The Tesla (TSLA) board has approved a pay package for CEO Elon Musk worth up to $1 trillion. But there’s a catch: Musk only gets the full payout if Tesla’s market cap hits $8.5 trillion within 10 years.

For context, that’s roughly double the size of NVIDIA (NVDA), which is currently the world’s most valuable company at $4.3 trillion.

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Tesla’s market cap today sits around $1.2 trillion. Hitting $8.5T implies a Tesla stock price north of $2,100 per share (up from the high $300s today).

In a recent episode of Market on Close, John Rowland, CMT, agreed that the proposal could be viewed as bullish for shareholders.

Why?

It ties Musk’s rewards directly to shareholder value.

It ensures long-term commitment — the vesting period stretches 10 years.

It motivates aggressive growth targets in a highly competitive electric vehicle (EV) and artificial intelligence (AI) landscape.

That said, a trillion-dollar payday raises questions:

Is $8.5T realistic given Tesla’s fundamentals?

Would passive funds be forced to allocate heavily to Tesla if it reached that size?

Could this spark a speculative trading frenzy?

If Tesla grows to $8.5 trillion, its valuation would:

Surpass the combined GDP of Japan and Germany.

Put it on par with the total value of today’s top three U.S. mega-caps combined.

Require massive growth in EV adoption, energy storage, and AI/robotics revenue streams.

It’s ambitious… but ambition has always been Musk’s brand.

Whether you view it as audacious or absurd, Elon Musk’s proposed $1 trillion payday is another reminder: Tesla is one of the market’s most ambitious — and polarizing — stories.

Watch the clip from Market on Close where John Rowland and cohost “Twitter Tom” react to the news:

Stream the full episode to catch the broader discussion, and drop a comment to tell us: Is Elon Musk worth $1 trillion if he delivers $8.5 trillion in value?

On the date of publication, Barchart Insights did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com