Tom Zhu, Senior Vice President of Automotive at Tesla, has been granted more than 520,000 stock options, aligning a significant portion of his compensation with the company’s long-term performance. This generous equity award was recently disclosed by the electric vehicle maker in a regulatory filing.
Tesla secures top talent
According to a Form 4 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Tom Zhu received 520,021 stock options with an exercise price of $435.80 per share. These stock options will not fully vest until March 5, 2031, meaning Zhu must stay at Tesla for over five years to realize the full benefit of the award.
With Tesla’s current stock price trading around $445 to $450 per share, Zhu will only see gains in his equity award if Tesla’s stock price experiences significant growth over the years. At today’s prices, Zhu’s stock award is already valued at over $230 million. If Tesla achieves the market cap targets outlined in Elon Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award, Zhu could become a billionaire solely from this equity award.
Tesla’s problem solver
Tom Zhu joined Tesla in April 2014 and initially led the company’s Supercharger rollout in China before taking on leadership roles in Tesla’s China business. His efforts were instrumental in transforming China into one of Tesla’s key markets and production hubs. In 2023, Zhu was promoted to Senior Vice President of Automotive, expanding his influence globally and solidifying his reputation as the company’s problem solver.
Zhu’s expertise has been crucial in key projects, such as overseeing the development of Gigafactory Shanghai and helping ramp up vehicle production at Giga Texas. With Tesla’s ambitious goals of becoming the world’s largest company by market cap and achieving unprecedented production levels, Zhu’s talents are invaluable in driving the company’s growth.