Tesla shareholders approved ⁤a $1 trillion (€856 billion) ‍compensation plan for chief executive Elon Musk on Thursday, awarding ‍the world’s richest person what would be the largest corporate⁤ payout ⁢in history if he meets the ‍goals necessary⁤ to receive ​it.

The ⁣pay package, which several high-profile investors opposed, demonstrates that‌ shareholders still beleive Mr Musk ‌can‌ lead​ the automaker in an era⁢ dominated by robotics and artificial intelligence.

The result of the vote was announced at ⁢the⁢ annual ‍shareholder event in Austin, Texas, with⁣ more than 75 per cent of investors‍ voting in favour of the plan.Chants of “Elon” ⁤erupted in ⁤the ⁤room at the news of its approval.

“Thanks,⁢ guys,” Mr Musk​ said, after briefly dancing on stage ​alongside the ⁤company’s Optimus robots.

Mr Musk described the optimus robots, which have ‍not gone into mass‌ production, as the future ⁢of the company and of humanity. He reiterated a ⁢claim that it would be “the biggest​ product ‍of all time”,and suggested they could⁢ be used in everything from healthcare to prisons.

Tesla shareholders must finally ‌stand​ up‌ to ⁣Elon Musk

“You now get‍ a free Optimus‌ and it’s just going‍ to follow you around and stop you from doing crime,” Mr Musk said. ‌”You don’t have to put people in prisons and stuff.⁣ It’s really wild to think of ⁣the⁢ possibilities.”

Mr⁢ Musk had ⁣previously said he wanted the pay package for more control over the‌ company and to exert ‍”strong influence over this robot army” that he vowed ‍to build as‍ the company ‌branches into ⁣robotics.

Mr Musk’s staggering compensation is comparative with the GDP ⁣of ​entire countries, exceeding that of Ireland, sweden and Argentina. It vastly exceeds⁣ federal⁤ funding for entire government programmes and dwarfs that‌ of other tech moguls ​such as Mark Zuckerberg.

Critics of‌ the package, including ⁣some investors, argued that ⁤awarding Mr Musk concentrated power in‍ the h