Elon Musk, the world’s richest individual, has crossed an unprecedented milestone with his net worth soaring to $500 billion, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires index.
This makes him the first person in history to reach half a trillion dollars in personal wealth, leaving Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, the world’s second-richest man, trailing by nearly $150 billion.
The leap in Musk’s fortune came after Tesla shares rose 4 per cent on Wednesday, adding more than $9 billion to his wealth in a single day. The company’s stock has almost doubled since April, when Musk announced he would step back from his role in President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency to refocus on Tesla.
Tesla’s market capitalisation is now within 10 per cent of its all-time high, with Musk’s 12 per cent stake valued at about $191 billion. This excludes billions in stock options tied to his contested 2018 compensation plan, worth up to $133 billion if he wins his ongoing legal appeal. Tesla’s board has also proposed a new pay package that could eventually give Musk stock worth as much as $1 trillion, depending on performance.
Beyond Tesla, Musk’s wealth is spread across his other ventures. His space exploration company SpaceX was valued at $400 billion in a private tender in August, with Musk’s 42 per cent stake estimated at $168 billion. He also owns a 53 per cent stake in xAI Holding, formed through the merger of his AI startup xAI and social media platform X (formerly Twitter), valued at around $60 billion.
