Editor's Note: A judge in Delaware struck down a record-breaking pay package for billionaire Elon Musk for a second time on Monday, December 2nd—despite the $50 billion in stock options being approved by Tesla shareholders in June—upholding her previous judgment that the company’s shareholders were too under the influence of Musk to approve the package.
The richest person on Earth is now arguably the most powerful, too. A former Democrat–and a South African who came to the U.S. via Canada as a college student–Musk became a big backer of Donald Trump in the runup to the November 5 election, speaking at rallies and donating $119 million to return him to the White House. It may have been the best money he ever spent.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk-definitive-guide/
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The richest person on Earth is now arguably the most powerful, too. A former Democrat–and a South African who came to the U.S. via Canada as a college student–Musk became a big backer of Donald Trump in the runup to the November 5 election, speaking at rallies and donating $119 million to return him to the White House. It may have been the best money he ever spent.
Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/elon-musk-definitive-guide/
Subscribe to FORBES: https://www.youtube.com/user/Forbes?sub_confirmation=1
Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00Today on Forbes, Elon Musk's money.
00:04How he made it and spends it.
00:07Elon Musk, the 53-year-old CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, and XAI, is the richest person on Earth.
00:14He is now arguably the most powerful, too.
00:17A former Democrat and a South African who came to the U.S. via Canada as a college student,
00:23Musk became a big backer of Donald Trump in the run-up to the November 5th election, speaking
00:28at rallies and donating $119 million to return him to the White House.
00:33It may have been the best money he ever spent.
00:36In Trump's presidential victory speech, the president-elect declared Musk a genius, then
00:42welcomed him into his inner circle at Mar-a-Lago, and even included him in a Trump family photo.
00:47A week after the election, Trump named Musk a co-chair of a new advisory group, the Department
00:53of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, tasked with reducing waste and excess regulations
00:58in the federal government.
00:59There are potentially significant conflicts of interest at play, given Musk's company's
01:05ties to the federal government.
01:07Musk-led SpaceX has inked nearly $20 billion in contracts with NASA and the Department
01:12of Defense since 2008.
01:15Musk-led Tesla has faced investigations by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration
01:20over the safety of its autopilot and so-called full self-driving features, following reports
01:25of multiple crashes, including at least 30 that resulted in fatalities since 2018.
01:31And Musk-controlled X, formerly called Twitter, is subject to regulation by the Federal Communications
01:37Commission.
01:38Trump recently nominated as FCC chairman a current FCC director who has been outspoken
01:43about his support for Musk's companies.
01:46Meanwhile, investors appear to applaud these ties.
01:49Shares of Tesla surged in the weeks after the election, helping to push Musk's fortune
01:54up $70 billion to a record high of $334 billion on Friday, November 22.
02:02Earlier last month, on November 8, Musk crossed the $300 billion mark for the first time since
02:07April 2022.
02:09He had previously become the first person ever worth at least $300 billion in November
02:142021.
02:15Here's a brief asset breakdown of his net worth as of November 22nd.
02:22Tesla makes up 58.3 percent, or $195 billion, of his fortune.
02:28He owns about 12 percent of Tesla, excluding options, but has pledged more than half his
02:33shares as collateral for personal loans of up to $3.5 billion.
02:38In early 2024, a Delaware judge voided Musk's 2018 deal to receive options equalling an
02:44additional 9 percent of Tesla.
02:47Forbes has discounted the options by 50 percent, pending Musk's appeal.
02:51Tesla has generated $8.7 billion of revenue selling state and federal EV credits to other
02:57auto manufacturers since 2020, accounting for 12 percent of its gross profit.
03:04SpaceX makes up 26.6 percent, or $89 billion, of Musk's fortune.
03:10Forbes estimates that he owns 42 percent of the reusable rocket company, which is worth
03:14nearly $210 billion based on a tender offer launched during the second half of 2024.
03:22SpaceX is reportedly preparing to do another tender offer this month that would value the
03:26company at more than $250 billion, and Musk's stake at more than $105 billion.
03:34XAI makes up 8.1 percent, or $27 billion, of Musk's fortune.
03:40He owns an estimated 54 percent of the artificial intelligence startup, which he founded in
03:442023.
03:46It released its Grok chatbot, available to premium subscribers of X, in November 2023.
03:52XAI reportedly raised $5 billion from private investors at a $50 billion valuation in November
03:582024.
04:00That followed a $6 billion fundraising round in May 2024, which had valued XAI at $24 billion.
04:07XAI's revenues have reportedly reached $100 million on an annualized basis.
04:14Xcorp makes up 2 percent, or $6.7 billion, of Musk's fortune.
04:20Musk gave Twitter the new name X in late July 2023, less than a year after acquiring the
04:25social media company for $44 billion.
04:28Now the company is worth just $9 billion net of debt, Forbes estimates.
04:34To value Musk's stake, Forbes used Investor Fidelity's publicly reported valuation of
04:38its stake, which fell 71 percent between October 2022 and June 2024.
04:45Forbes estimates that Musk owns 74 percent of the company, calculated based on equity
04:49commitments from other investors disclosed in the filings with the Securities and Exchange
04:53Commission.
04:55So far, it's been a money-losing investment for the tycoon, but it has given him something
04:59perhaps even more valuable — control of a powerful global mouthpiece where he has
05:04206 million followers.
05:08Musk's other assets include The Boring Company, Neuralink, and cash and other investments.
05:14For full coverage, check out the Forbes Wealth Teams piece on Forbes.com.
05:20This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.
05:22Thanks for tuning in.