Microsoft Corp MSFT chief Satya Nadella bagged $1 billion in compensation fueled by the stock surge amid the ChatGPT frenzy. He earned nearly $55 million in 2022 alone.
The surge in Nadella's earnings coincides with Microsoft's remarkable stock performance under his leadership. Since becoming CEO in 2014, the company's shares have gained over 1,000%, with a nearly 50% surge in 2023.
Also Read: Takeaways From Microsoft's Latest Product Launches
Microsoft spokesperson Frank Shaw has denied the report. A significant portion of Nadella's earnings comes from equity grants tied to performance and service time.
Microsoft's strategic investment in OpenAI, particularly the $10 billion investment in January, has contributed to its success.
Integrating OpenAI's ChatGPT tool with Microsoft's Bing search engine has gained popularity for its ability to generate human-like responses to various user prompts.
Nadella's rise to the CEO followed his tenure as Executive Vice President of Microsoft's cloud division.
Apple Inc AAPL chief Tim Cook of Apple and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet Inc GOOG GOOGL Google also bagged significant paydays due to stock-based compensation plans.
The large CEO paydays have faced criticism from some tech industry workers, especially as significant companies implemented layoffs and cost-cutting measures in recent years. Nadella faced flak for celebrating the company's "landmark year" while laying off 10,000 employees in June.
Price Action: MSFT shares traded higher by 0.52% at $348.69 in the premarket session on the last check Friday.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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