SpaceX’s registration document filed in connection with a confidential U.S. IPO shows that President and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell was paid $85.8 million in total compensation last year, with most of that amount coming from stock-based awards rather than cash salary.
The prospectus excerpt, which forms part of the S-1 filing companies use to disclose financial and risk information ahead of a public listing, lists Shotwell’s base salary as $1 million. The disclosure places her among the highest-paid executives in the United States, exceeding the reported 2024 pay packages of other prominent technology leaders noted in the filing.
According to the same document, SpaceX’s chief financial officer, Bret Johnson, received $9.8 million in total compensation. The prospectus also shows that Elon Musk, who is SpaceX’s majority shareholder and public face, reported a salary of $54,080.
The filing comes as SpaceX has confidentially submitted paperwork for a U.S. initial public offering, a step that the prospectus excerpt said could lead to a potential IPO valuing the company at around $1.75 trillion. The company did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the compensation details disclosed in the prospectus excerpt.
Shotwell’s reported pay level in the prospectus surpasses that of several well-known technology executives cited in the filing. The document references compensation figures compiled by Equilar indicating Microsoft’s chief executive earned $79 million in 2024 and Apple’s chief executive earned $75 million in the same period. The prospectus also notes Shotwell’s personal net worth, listing it as $3.4 billion.
While Elon Musk remains the highly visible leader of SpaceX, the prospectus emphasizes Shotwell’s operational role within the company. At 62 years old, she is described as managing much of SpaceX’s day-to-day operations, translating strategic vision into the tangible tasks of producing rockets, deploying satellites and securing commercial, government and military contracts.
Shotwell joined the company in 2002 as vice president of business development and was employee number seven at the then-early-stage enterprise. The filing highlights her contributions to building demand for the reusable Falcon 9 launch vehicle and for Starlink, the satellite broadband network that the prospectus identifies as generating the bulk of SpaceX’s revenue and profit.
Context and implications
The S-1 excerpt provides rare public detail on internal compensation at a company preparing for a potential public offering. It outlines leadership pay and reinforces the operational responsibilities assigned to Shotwell, while also showing compensation for other senior executives.