Microsoft Corp (MSFT  ) chief Satya Nadella bagged $1 billion in compensation fueled by the stock surge amid the ChatGPT frenzy. He earned nearly $55 million in 2022 alone.

The surge in Nadella's earnings coincides with Microsoft's remarkable stock performance under his leadership. Since becoming CEO in 2014, the company's shares have gained over 1,000%, with a nearly 50% surge in 2023.

Microsoft spokesperson Frank Shaw has denied the report. A significant portion of Nadella's earnings comes from equity grants tied to performance and service time.

Microsoft's strategic investment in OpenAI, particularly the $10 billion investment in January, has contributed to its success.

Integrating OpenAI's ChatGPT tool with Microsoft's Bing search engine has gained popularity for its ability to generate human-like responses to various user prompts.

Nadella's rise to the CEO followed his tenure as Executive Vice President of Microsoft's cloud division.

Apple Inc (AAPL  ) chief Tim Cook of Apple and Sundar Pichai of Alphabet Inc (GOOG  ) (GOOGL  ) Google also bagged significant paydays due to stock-based compensation plans.

The large CEO paydays have faced criticism from some tech industry workers, especially as significant companies implemented layoffs and cost-cutting measures in recent years. Nadella faced flak for celebrating the company's "landmark year" while laying off 10,000 employees in June.

Price Action: MSFT shares traded higher by 0.52% at $348.69 in the premarket session on the last check Friday.