Tesla CEO Elon Musk to face two tough trials this week amid Twitter mess

Amid chaos at Twitter, Elon Musk will face two court cases in the US this week, one defending his $56 billion pay package from allegations by Tesla shareholders and the other is a manslaughter trial set to begin in Los Angeles state for a fatal crash.

Taken together, the twin trials represent a critical test for Musk's multitasking skills, reports The Verge.

The pay package plan, approved by Tesla shareholders, relies on the electric car-maker hitting certain milestones in the next 10 years.

"The CEO is expected to earn the final batch early next year, allowing him to collect an estimated $56 billion, the largest compensation awarded to anyone on Earth from a publicly traded company," according to the report.

The trial will focus on whether the compensation package requires Musk to work full-time at Tesla.

In a separate trial in Los Angeles, Tesla's Autopilot technology was set to be put to a rigorous test on Tuesday.

Driver Kevin George Aziz Riad, 27, is on trial for manslaughter after running through a red light in his black Tesla Model S, slamming into a Honda Civic and killing two people.

Tesla has come under heavy scrutiny on the controversial Autopilot advanced driver assistance system that has allegedly killed many, with both the US federal and state regulators turning up the heat on electric car-maker.

In August, the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) in California accused Musk-run Tesla of running fake claims about its Autopilot and FSD features.

In September, another Tesla owner sued the electric car maker, saying the company and its CEO Elon Musk are "deceptively and misleadingly" marketing the Autopilot and "Full Self-Driving" software.

Briggs Matsko from California said that he paid a $5,000 premium for his 2018 Tesla Model X to get 'Enhanced Autopilot', which was sold as a precursor to FSD software that now costs $15,000 but is still in Beta phase.

"Plaintiff brings this consumer class action lawsuit to hold Tesla and its representatives, including CEO Elon Musk, accountable for years of making misleading and deceptive statements regarding the company's advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) technology," read the lawsuit.

--IANS

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