Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, is inching closer to an unprecedented financial milestone — becoming the planet’s first trillionaire. According to Forbes’ “Real-Time Billionaires” tracker, the 54-year-old tech mogul briefly crossed the $500 billion net worth mark this week before a slight dip brought it back to $499.1 billion.
Musk achieved this feat as Tesla’s stock rebounded following a turbulent period marked by political controversy and market volatility. Despite the brief nature of his $500.1 billion peak, the moment makes Musk the first individual in history to reach such a personal wealth figure.
Tech Titans Trail Behind as Musk Maintains Lead
Trailing Musk on the Forbes wealth ranking is Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, with a net worth of $350.7 billion, followed by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, valued at $245.8 billion. These figures underscore Musk’s commanding lead over his tech industry peers.
Musk’s financial journey began after he graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and briefly attended Stanford University before dropping out. He first made headlines in the late 1990s when he sold a software company to Compaq for over $300 million, making his first millions.
He later co-founded a fintech firm that would eventually evolve into PayPal, which was later acquired by eBay. Musk used the proceeds to launch SpaceX in 2002, aiming to revolutionize space travel. In 2004, he joined Tesla as chairman and later became CEO, transforming the electric vehicle market.
Now, with a portfolio that spans space, energy, AI, and transportation, Musk is not only the world’s wealthiest individual but also a step closer to becoming the first trillionaire in recorded history — a landmark that could redefine global wealth dynamics.
