Elon Musk is currently the world’s richest person, with the Tesla boss now worth a staggering $491.4 billion, according to Forbes.
The entrepreneur is the richest person in the world, followed by Larry Ellison, the American businessman owner of software company Oracle, whose wealth is valued at $298.9 billion.
Musk’s wealth looks set to grow further still, after Tesla shareholders approved a record-breaking pay package that could be worth $1 trillion.
MoneyWeek
Subscribe to MoneyWeek today and get your first six magazine issues absolutely FREE
Sign up to Money Morning
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
Don't miss the latest investment and personal finances news, market analysis, plus money-saving tips with our free twice-daily newsletter
These include delivering 20 million Tesla vehicles and one million robots, bringing one million self-driving Robotaxi vehicles into commercial operation and increasing Tesla’s profits to $400 billion.
Breaking down Elon Musk’s net worth
Born in South Africa in 1971, Musk exhibited a keen interest in technology and innovation from an early age, moving to the US at the age of 17 to attend college. His first major success came with Zip2, a company that provided online business directories and maps to newsletters – a novel concept at the time.
In 1999, Compaq acquired Zip2 for nearly $300 million, paving the way for Musk into the tech industry. Musk used his proceeds from the sale to launch X.com, an online payment platform that eventually evolved into PayPal. In 2002, eBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion.
That same year, Musk founded SpaceX to make space exploration more accessible, and with the particular aim to colonise Mars. SpaceX is now worth $400 billion, per Forbes, and Musk has a stake of roughly 42% in the company, worth $168 billion.
In 2004, Musk joined Tesla Motors and became the company’s CEO four years later. Under his leadership, Tesla transformed into a trailblazer in the electric vehicle market. Tesla’s revenue jumped from $12 billion in 2017 to $54 billion in 2021. At the time of writing, Tesla has a market capitalisation of £1.4 trillion.
Beyond SpaceX and Tesla, Musk has diversified his ventures into other industries. He co-founded SolarCity, a solar panel installation firm that Tesla acquired in 2016.
There’s also xAI Holdings, formed in March 2025 by merging X/Twitter with his new artificial intelligence company xAI. The deal valued the company at $113 billion, and Musk owns a more than 50% stake.
While the majority of Musk’s wealth comes from his business ventures, his influence stretches far beyond the tech world. He was a prominent Donald Trump supporter during the 2024 US elections, which resulted in Musk being appointed as the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), though he has since departed DOGE to focus on Tesla.
How Elon Musk created Tesla
Tesla's success can be attributed to a variety of factors – the relentless focus on innovation, cutting-edge technology, and creating electric cars that surpassed anything else on the market.
With Tesla using artificial intelligence (AI), Musk was able to give a teaser into what people can expect from the company, even going so far as to tweet “the car has a mind”.
Musk predicted in 2015 that Tesla would launch self-driving cars within two years. After several delays and setbacks, and a decade later, robotaxis are finally on the streets.
However, in early 2025, Tesla’s shares witnessed a downward trend – largely attributed to Musk’s controversial political engagements. By 8 April, the EV maker’s share price fell nearly 42% since the start of the year.
But since then, shares have nearly doubled in price, recovering 92% in value. That has seen Tesla overtake other Magnificent Seven big tech stocks, such as Apple and Amazon, for total returns so far this year.
It’s hard to say what comes next for Elon Musk’s substantial fortunes, after former employees described Tesla as a “toxic” place to work. We explore what this means for socially conscious investors in a separate piece.
-
Why Trustpilot is a stock to watch for e-commerce exposureTrustpilot has built a defensible position in one of the most critical areas of the internet: the infrastructure of trust, says Jamie Ward
-
Tetragon Financial: An investment trust with stellar returnsTetragon Financial has performed very well, but it won't appeal to most investors – there are clear reasons for the huge discount, says Rupert Hargreaves
-
The return of Erik Prince, America's notorious mercenaryErik Prince, founder of the controversial private military group Blackwater, was shunned for pushing the boundaries of legality. He has re-established himself
-
No peace dividend in Trump's Ukraine planOpinion An end to fighting in Ukraine will hurt defence shares in the short term, but the boom is likely to continue given US isolationism, says Matthew Lynn
-
Canada will be a winner in this new era of deglobalisation and populismGreg Eckel, portfolio manager at Canadian General Investments, selects three Canadian stocks
-
Circle sets a new gold standard for cryptocurrenciesCryptocurrencies have existed in a kind of financial Wild West. No longer – they are entering the mainstream, and US-listed Circle is ideally placed to benefit
-
Who is Jared Isaacman, SpaceX astronaut and Trump's pick as NASA chief?Jared Isaacman is a close ally of Elon Musk and the first non-professional astronaut to walk in space. Now, he is in charge of NASA
-
Key lessons from the MoneyWeek Wealth Summit 2025: focus on safety, value and growthOur annual MoneyWeek Wealth Summit featured a wide array of experts and ideas, and celebrated 25 years of MoneyWeek
-
What MoneyWeek has learnt in the last 25 yearsFinancial markets have suffered two huge bear markets and a pandemic since MoneyWeek launched. Alex Rankine reviews key trends and lessons from a turbulent time
-
The Stella Show is still on the road – can Stella Li keep it that way?Stella Li is the globe-trotting ambassador for Chinese electric-car company BYD, which has grown into a world leader. Can she keep the motor running?
