Now he is allegedly demanding an explanation from them as to why they should receive their stock options.
In an email to employees reported by The Verge, Musk reportedly said the company would reward stock options based on employee performance and that employees would have to submit a one-page summary of their contributions to X to receive them.
A source also told The Verge that employees are still waiting for their annual equity refresh, which is expected in April.
In a late-night email, the billionaire told his employees that they would have to work “long hours at high intensity” and “extremely hard” and that anyone who was not prepared to do that should quit.
Former Uber and Skype engineer Gergely Orosz described X as “the definition of a ruthless workplace” in a post on the site.
“Demand the people who work there to perform at their best by setting higher expectations than most (all?) other tech companies, but STILL make those people prove they deserve market-rate compensation. Just wow,” he wrote in response to The Verge’s report.
X did not respond to a request for comment sent outside normal business hours.
