Image: Tesla
Elon Musk has officially become the first person in history to be worth half a trillion dollars. According to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires tracker, Musk’s net worth hit $500 billion as of 12:30 p.m. PT/3:30 p.m. ET on Wednesday. That puts him $150 billion ahead of Larry Ellison, the world’s second-richest person, and halfway to becoming the world’s first trillionaire.
The milestone comes as Tesla shares rose nearly 4% on Wednesday and broke $450 for the first time this year, adding an estimated $9.3 billion to Musk’s fortune.
Investor confidence in the electric automaker has been steadily rising since Musk announced earlier this year that he would step back from his role in President Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to refocus on Tesla. Musk’s recent $1 billion open-market purchase of Tesla stock — his first since 2020 — also signaled to investors that he’s doubling down on the company’s long-term growth prospects.
Tesla’s market cap is now back within 10% of its all-time high from December, with Musk’s 12% stake worth $191 billion on its own. That figure excludes billions in potential value from Musk’s 2018 compensation package, currently under appeal in Delaware courts, as well as an unprecedented new proposed package that could award Musk up to $1 trillion in Tesla stock over the next decade if ambitious growth milestones are met.
Outside of Tesla, Musk also holds a 42% stake in SpaceX worth approximately $168 billion, after the rocket maker’s valuation climbed to $400 billion in a private August tender. Meanwhile, his AI and social media venture, xAI Holdings, is valued at $113 billion, with Musk’s majority stake worth around $60 billion.
Musk has hit net worth milestones at an unprecedented pace over the past five years. Worth just $24.6 billion in March 2020, he went on to become the first person to surpass $400 billion in December 2024. Now cracking $500 billion, Musk also holds a top spot on cultural influence lists, ranking No. 2 on Time magazine’s recent TIME100 AI list of the most influential people in artificial intelligence.
Should Tesla and SpaceX continue their current trajectories, Musk could become the world’s first trillionaire by early 2033, when the first of two vesting dates tied to his $1 trillion Tesla pay package arrives — if not sooner.
