After SpaceX completed the acquisition of its artificial intelligence and social media company xAI, Elon Musk's net worth exceeded US$800 billion, becoming the first person in the world to reach this level of wealth. Forbes estimates that the deal values the combined company at US$1.25 trillion, increasing Musk's wealth by US$84 billion to a record high of US$852 billion.
Before this transaction, SpaceX launched an equity tender offer in December with a valuation of US$800 billion. Based on this calculation, Musk's 42% stake was worth US$336 billion. At the beginning of this month, xAI completed a round of private equity financing, with the company valued at US$250 billion, and the 49% stake held by Musk was worth US$122 billion. The merger values SpaceX and xAI at US$1 trillion and US$250 billion respectively. Forbes estimates that Musk currently holds 43% of the combined company's shares, worth US$542 billion.
This makes SpaceX Musk's most valuable asset currently. In addition, he also holds 12% of Tesla shares, worth $178 billion, and has Tesla stock options worth $124 billion. It is worth mentioning that Tesla shareholders approved an unprecedented compensation plan in November last year: If Tesla achieves "ambitious goals" in the next 10 years - such as increasing its market value by more than 8 times, Musk will receive an additional stock award of up to US$1 trillion (before taxes and restricted stock unlocking costs are deducted).
This is the second merger between two Musk companies in less than a year. In March last year, he announced the merger of artificial intelligence company xAI and social media platform Musk plays the dual role of both acquirer and seller in such transactions, and the reasonableness of his claimed valuation has also raised some questions. However, with the companies now folded into SpaceX, which is expected to launch an initial public offering (IPO) later this year, they will soon come under the scrutiny of public markets.
In just four months, Musk has reached four major wealth milestones. In October last year, he resigned from the Trump administration's "Department of Government Effectiveness" (DOGE) to focus on Tesla operations, driving Tesla's stock price to soar, and his net worth exceeded US$500 billion, becoming the first person in the world to achieve this achievement; on December 15, private investors valued SpaceX The value rose to US$800 billion from US$400 billion in August, and Musk's net worth exceeded US$600 billion; four days later, the Delaware Supreme Court restored his Tesla stock options (which had been declared invalid by a lower court in 2024), and his net worth further exceeded US$700 billion.
Currently, Musk's net worth is US$578 billion ahead of the world's second richest man, Google co-founder Larry Page, who is worth approximately US$281 billion. This means that if Musk adds another "Larry Page" to his wealth, he is expected to become the world's first trillionaire.