revenue of over $608 million.

As for Musk's pay package, he did not receive a salary from Tesla in 2022. However, this is not a recent change, as Musk has not taken a cash salary from the company since 2019 when he received $23,760. Instead, Musk holds shares in Tesla and has options that allow him to purchase more shares at a lower price if the company achieves specific financial targets.

By the end of 2022, Musk owned over 423 million shares of Tesla, which represents a 13.4% stake in the company. The value of Tesla shares has soared, closing at $245 per share on Monday, marking a 19,041% increase since listing.

It is worth mentioning that Musk is currently the richest person in the world, with a net worth of $248.8 billion according to Forbes's real-time billionaires list.

For more information on the future of mobility, you can follow this link to Benzinga's coverage. Additionally, you may be interested in reading about SpaceX's decision to restrict live broadcasts to X and whether Elon Musk is leaving YouTube in the dark.

Photo via Gage Skidmore on Wikimedia Commons