Elon Musk defends $56bn pay in Tesla trial evidence

Elon Musk gave evidence on Wednesday that he was completely focused on Tesla in 2017 when the electric car maker was in “crisis”, rebutting claims that his $56 billion pay package was based on easy performance targets and approved by a compliant board of directors.

Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta sued Mr Musk and the board in 2018 in hopes of proving that the company's chief executive used his dominance over the board to dictate terms of the package, which did not require him to work full-time.

Mr Musk, the world's richest person, in a Delaware courtroom described how the car maker was struggling to survive in 2017, when the pay package was developed.

“I was entirely focused on the execution of the company,” Mr Musk said when he was questioned about Tesla by his lawyer Evan Chesler. He added that he did not dictate the terms of the pay plan.

He said he would not accept a pay plan that required him to punch a clock or commit certain hours to Tesla.

“I pretty much work all the time,” he said. “I don’t know what a punch clock would achieve.”

The five-day trial before Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick comes as Mr Musk is struggling to oversee a chaotic overhaul of Twitter, the social media platform he was forced to buy for $44 billion in a separate legal battle before the same judge after trying to back out of the deal.

Mr Musk, who arrived in a black Tesla and was led into the courtroom via a separate entrance due to safety concerns, completed giving his evidence on Wednesday in a little less than three hours.

The billionaire said that he focuses his attention where it is needed most, which in 2017 was Tesla.

“So in times of crisis, allocation changes to where the crisis is,” said Mr Musk.

He has a history of combative testimony and often appears disdainful of lawyers who ask probing questions. In past trials, he has called opposing lawyers “reprehensible”, questioned their happiness and accused them of “extortion”.

Mr Musk was more restrained in Wednesday's proceedings, although he chafed at probing questions.

At one point, Mr Musk told the plaintiff lawyer: “Your question is a complex question that is commonly used to mislead people.”

He acknowledged that he was not a lawyer but added “when you're in enough lawsuits, you pick up a few things.”

A Tesla Road exit sign on the Toll 130 motorway points to the new Gigafactory in Austin, Texas. AFP
Workers set up for the grand opening party at the new Tesla Giga Texas plant in Austin, Texas. AFP
Tesla's unveiling of the new factory in Austin has highlighted corporate America's growing affinity for Texas, compared with California and other states that are considered to be less tax-friendly. AFP
The parking lot at Tesla's Austin factory is packed with employees' cars. Bloomberg
The construction site of the Tesla Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, in October 2021. Reuters
A closer look at the construction site of the Tesla Gigafactory in Austin, Texas. Reuters
Elon Musk speaks at the South by Southwest Interactive festival in Austin, Texas. Reuters

Mr Musk tweeted this week that he was remaining at Twitter's San Francisco headquarters around the clock until he fixed that company's problems, and said on Wednesday he had come on an overnight flight from the social media company.

Mr Tornetta has asked the court to rescind the 2018 package, which his lawyer Greg Varallo said was $20 billion larger than the annual gross domestic product of the state of Delaware.

The legal team for Mr Musk and the Tesla directors have cast the pay package as a set of audacious goals that worked by driving 10-fold growth in Tesla's stock value, to more than $600 billion from about $50 billion.

They have argued the plan was developed by independent board members, advised by outside professionals and with input from large shareholders.

Shareholders generally cannot challenge executive compensation because courts typically defer to the judgment of directors. The case survived a motion to dismiss because it was determined he might be considered a controlling shareholder, which means stricter rules apply.

EA Sports FC 26

Publisher: EA Sports

Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S

Rating: 3/5

Zimbabwe v UAE, ODI series

All matches at the Harare Sports Club:

1^st ODI, Wednesday, April 10

2^nd ODI, Friday, April 12

3^rd ODI, Sunday, April 14

4^th ODI, Tuesday, April 16

UAE squad: Mohammed Naveed (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Ashfaq Ahmed, Shaiman Anwar, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Ghulam Shabber, Sultan Ahmed, Imran Haider, Amir Hayat, Zahoor Khan, Qadeer Ahmed

Killing of Qassem Suleimani

Mina Al Oraibi: Air strike casts a long shadow over the decade ahead

Jack Moore: Why the assassination is such a monumental gamble

Matthew Levitt: Iran retains its ability to launch terror attacks

Damien McElroy: A CEO tasked with spreading Iran's influence

Hussein Ibish: Trump's order on solid constitutional ground

Simon Waldman: Cautious Israel keeping a low profile

Islamophobia definition

A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

Overall standings

1. Christopher Froome (GBR/Sky) 68hr 18min 36sec,

2. Fabio Aru (ITA/AST) at 0:18.

3. Romain Bardet (FRA/ALM) 0:23.

4. Rigoberto Uran (COL/CAN) 0:29.

5. Mikel Landa (ESP/SKY) 1:17.

MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:

Ajax 2-3 Tottenham

Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate

Final: June 1, Madrid

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Tips for taking the metro

- set out well ahead of time

- make sure you have at least Dh15 on you Nol card, as there could be big queues for top-up machines

- enter the right cabin. The train may be too busy to move between carriages once you're on

- don't carry too much luggage and tuck it under a seat to make room for fellow passengers

MORE ON THE US DEMOCRATIC PRIMARIES

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Dubai Bling season three

Cast: Loujain Adada, Zeina Khoury, Farhana Bodi, Ebraheem Al Samadi, Mona Kattan, and couples Safa & Fahad Siddiqui and DJ Bliss & Danya Mohammed

Rating: 1/5

Breast cancer in men: the facts

1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.

2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.

3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.

4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.

5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor

World record transfers

1. Kylian Mbappe - to Real Madrid in 2017/18 - €180 million (Dh770.4m - if a deal goes through)
2. Paul Pogba - to Manchester United in 2016/17 - €105m
3. Gareth Bale - to Real Madrid in 2013/14 - €101m
4. Cristiano Ronaldo - to Real Madrid in 2009/10 - €94m
5. Gonzalo Higuain - to Juventus in 2016/17 - €90m
6. Neymar - to Barcelona in 2013/14 - €88.2m
7. Romelu Lukaku - to Manchester United in 2017/18 - €84.7m
8. Luis Suarez - to Barcelona in 2014/15 - €81.72m
9. Angel di Maria - to Manchester United in 2014/15 - €75m
10. James Rodriguez - to Real Madrid in 2014/15 - €75m

If you go

The flights
Etihad (etihad.com) flies from Abu Dhabi to Luang Prabang via Bangkok, with a return flight from Chiang Rai via Bangkok for about Dh3,000, including taxes. Emirates and Thai Airways cover the same route, also via Bangkok in both directions, from about Dh2,700.
The cruise
The Gypsy by Mekong Kingdoms has two cruising options: a three-night, four-day trip upstream cruise or a two-night, three-day downstream journey, from US$5,940 (Dh21,814), including meals, selected drinks, excursions and transfers.
The hotels
Accommodation is available in Luang Prabang at the Avani, from $290 (Dh1,065) per night, and at Anantara Golden Triangle Elephant Camp and Resort from $1,080 (Dh3,967) per night, including meals, an activity and transfers.