Daijiworld Media Network - Francisco

Francisco, Mar 7: Google has raised the total potential compensation of its CEO Sundar Pichai to $692 million (about ?63,61,79,82,000) over the next three years, making him one of the highest-paid executives globally, according to a report by the Financial Times on Saturday.

The bulk of the package consists of performance stock units (PSUs) valued at $126 million, split into two equal tranches. These PSUs are linked to Alphabet’s total shareholder return relative to the S&P 100. The value could rise to $252 million if performance targets are exceeded, but may yield nothing if benchmarks are not met.

In addition, Pichai will receive $84 million in restricted stock vesting monthly over three years, along with an annual salary of $2 million, the report said.

The tech giant has also introduced new stock incentives worth up to $350 million, linked to the growth of its autonomous ventures. Under this plan, Pichai will receive $130 million in stock from Waymo and $45 million from Wing Aviation, both of which could pay up to 200% of their target value depending on performance. Alphabet’s board said these incentives reflect confidence in Pichai’s leadership in developing technologies for autonomous driving and delivery.

Since becoming CEO in August 2015, Pichai has overseen a nearly sevenfold increase in Google’s market capitalisation, rising from $535 billion to $3.6 trillion, and briefly touching $4 trillion in January. The Indian-born 53-year-old, who joined Google in 2004, earlier led the development of the Chrome browser and the Android platform before rising to the top role.

Earlier this week, Pichai sold 32,500 Class C shares worth about $9.8 million, while he and his wife currently hold 1.67 million Google shares valued at about $498 million at Friday’s closing price of $298 per share.

For comparison, Satya Nadella earned $96.5 million in fiscal 2025 as CEO of Microsoft, while Tim Cook received $74.3 million as chief of Apple.