Happy Thursday! Tesla’s finance chief Vaibhav Taneja is now one of the highest-paid executives in the tech world. This and more in today’s ETtech Morning Dispatch.
Also in the letter:
■ Zomato tweaks commissions
■ OpenAI’s new acquisition
■ Govt’s notice to Uber
Who is Vaibhav Taneja? The Tesla CFO who out-earned Pichai and Nadella
Vaibhav Taneja, Tesla’s relatively low-profile chief financial officer, is now among the highest-paid executives in the world—taking home $139 million in 2024, according to the electric carmaker’s latest proxy filings.
How it compares: Taneja’s pay dwarfs that of other tech titans—Satya Nadella earned $79.1 million at Microsoft, while Sundar Pichai took home $10.73 million at Alphabet. Even by Tesla’s standards, the number is eye-popping, reflecting the company’s generous stock-based compensation structure.
What’s behind the figure: Taneja’s base salary was a modest $400,000 (Rs 3.33 crore). The bulk of his package was composed of performance-linked stock options and equity grants—an approach Elon Musk has often defended as incentivising long-term execution.
Quick rise: Taneja joined Tesla in 2017 after working with PwC and SolarCity, where he handled accounting operations. Tesla acquired SolarCity in 2016. He became chief accounting officer in 2019 and was elevated to CFO in 2023, overseeing Tesla’s global financial operations amid its cost-cutting and EV expansion strategies.
His payday marks a growing trend of CFOs wielding greater power in tech firms—especially those navigating turbulent macroeconomic environments and capital-intensive roadmaps.
Indian IT companies brace for muted Q1 as deal flow slows
India’s top IT services companies are likely to report flat to modest revenue growth (0–3%) for the June quarter, amid sluggish deal activity and caution among enterprise clients.
What’s happening: Despite some relief from easing Trump-era tariffs and improved geopolitical signals, IT buyers remain conservative. Analysts flag continued project ramp-downs, delayed decision-making, and limited new deal signings.
Quote, unquote: “We are still seeing abrupt project pauses and rampdowns in pockets, as customers continue to be concerned about the stability and permanence of the trade deals that have been announced,” said Nitin Bhatt, technology sector leader at EY India.
Split sentiment: While some clients are fast-tracking digital transformation projects ahead of fiscal budget freezes, others are holding back on fresh tech investments altogether. “The IT sector is still very much in a wait-and-watch mode,” said Phil Fersht, CEO of HFS Research.
AI stays hot: Despite the broader slowdown, one bright spot remains—AI investments. With margins under pressure, clients are directing a greater share of budgets to AI-led tools that deliver measurable cost reductions and automation gains.
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Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India’s tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees.
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Zomato adds ‘long-distance service fee’ for restaurants
Zomato has introduced a new “ long-distance service fee” that restaurants must pay when food is delivered beyond a certain distance threshold—raising concerns among partners over rising commission costs.
The structure:
Why it matters: The change follows Zomato’s update to its app interface, which now displays restaurant ratings based on distance from the user—nudging consumers towards nearer options.
Restaurant reaction: Zomato has assured that total service fees will be capped at 30% (excluding levies), but several restaurant partners told ETtech that effective commissions could now rise to 45% on longer-distance orders, especially in metro cities.
Also Read: ETtech Q&A | Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal on food delivery slowdown, quick commerce burn and more
OpenAI to buy iPhone designer Jony Ive’s AI design startup for $6.4 billion
L-R, Jony Ive, iPhone designer, Sam Altman, CEO, OpenAI
In its largest acquisition yet, Sam Altman’s OpenAI will acquire iPhone designer Jony Ive’s AI product designing startup, io.
What’s the deal: OpenAI will make the purchase worth $6.4 billion in an all-equity deal. While io will merge with OpenAI, Ive and his creative collective LoveFrom will take on "deep creative and design responsibilities across OpenAI and io," the ChatGPT maker said.
Rising competition: OpenAI is acquiring io when competition has intensified in the artificial intelligence (AI) world, bet it coding agents, agentic AI or more. The AI major is also renegotiating a mutlibillion dollar deal with Microsoft for a future listing, while protecting the software giant's access to cutting-edge AI models.
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Indian firms bolster cyber defences post Operation Sindoor: Indian companies—from large enterprises to mid-market firms—are increasing their cybersecurity preparedness following the two-week escalation between India and Pakistan and Operation Sindoor.
Government notice to Uber for 'advance tip': The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued a notice to Uber regarding 'advance tip', a feature that allows users to pay tips to drivers prior to booking rides.
Entertainment startup Mythik raises $15 million: Mythik, founded by former Housing.com CEO Jason Kothari, raised $15 million in a round led by Sakal Media Group, Venture Catalysts-backed VC Grid, actor Shah Rukh Khan's family office and Visceral Capital.
Global Pick We Are Reading
■ Trump cuts are killing a tiny office that keeps measurements of the world accurate ( Wired)
■ How MrBeast ended up in the new season of Love, Death, and Robots ( The Verge)
■ The small robot company with big global ambitions ( Rest Of World)
Also in the letter:
■ Zomato tweaks commissions
■ OpenAI’s new acquisition
■ Govt’s notice to Uber
Who is Vaibhav Taneja? The Tesla CFO who out-earned Pichai and Nadella
Vaibhav Taneja, Tesla’s relatively low-profile chief financial officer, is now among the highest-paid executives in the world—taking home $139 million in 2024, according to the electric carmaker’s latest proxy filings.
How it compares: Taneja’s pay dwarfs that of other tech titans—Satya Nadella earned $79.1 million at Microsoft, while Sundar Pichai took home $10.73 million at Alphabet. Even by Tesla’s standards, the number is eye-popping, reflecting the company’s generous stock-based compensation structure.
What’s behind the figure: Taneja’s base salary was a modest $400,000 (Rs 3.33 crore). The bulk of his package was composed of performance-linked stock options and equity grants—an approach Elon Musk has often defended as incentivising long-term execution.
Quick rise: Taneja joined Tesla in 2017 after working with PwC and SolarCity, where he handled accounting operations. Tesla acquired SolarCity in 2016. He became chief accounting officer in 2019 and was elevated to CFO in 2023, overseeing Tesla’s global financial operations amid its cost-cutting and EV expansion strategies.
His payday marks a growing trend of CFOs wielding greater power in tech firms—especially those navigating turbulent macroeconomic environments and capital-intensive roadmaps.
Indian IT companies brace for muted Q1 as deal flow slows
India’s top IT services companies are likely to report flat to modest revenue growth (0–3%) for the June quarter, amid sluggish deal activity and caution among enterprise clients.
What’s happening: Despite some relief from easing Trump-era tariffs and improved geopolitical signals, IT buyers remain conservative. Analysts flag continued project ramp-downs, delayed decision-making, and limited new deal signings.
Quote, unquote: “We are still seeing abrupt project pauses and rampdowns in pockets, as customers continue to be concerned about the stability and permanence of the trade deals that have been announced,” said Nitin Bhatt, technology sector leader at EY India.
Split sentiment: While some clients are fast-tracking digital transformation projects ahead of fiscal budget freezes, others are holding back on fresh tech investments altogether. “The IT sector is still very much in a wait-and-watch mode,” said Phil Fersht, CEO of HFS Research.
AI stays hot: Despite the broader slowdown, one bright spot remains—AI investments. With margins under pressure, clients are directing a greater share of budgets to AI-led tools that deliver measurable cost reductions and automation gains.
Sponsor ETtech Top 5 & Morning Dispatch!
Why it matters: ETtech Top 5 and Morning Dispatch are must-reads for India’s tech and business leaders, including startup founders, investors, policy makers, industry insiders and employees.
The opportunity:
- Reach a highly engaged audience of decision-makers.
- Boost your brand’s visibility among the tech-savvy community.
- Custom sponsorship options to align with your brand’s goals.
What’s next: Interested? Reach out to us at spotlightpartner@timesinternet.in to explore sponsorship opportunities.
Zomato adds ‘long-distance service fee’ for restaurants
Zomato has introduced a new “ long-distance service fee” that restaurants must pay when food is delivered beyond a certain distance threshold—raising concerns among partners over rising commission costs.
The structure:
- Rs 15 per order for deliveries between 4–6 km, if the order is above Rs 150
- Rs 25–35 for orders over 6 km, depending on the city
- This charge is in addition to existing platform commissions
Why it matters: The change follows Zomato’s update to its app interface, which now displays restaurant ratings based on distance from the user—nudging consumers towards nearer options.
Restaurant reaction: Zomato has assured that total service fees will be capped at 30% (excluding levies), but several restaurant partners told ETtech that effective commissions could now rise to 45% on longer-distance orders, especially in metro cities.
Also Read: ETtech Q&A | Zomato CEO Deepinder Goyal on food delivery slowdown, quick commerce burn and more
OpenAI to buy iPhone designer Jony Ive’s AI design startup for $6.4 billion
L-R, Jony Ive, iPhone designer, Sam Altman, CEO, OpenAI In its largest acquisition yet, Sam Altman’s OpenAI will acquire iPhone designer Jony Ive’s AI product designing startup, io.
What’s the deal: OpenAI will make the purchase worth $6.4 billion in an all-equity deal. While io will merge with OpenAI, Ive and his creative collective LoveFrom will take on "deep creative and design responsibilities across OpenAI and io," the ChatGPT maker said.
Rising competition: OpenAI is acquiring io when competition has intensified in the artificial intelligence (AI) world, bet it coding agents, agentic AI or more. The AI major is also renegotiating a mutlibillion dollar deal with Microsoft for a future listing, while protecting the software giant's access to cutting-edge AI models.
Other Top Stories By Our Reporters
Indian firms bolster cyber defences post Operation Sindoor: Indian companies—from large enterprises to mid-market firms—are increasing their cybersecurity preparedness following the two-week escalation between India and Pakistan and Operation Sindoor.
Government notice to Uber for 'advance tip': The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued a notice to Uber regarding 'advance tip', a feature that allows users to pay tips to drivers prior to booking rides.
Entertainment startup Mythik raises $15 million: Mythik, founded by former Housing.com CEO Jason Kothari, raised $15 million in a round led by Sakal Media Group, Venture Catalysts-backed VC Grid, actor Shah Rukh Khan's family office and Visceral Capital.
Global Pick We Are Reading
■ Trump cuts are killing a tiny office that keeps measurements of the world accurate ( Wired)
■ How MrBeast ended up in the new season of Love, Death, and Robots ( The Verge)
■ The small robot company with big global ambitions ( Rest Of World)
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