How Elon Musk increased his net worth by $168 billion in a day as he becomes first person ever worth $600 billion
Elon Musk has increased his net worth by $168 billion in a single day and has become the first person ever to be worth $600 billion.
On Monday (15 December), the world's richest man got even richer.
According to Forbes, Elon Musk became the first person in history to reach a net worth of $600 billion.
Musk's got a massive Tesla paycheck coming his way that could 'buy half the world.' Shareholders approved an extraordinary $1 trillion (£820 billion) compensation package in November - the largest executive pay deal ever created.
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Although the CEO needs to hit several performance milestones first as investors hope to transform the electric vehicle maker into an AI and robotics giant.
In the meantime, his wealth is only going up.
In a single day, Musk's net worth jumped by $168 billion after news that his rocket startup, SpaceX, might go public at a valuation of $800 billion, as quoted by two investors. The SpaceX founder owns an estimated 42% stake in the company, as per a report by Reuters.
Already, he passed the $500 billion net worth mark in October, which, with the new valuation, could shoot up to an estimated $677 billion, Forbes noted.
Bear in mind that, at the moment, this is 'paper wealth,' as his ownership in SpaceX is now estimated to be worth far more.
SpaceX is reportedly targeting an IPO in 2026 that could value the company at around $1.5 trillion, a company investor confirmed. If so, Musk could be on track to become the world's first trillionaire.
But this isn't the only venture boosting Musk's wealth.
The tech mogul owns about 12% of Tesla, and those shares are up 13% so far in 2025, despite the lagging sales.
The EV company's stock jumped roughly 4% on Monday after Musk announced it was testing robotaxis without safety monitors in the front passenger seat. His Tesla stake is now worth around $197 billion, which is not even counting stock options from his 2018 CEO award.
Meanwhile, Musk's artificial intelligence startup xAI is in talks to raise $15 billion at a $230 billion valuation, Reuters reported.
It's safe to say that Musk's wealth has exploded in the last five years. In March 2020, the billionaire's wealth stood at a humble $24.6 billion. By August of that year, Tesla's skyrocketing shares made him the fifth person ever to reach $100 billion in wealth.
Musk earned the title of the world's richest person in January 2021, with a net worth of nearly $190 billion, surpassing other prominent wealthy figures, including Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Bernard Arnault.