Elon Musk has become the first individual in history to hold a net worth above $500bn. The milestone reflects rising values of Tesla and his other ventures this year.
His fortune briefly reached $500.1bn on Wednesday afternoon in New York. It later slipped slightly to just over $499bn, according to Forbes’ billionaires index.
Other Musk companies, including AI startup xAI and rocket firm SpaceX, have also seen strong valuation growth in recent months.
Musk extends lead as world’s richest
The milestone confirms Musk as the planet’s richest person. He remains far ahead of other global tech leaders. Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison ranks second with about $350.7bn.
Ellison briefly overtook Musk last month when Oracle shares surged more than 40%. The rise followed strong forecasts for its cloud business and artificial intelligence deals.
Tesla shares drive Musk’s wealth
Most of Musk’s fortune comes from his 12% stake in Tesla. The automaker’s stock has climbed sharply this year.
Shares rose more than 3.3% in New York on Wednesday. Tesla shares have now gained over 20% since January.
Investors welcomed Musk dedicating more focus to his companies. Earlier political involvement had raised concerns about his priorities.
Political involvement sparks criticism
Musk faced backlash for his role with the Department of Government Efficiency. The Trump-linked agency aimed to cut spending and reduce jobs.
He also shared views on immigration and diversity programmes via his platform X. These statements often provoked heated debate.
Tesla chair Robyn Denholm said in September that Musk was now “front and centre” at the company.
Trillion-dollar pay package possible
Tesla’s board revealed Musk could unlock a pay package worth more than $1tn. The payout depends on achieving ambitious targets within the next decade.
Targets include boosting Tesla’s value eightfold, selling one million AI robots, and producing 12 million additional cars.
Musk signals confidence with stock purchase
Last month Musk bought about $1bn of Tesla shares. Investors saw the move as a strong vote of confidence in the company’s future.
Tesla continues to face strong competition from Chinese rival BYD. At the same time, it is pushing further into artificial intelligence and robotics.
