Tesla's chair, Robyn Denholm, sent a letter to shareholders on Monday warning them that Musk may choose to leave the company if they do not pass the massive compensation plan at its annual meeting next week.
The package, which could be worth as much as $1 trillion if Musk hits a series of ambitious revenue and product goals over the next decade, has faced pushback.
Proxy firms ISS and Glass Lewis have both recommended that shareholders vote against it, leading Musk to brand them as "corporate terrorists" in a fiery conclusion to Tesla's earnings call last week.
Some notable shareholders have publicly supported the package, but others have been more critical, with Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund saying on Tuesday it had voted against it.
With the vote to potentially make Musk the world's first trillionaire looming, here's where Tesla's most high-profile investors stand.
For: State Board of Administration of Florida
Ron DeSantis is the chairman of the State Board of Administration of Florida.Joe Raedle/Getty Images
The State Board of Administration of Florida, a fund that manages assets worth over $280 billion and counts former presidential hopeful Ron DeSantis as its chairman, said last week it would back the proposed pay package.
The board, which holds over $1 billion in Tesla shares, described the 2025 CEO performance award as a "bold, performance-driven incentive structure."
For: Cathie Wood
ARK Invest CEO Cathie Wood.CHANDAN KHANNA/AFP via Getty Images
ARK Invest CEO and longtime Tesla bull Cathie Wood said in October she was confident Musk's pay package would pass, and that it could lead Tesla to "super-exponential growth," adding that she disagreed with Glass Lewis and ISS.
In a separate post on X on Wednesday, Wood reiterated her support for the compensation plan.
"I do not understand why investors are voting against Elon's pay package when they and their clients would benefit enormously if he and his incredible team meet such high goals," she wrote.
Tesla is the biggest holding in ARK's portfolio, with the firm holding around $1 billion worth of shares.
In a note released shortly after Tesla unveiled the package, Ives said it would help keep Musk focused on the company and accelerate Tesla's "autonomous and robotics future."
For: Atreides Management
Atreides held over 300,000 shares in Tesla as of June 2025.Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Gavin Baker, the managing partner of investment firm Atreides Management, posted on X last week that Atreides would vote in favor of the pay package, adding that he would prefer every company he invests in to have a comparable CEO compensation plan.
"Elon's involvement is integral to maintaining Tesla's current course and trajectory," Baker wrote. As of June 2025, Atreides held around 321,000 shares in Tesla, with the firm's position valued at $141 million at the time.
For: Baron Capital
Billionaire Ron Baron called Musk "the most extraordinary engineer on our planet."Baron Funds
Baron Capital, the investment firm founded by billionaire Ron Baron, said on Tuesday it supported Tesla's proposed 2025 CEO Performance Award.
The firm invests in Tesla, SpaceX, and xAI, and says shares in Musk's companies make up around 26% of its $44 billion in assets.
For: Charles Schwab
Schwab Asset Management is the second-largest institutional investor to reveal how it's voting.Smith Collection/Gado/Getty Images
The US bank's asset management arm released a statement on Tuesday saying it would vote in favor of Musk's pay package, adding that the proposal "aligns both management and shareholder interests."
Schwab Asset Management, which owns 0.56% of Tesla's shares and is the company's 15th-largest outside investor, has faced pressure from retail investors on X in recent days to support the pay package.
Against: New York State Retirement Fund
New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.Lev Radin/Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images
New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli wrote a letter to Tesla shareholders last week, urging them to vote against the compensation plan and criticizing the board for an "alarming lack of independence."
The state's retirement fund holds over three and a half million Tesla shares, valued at about $1.7 billion, according to a recent SEC filing.
Against: American Federation of Teachers
Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers.Jemal Countess/Getty Images for MomsRising
The nation's second-largest teachers' labor union joined a group of unions, state treasurers, and investment firms last month in urging Tesla shareholders to vote against the mammoth pay deal, arguing it did not secure enough commitments from Musk to keep him focused on Tesla.
Against: CalPERS
CalPERS is one of the largest Tesla shareholders to oppose Musk's pay package.JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images
The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS), the largest public pension fund in the US, voted against Elon Musk's previous $46 billion pay plan last year — and this time is no different.
The agency's global equities investment director told Bloomberg in an email last week that CalPERS would vote against Musk's $1 trillion pay package, saying it was far larger than that of other CEOs and concentrated too much power in a single shareholder.
CalPERS is one of the largest Tesla shareholders to come out against the pay package, with Bloomberg estimating the pension fund holds around 5 million shares in the EV giant.
Against: Norway's Sovereign Wealth Fund
Norway's sovereign wealth fund is one of Tesla's largest institutional investors.Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images
Norway's $2 trillion sovereign wealth fund is the largest institutional shareholder to say it has voted against Musk's pay package.
Norges Bank Investment Management, Tesla's sixth-largest institutional investor, said on Tuesday it had concerns about the size of the package, dilution, and the lack of mitigation of Musk's "key person risk" for Tesla.
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Tom Carter is a reporter at Business Insider's London office, covering tech with a focus on Tesla, SpaceX, and robotics. His work includes deeply-reported features, breaking news, and scoops on some of the world’s largest companies.Get an alert whenever this author publishes a story.He can be reached using the secure messaging app Signal (tcarter.41) or email (tcarter@bjinnox.com). We can keep sources anonymous.
