Latest news with #RickSmith
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
The maker of Taser is the highest paid CEO, taking home $165 million—his new pay package and soaring stock made him a billionaire last year
Axon CEO Rick Smith topped the highest-paid CEOs list, reportedly raking in $165 million through stock incentives at his company, selling Tasers, security cameras, drones, and VR training. Smith became a billionaire last year due to his compensation package, boasting a net worth of $2.5 billion. But the tragic backstory behind his $17 billion company, which has driven its business ethos, may be partly false. When imagining the highest paid CEOs, one might guess Jensen Huang leading Nvidia's breakout success, or Elon Musk helming his multiple tech successes. But the top executive taking home the bacon is the boss of Tasers. Rick Smith, the co-founder and chief executive of Axon Enterprise, was the highest-paid CEO in 2024, a new report has revealed. According to the WSJ, the Axon CEO got a $165 million pay package last year—topping that of Larry Culp's $89 million, Stephen Schwartzman's $84 million, and Tim Cook's $75 million. Smith's total pay is a 999% increase from his compensation in 2023, which has shot up dramatically since Axon's compensation revamp last year. The Axon leader has run the company since 1993, and became a billionaire last year after the company changed its CEO wage strategy. Smith said he was inspired to launch the company—which manufactures Tasers, and has expanded to security cameras, drones, and VR training largely for government agencies—after two of his high school friends were gunned down. He saw Taser devices as a less lethal way to help end gun violence. But family members of the victims have rejected his claims. While Smith tops this year's list of highest-paid CEOs, he made headlines last year for rising to billionaire status with a highly lucrative pay strategy. Last year, Axon modeled its chief executive's total compensation after Musk's package at Tesla. Nearly all of his money lies in stock awards—which have been soaring over the past few years. Axon's revenue had grown more than 30% for three years straight by 2024, reeling in a record-breaking annual net income of $377 million. The business's shares also more than doubled in 2023, skyrocketing by over 50%. Combined with the rest of his pay package, he finally made the Bloomberg Billionaires index in 2024, boasting a net worth of $2.5 billion. This type of compensation is high-risk, but also high-reward—if Axon doesn't meet its stock price, operations targets, and minimum service requirements for the years from 2024 to 2030, Smith doesn't receive his full pay package. An Axon spokesperson told Fortune that the $165 million pay package 'does not represent realized pay, but rather the potential value of the award if all performance milestones are fully achieved over the life of the program.' The WSJ reported that two of Axon's seven performance targets had been met by March, according to the company's filings. The Journal's analysis used data from MyLogIQ, a provider of public-company data, and included CEOs on the job for at least a year at more than 400 S&P 500 companies reporting pay through mid-May for fiscal years ending after June 30, 2024 However, one thing is clear: Smith's net worth has been ballooning as the company has grown. In 2019, he had a reported pay of $246 million catapulted by growing stocks. And over the past year, Axon's stock price rose 160%, pushing its market cap to $50 billion, and making the shares underlying Smith's rewards worth around $500 million. The main ethos of the $17 billion company is to save lives—Smith espouses Taser devices as a less lethal alternative to guns. He has repeatedly said he got the inspiration to found the company after two of his high school friends on his football team were shot and killed. But the validity of his tragic backstory has been called into question. Smith has long pushed this narrative, telling the story to crowds of law-enforcement officers; citing it in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in 2020; and running it in company campaigns—including one celebrating Axon's 30th anniversary. But an investigation from Reuters has found many of Smith's claims appear to be false. It reported that Smith was not close friends with the deceased, and cited incorrect details about the incident. Axon spokesperson Alex Engel told Reuters that Smith got to know the slain young men through 'team-related social events.' One of the victim's fathers has accused Axon of running 'a whole advertising campaign based on the murder of [his] son.' The victim's sister also said Smith was 'making money off of being a great liar.' Whether or not the CEO was close friends with the shooting victims, a spokesperson from the company told Fortune it stands by his account that the tragic event inspired 'him to dedicate his life to reducing violence through technology.' 'We're proud of the mission-driven culture at Axon and remain focused on the work ahead,' a spokesperson said while taking aim at Reuters' reporting, which they described as a'five-year crusade to falsely defame our company.' This story was originally featured on
Daily Mail
6 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
2024's top-earning CEO revealed
New analysis shows which top American executives received the highest pay packages in 2024. Last year's top earner, a man who raked in $165 million, isn't from a big tech company and hasn't generated consistent front-page news. Instead, he leads a Taser manufacturer. Rick Smith, 55, the man who has run Axon Enterprise since 1993, took home the biggest CEO paycheck in America last year. Axon Enterprise is a Scottsdale, Arizona-based company that produced weapons tech for the military, police, and civilians - and has faced some controversy. The company has developed Tasers, body cameras, dash cams, and drones. Axon Enterprise's website claims Smith 'founded the company in a Tucson garage in 1993 after two of his friends were shot and killed.' The two friends were named Todd Bogers and Cory Holmes. However, an investigation by Reuters alleged that Smith didn't have a long-established relationship with the people he dedicated the company to. '[The company] ran a whole advertising campaign based on the murder of my son,' John Bogers, Todd's father, told the outlet. 'They profited off that, and they didn't ask for permission.' Smith has denied Reuter's reporting, with the company calling the reporting 'misguided and inaccurate.' The CEO also wrote a book called The End of Killing, where he advocates against gun control reform and heralds new technology coming out of his industry. His company has also faced internal backlash. In 2022, nine members of the 12-person ethics board abruptly resigned after the company started testing on drone-mounted tasers for use in schools to stop mass shootings. Smith said he believed the drone would have been helpful in past mass shootings, including in Uvalde, Texas, when responders failed to enter the school premises. Axon said at the time it was working on a drone that first responders could operate remotely to fire a Taser at a target about 40 feet away. The project was eventually paused. Smith's earnings compared to his peers Like most CEOs, Smith's earnings were mostly tied to a large stock award, rather than a salary. A stock award is when an executive or worker takes ownership of some of the company's stock, and can benefit if the share price goes higher. Smith received his largest sum in May 2024 after the company exceeded several aggressive performance goals. His compensation took advantage of the company's new program that allows all employees to convert pay into shares. Axon Enterprise's stock started January 2024 at $254 a share, and ended in December at $601. But the stock compensation also carries a lot of risk: it's possible to make no money on the full year. 'I feel better about making a lot if I can also make zero,' he told The Journal. 'For me it creates that startup kind of vibe.' Smith and Axon didn't immediately respond to request for comment on this article. Some of the most recognizable American bosses are surprisingly low in the Wall Street Journal's rankings. Jamie Dimon, the outspoken head of JPMorgan Chase, ranked 23rd among his S&P 500 peers, receiving a little less than $37 million. Dimon's banking peer, Jane Fraser, the head of Citigroup, made $31 million, according to the rankings. Fraser placed 36th. Meta's Mark Zuckerberg landed at number 63 with $27 million — most of which covered security costs. Elon Musk, the world's richest man and leader of five companies — including Tesla, XAI, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company — came in last place. The rankings show that Musk made $0 last year as his Tesla executive pay package worked its ways through the court. Courts have been holding up an agreement with Tesla shareholders to give him a $56 billion pay package . That deal would give Musk more than 339 times the amount Smith made in 2024. Last year, only three bosses received nine-figure earnings in 2024. That is the smallest number of over-$100 million payouts for CEOs since 2016.
Daily Mail
7 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
Controversial boss is 2024's top-earning CEO... from a company you haven't heard of
New analysis shows which top American executives received the highest pay packages in 2024. Last year's top earner, a man who raked in $165 million, isn't from a big tech company and hasn't generated consistent front-page news. Instead, he leads a Taser manufacturer. Rick Smith, 55, the man who has run Axon Enterprise since 1993, took home the biggest CEO paycheck in America last year. He topped the Wall Street Journal's annual CEO pay rankings, beating out the well-known heads of other companies by a considerable margin. The report showed that Apple's Tim Cook made $74.6 million in 2024, JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon made $37.7 million, and Blackstone's Stephen Schwarzman cashed in $84 million. Smith's pay package was the only one north of $100 million among all S&P 500 chief executives. Axon Enterprise is a Scottsdale, Arizona-based company that produced weapons tech for the military, police, and civilians - and has faced some controversy. The company has developed Tasers, body cameras, dash cams, and drones. Axon Enterprise's website claims Smith 'founded the company in a Tucson garage in 1993 after two of his friends were shot and killed.' The two friends were named Todd Bogers and Cory Holmes. However, an investigation by Reuters alleged that Smith didn't have a long-established relationship with the people he dedicated the company to. '[The company] ran a whole advertising campaign based on the murder of my son,' John Bogers, Todd's father, told the outlet. 'They profited off that, and they didn't ask for permission.' Smith has denied Reuter's reporting, with the company calling the reporting 'misguided and inaccurate.' The CEO also wrote a book called The End of Killing, where he advocates against gun control reform and heralds new technology coming out of his industry. His company has also faced internal backlash. In 2022, nine members of the 12-person ethics board abruptly resigned after the company started testing on drone-mounted tasers for use in schools to stop mass shootings. Smith said he believed the drone would have been helpful in past mass shootings, including in Uvalde, Texas, when responders failed to enter the school premises. Axon said at the time it was working on a drone that first responders could operate remotely to fire a Taser at a target about 40 feet away. The project was eventually paused. Smith's earnings compared to his peers Like most CEOs, Smith's earnings were mostly tied to a large stock award, rather than a salary. A stock award is when an executive or worker takes ownership of some of the company's stock, and can benefit if the share price goes higher. Smith received his largest sum in May 2024 after the company exceeded several aggressive performance goals. Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, earned $74.6 million in 2024, the fourth-highest for top American bosses His compensation took advantage of the company's new program that allows all employees to convert pay into shares. Axon Enterprise's stock started January 2024 at $254 a share, and ended in December at $601. But the stock compensation also carries a lot of risk: it's possible to make no money on the full year. 'I feel better about making a lot if I can also make zero,' he told The Journal. 'For me it creates that startup kind of vibe.' Smith and Axon didn't immediately respond to request for comment on this article. Some of the most recognizable American bosses are surprisingly low in the Wall Street Journal's rankings. Jamie Dimon, the outspoken head of JPMorgan Chase, ranked 23rd among his S&P 500 peers, receiving a little less than $37 million. Jamie Dimon, the outspoken head of JPMorgan Chase, ranked 23rd among his S&P 500 peers, receiving a little less than $37 million Elon Musk's earnings at Tesla technically registered at $0 Dimon's banking peer, Jane Fraser, the head of Citigroup, made $31 million, according to the rankings. Fraser placed 36th. Meta's Mark Zuckerberg landed at number 63 with $27 million — most of which covered security costs. Elon Musk, the world's richest man and leader of five companies — including Tesla, XAI, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company — came in last place. The rankings show that Musk made $0 last year as his Tesla executive pay package worked its ways through the court. Courts have been holding up an agreement with Tesla shareholders to give him a $56 billion pay package. That deal would give Musk more than 339 times the amount Smith made in 2024.
Fast Company
a day ago
- Business
- Fast Company
Among the top paid CEOs of 2024, 18 saw their salaries more than double
The year 2024 was a good one for the people who ran some of the country's biggest companies. CEO pay set another record last year, according to a new study in The Wall Street Journal, with half of the chief executives who made the paper's list of the highest paid CEOs making $17.1 million or more, up more than 8% from $15.8 million the year prior. Rick Smith, co-founder of Axon Enterprise, the maker of Taser stun guns, topped the list with a pay package of $165 million (entirely in company stock). Elon Musk earned the least, once again taking home $0 in salary from Tesla. (His compensation is instead structured around stock options that vest based on the company's performance.) The widening pay gap between CEOs and their employees is a growing concern. For comparison, the average annual salary for all U.S. workers in 2024 was $66,622, just shy of 2% higher than the $65,470 average in 2023, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. In terms of raw numbers, GE's Lawrence Culp Jr. was second on the list, earning $88.95 million. Blackstone's Stephen Schwarzman came in third at $84.03 million, Apple's Tim Cook was fourth at $74.61 million. And KKR's Joseph Bae rounded out the top five at $73.09 million. While the average pay package for the top half of the CEOs on the list jumped 8%, several of the 417 executives the Journal examined saw significantly higher increases. All totaled, 18 CEOs saw their total pay increase by more than 100% last year. Axon's Smith, for example, saw a 999% increase in total pay from the year prior. Corpay's Ronald Clarke took home $28.05 million, which only earned him the rank of 54 th overall, but was 951% better than he did in 2023. And Workday's Carl Eschenback saw a 938% bump, taking him to $26.17 million. Rounding out the top five, James Vena of Union Pacific had a 775% salary increase to $17.64 million, and GE's Lawrence Culp saw a 505% pay increase to $88.95 million. Smith saw a similar big jump in 2019, when his salary soared to $246 million on a stock reward. The 2024 increase is reportedly because of a new program for Axon workers that lets them convert some or all of their salary into restricted shares, which could grow or shrink depending on the company's performance. Although many executives saw pay bumps, only one had a pay package worth $100 million or more. In 2020, 17 CEOs in S&P 500 companies made nine figures. Last year, Smith was the only one. And even including execs outside of the S&P, the total was the lowest since 2016, the Journal reported.
New York Post
a day ago
- Business
- New York Post
This CEO was paid $165M last year — and it wasn't Cook, Zuckerberg or Musk
The CEO of the company that makes stun guns raked in $165 million last year — dwarfing the payouts handed out to the better-known bosses of Apple, Meta, Nvidia and all other executives in the S&P 500. Rick Smith — co-founder Axon Enterprises, whose Tasers and body cameras are used by police forces across the country — was the only executive to receive a pay package that eclipsed $100 million, according to The Wall Street Journal's annual analysis. General Electric's Larry Culp trailed behind at $89 million, followed by Blackstone's Steve Schwarzman ($84 million) and Apple's Tim Cook ($75 million). 4 Axon Enterprises CEO Rick Smith poses with the company's Taser stun gun mounted to a rifle. Getty Images Smith's windfall from the publicly traded company was granted under a new program open to all Axon employees that allows them to convert some or all of their pay over seven years into restricted shares, he told the Journal. 'One of the things I love about the design is I can make zero — I feel better about making a lot if I can also make zero,' Smith said. 'For me it creates that startup kind of vibe.' His 2024 payout was a steep jump from the $40,000 he earned the year before, according to the Journal. But shares in Axon surged more than 170% over the past 12 months, trading at $758 after Monday's closing bell. Half of the executives in the analysis made $17.1 million or more last year – up from $15.8 million the year before, according to the MyLogIQ data. Netflix's co-CEOs Theodore Sarandos and Greg Peters took the No. 8 and 10 spots at $62 million and $60 million, respectively. Other notables included Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff ($55 million), Nvidia boss Jensen Huang ($50 million), Uber's Dara Khosrowshahi ($39 million), JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon ($38 million) and Meta leader Mark Zuckerberg ($27 million). Tesla's Elon Musk – the richest person in the world – was last on the list at $0, as his most recent pay package remains ensnared in court battles. 4 Apple CEO Tim Cook participates in an American Workforce Policy Advisory Board meeting with President Trump. REUTERS 4 Axon CEO Smith addresses Axon employees and lawmakers during a rally at the Arizona state Capitol in Phoenix on March 4, 2025. Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images The Journal report uses data from MyLogIQ and includes CEOs on the job for at least a year across more than 400 of the S&P 500 companies. Most of Smith's high-dollar compensation package came from a stock award, not annual salary, as is common for S&P 500 CEOs. Smith, who has led the company since 1993, received $246 million in compensation in 2019. He has an estimated net worth of $2.4 billion, according to Forbes. 4 Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman attends a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. REUTERS Several executives outside the S&P 500 also breached the $100 million line, including Peter Gassner of cloud-computing company Veeva Systems at $172 million and Shopify's Tobias Lutke at $150 million. But last year marked the smallest number of CEOs making nine figures since 2016, according to the Journal.
