elon musk net worth

Elon Musk net worth analysis shows he is the richest person in the world, depending on the stock price of Tesla.

With a net worth higher than some countries, Elon Musk is one of the most famous entrepreneurs in the world.

The South African-born tech mogul has built a reputation for himself as the chief twit and top Doge. But what exactly is Elon Musk’s net worth and where does his wealth come from?

According to Forbes, as of March 2023, he stands as the second richest person in the world with Elon Musk’s net worth estimated at around $181 billion, just behind Bernard Arnault. However, a closer look and breakdown of Musk’s net worth makes for a more complicated analysis that could bring the total closer to $200 billion.

Either way, Musk’s net worth has skyrocketed in recent years largely due to the success of his companies Tesla and SpaceX.

Breakdown of Elon Musk’s Net Worth

Musk has multiple sources of income, from running his companies to investing in stocks and crypto. Let’s examine each notable Musk business venture and income source to try and assess roughly how much money he could have made with each.

Sources of Elon Musk’s Net Worth

Tesla $132 billion
SpaceX $61.6 billion
Twitter $18.5 to $28.1 billion
The Boring Company $5.1 billion
Neuralink $510 million
Crypto and Other Assets Unknown
TOTAL ~$200 billion

Tesla: $132 billion

Musk is the CEO and largest shareholder of Tesla, a company that produces electric vehicles, solar panels, and energy storage systems. As of March 9 2023, Tesla’s market cap is over $574 billion, making it one of the most valuable companies in the world despite its recent stock downturn.

Tesla’s profit in 2022 was $3.7 billion, or $1.07 a share, with $2.32 billion of that in the fourth quarter alone. Revenue rose by 37.2% over the previous year to $24.4 billion.

As the largest shareholder, Musk’s net worth is heavily tied to the performance of Tesla. Rather than receiving a base salary or cash bonus from Tesla, Musk is awarded stock options contingent on the company achieving specific financial and market value milestones.

Tesla’s stock lost close to two-thirds of its value in 2022 before gaining over 60% so in 2023.

Currently, Musk owns 412,051,833 shares, representing 13% of available shares for the company, but another additional 10% or so in options. With a current value of about $181 per share, this amounts to a total value of $132 billion.

SpaceX: $61.6 billion

Musk is also the CEO and founder of SpaceX, a company that designs and launches rockets and spacecraft. SpaceX has contracts with NASA and other organizations to launch satellites and perform other space-related missions.

The most recent valuation put the company at $140 billion based on a tender offer for shares priced at $77 each, a significant increase from the company’s valuation of $127 billion in July of last year, as reported by Bloomberg.

The Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates that Musk’s personal ownership of SpaceX amounted to a 44% stake, valuing his shares at approximately $61.6 billion.

Twitter: $18.5 to $28.1 billion

Since Musk’s takeover of Twitter, the company may have lost 56% of its value, according to Fidelity Blue Chip Growth Fund’s investment in the social media giant and its reported value since October as per its quarterly holdings report.

This could mean that the company is worth less than $26.4 billion now, assuming the following math:

  • Musk’s reported ownership before $44 billion additional acquisition = 9.2%
  • Musk’s estimated ownership after acquisition = 74%
  • Amount paid for additional (74%-9.2%) 64.8% ownership = $44 billion
  • 64.8 / 100 = 44 billion / x
    • 64.8x = 4,400,000,000,000
    • x = 67,901,234,567.9
    • 100% of ownership value was theoretically $67.901 billion at time of acquisition
  • $67.901 billion -(minus) 56% (potential decrease in value) = $38,024,691,357.52 ($38.024 billion)
  • $38.024 billion (current potential value) x 0.74 = $28,138,271,604.57 (74% of current potential value)

This would bring his ownership value to about $28.1 billion if we take the acquisition value as the actual value of the company.

However, it has been argued that Musk drastically overpaid for the platform, and some estimates put the company’s value at just $25 billion at the time of its acquisition. With this figure, not taking into account its perceived decrease in value, Musk’s share would be worth about $18.5 billion.

The Boring Company: ~$3 to $5 billion

Musk also founded The Boring Company, a company that designs and constructs underground transportation tunnels. The Boring Company has completed several projects, including a tunnel in Las Vegas that transports people between two stations.

However, the revenue generated by The Boring Company is unknown, as the company is still in its early stages. The company was last valued at $5.7 billion and Musk’s stake is thought to be less than 90% now after numerous funding rounds since his reported 90% ownership in 2018. With such a drop in the bucket compared to his other holdings, however, this wouldn’t add much relative value to his portfolio.

Musk also founded Neuralink, a company that develops brain-machine interfaces. Neuralink’s goal is to create devices that can be implanted in the human brain to enhance human abilities and treat neurological disorders. Like The Boring Company, Neuralink is still in its early stages, and the revenue generated by the company is unknown.

Although Musk is listed as the majority owner of the company, his exact ownership stake is unknown, but the value of the company is between $500 million to $1 billion as of 2021, according to PrivCo.

The company has a revenue in the range of $3.7 million annually. If we assume Musk has a controlling interest (at least a 51% stake of the top end valuation of $1 billion) then it adds $510 million to his net worth

Crypto and Other Assets: Unknown

Musk has also been vocal about his support for cryptocurrency, particularly Bitcoin and Dogecoin. Musk has invested in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Dogecoin he has previously said, and has also purchased Bitcoin through Tesla’s and SpaceX’s balance sheets. The exact amount of cryptocurrency Musk owns is unknown, however.

Likewise, the value of his properties, private jet, yachts, and other assets are unknown, but are a relatively small drop in the bucket compared to the value of his stock in Tesla and SpaceX and Elon Musk’s net worth overall.

Controversial Top Doge

Despite his immense wealth and success, Musk has also been the main target of many criticisms over the years related to controversial topics. His behavior has often been called into question with what some consider inappropriate and offensive comments on social media.

Musk often makes bold claims and announcements about his various companies and cryptocurrencies he’s fond of such as Doge coin without consulting with his team or lawyers first, leading to accusations of intentional market manipulation.

His questionable social media usage has left him open to some legal troubles in recent years as well. In 2021, he was on trial for allegedly false and misleading tweets he made about Tesla. While eventually acquitted, the incident served as a reminder to all that the inappropriate and manipulative usage of social media can have serious consequences.

Top Doge Struggling with the Bird

Musk initiated the acquisition of Twitter on April 14, 2022, and concluded it on October 27, 2022. As one of the largest tech deals in history, the acquisition was worth $44 billion.

Musk’s interest in Twitter and its potential as a tool for shaping public opinion has long been known, with the acquisition of the platform sparking speculation about what he has planned.

After acquiring the company, Musk has subsequently fired 5500 employees, leaving only 2,000.

More recently, a former twitter employee, Haraldur “Halli” Thorleifsson took to the platform to talk about his employment status after being locked out of his account. Thorleiffson claimed that he was laid off due to his genetic muscular atrophy.

Musk lashed out at the accusation on Twitter, questioning Thorleiffson’s contributions to the company. After receiving wide criticism from the public, however, he apologized for his public exchange with the former Twitter employee and stated that he had spoken to Thorleifsson in a video call to determine the truth.

It’s been speculated by some that Musk had a change of heart because the platform had an obligation to pay out the remainder of Thorleifsson’s contract.

With the recent increase in Twitter outages and following the termination of employees, public confidence in Musk’s ability to keep the platform up and running has diminished.

Some suggest that he may even be contributing to the site’s instability as more and more users join the platform to take part in his controversial tweets.

Musk’s History: From Zip2 to SpaceX

The Top Doge and chief twit was born in Pretoria, South Africa in 1971. His interest in technology and computers during his youth led him to study physics and economics at the University of Pennsylvania.

After graduation, Musk founded Zip2, a company offering online business directories and maps for newspapers. At his first successful attempt at entrepreneurship, he sold the company in 1999 for a whopping $307 million and went on to be the co-founder of the online payment system PayPal, now owned by eBay.

Originally called X.com and later named PayPal, Musk was the majority shareholder of the company with 11.72% of shares when it was sold to eBay for $1.5 billion in 2002. After the sale, Musk collected more than $100 million at the age of 31.

Even though his early business life sounds like a success story by itself, his biggest achievements came with him becoming the largest shareholder of Tesla in 2004. The autonomous car and clean energy products company has disrupted the industry and made the Top Doge a billionaire several times over.

Elon Musk is a Workaholic Who Pushes the Boundaries

Musk is known to continuously push the boundaries of technology with his workaholic nature, a level of commitment he also expects from his employees–to an extent that some consider abusive.

Despite having many detractors, Musk also has many supporters, including people he has worked with.

“He’s a visionary,” said co-founder of Tesla, JB Straubel. “He’s constantly pushing the envelope, and he’s constantly pushing people around him to do more.”

The top Doge went on to found the space exploration and colonization company, SpaceX, in 2002. The company has achieved several major milestones since then, including launching the first privately-funded spacecraft to the International Space Station and developing the first reusable rockets–one of the most important breakthroughs for affordable space travel.

Musk’s role in advancing technology has received praise from several important figures.

“He is absolutely committed to making life multi-planetary, and I think that’s a really important thing for the future of humanity,” said Dr. Ellen Stofan, Director of the National Air and Space Museum.

The company has also further grown Elon Musk’s net worth as its value skyrocketed in recent years.

Top Doge’s Futuristic Ambitions

Musk’s success is not limited to Tesla and SpaceX. Continuing on his future-focused path, he founded The Boring Company and Neuralink in 2016.

The Boring Company focuses on alleviating traffic congestion in cities by creating an underground network built with tunnels for transportation. Their advanced tunnel-boring machine is capable of operating at a faster pace and at a lower cost than traditional tunneling methods.

The Boring Company has already completed several projects, including one in Las Vegas that transports people between two convention centers. Another tunnel in Los Angeles is still in the trial phase.

As with all of the billionaire’s projects, Neuralink is in a completely different industry, and is a neurotechnology company working on developing an implantable brain-machine interface (BMI) that can potentially help people with neurological disorders or injuries.

The BMI project aims to create a symbiotic relationship between humans and AI by allowing humans to control tech devices with their thoughts. Neuralink has already developed a small, implantable device called the “Link” that can record and stimulate brain activity.

With the success of animal trials, Neuralink started preparations for human trials but was recently rejected by the FDA due to perceived safety risks.

The Top Doge’s Polarizing Persona

This and other setbacks shows that Musk’s world isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. On one hand, he has built a huge fan base with his bold vision and innovative spirit, yet on the other, his success story has been overshadowed by his controversial behavior on social media platforms.

His frequent Twitter outbursts and off-the-cuff comments have often landed him in hot water and he’s been criticized for being overly aggressive and confrontational.

Vanity Fair has heavily criticized the Top Doge in a long and growing list, “Elon Musk Twitter: Terrible Things He’s Said and Done“. The list contains his inappropriate behavior and controversial actions over the years, including insulting rescue workers in Thailand, misleading tweets about Tesla’s privatization, and conflicts with the SEC.

Others, however, see Musk’s outspokenness as a breath of fresh air in a world where many business leaders are afraid to take risks or speak their minds. Musk’s willingness to speak his mind, even when it’s unpopular, is seen as what sets him apart from others in his field for his fans.

The verdict

Although Elon Musk’s exact net worth is subject to debate, estimates put it in the range of $181 billion to $200 billion, depending on how one values SpaceX, Twitter, and the value of his stock options.

Ultimately, whether you love him or hate him, there is no denying he is one of the most influential figures in the tech world today.

Elon Musk’s net worth of more than $180 billion reflects his immense success as an entrepreneur and innovator, and his vision for a better future continues to be a source of inspiration for many people.