It's not a cash payout. It's a stock grant that was worth a lot less when it was originally authorized.
It's a weird situation. It sounds like an unconscionable amount now only because of Musk's success in raising the stock value. Like he's being paid too much because he was too successful.
The size of the payout was linked to stock growth targets, so when the pay deal was agreed it would have been clear it would be worth a massive amount if the stock growth targets were hit.
That's over $30,000 for every single car Tesla sold in 2023.