Elon Musk Becomes World’s First Half-Trillionaire

Elon Musk has set a new record by becoming the first individual in history to surpass a personal fortune of $500 billion. The surge comes on the back of rising valuations for Tesla, his artificial intelligence company xAI, and his space venture SpaceX.

According to financial trackers, Musk’s wealth briefly touched $500.1 billion on Wednesday before dipping slightly below that figure later in the day. Even so, the Tesla chief comfortably remains the world’s richest person, leaving competitors far behind.

Rivals Left in the Dust

The closest challenger, Oracle founder Larry Ellison, holds an estimated fortune of $350.7 billion. Ellison temporarily overtook Musk last month after Oracle shares jumped over 40%, thanks to optimism surrounding its cloud and AI business.

Tesla’s Role in Musk’s Wealth

Musk’s fortune is largely tied to his more than 12% stake in Tesla. The company’s stock has climbed over 20% so far this year, with a 3.3% boost in trading on Wednesday alone. Investors have responded positively to Musk devoting more attention to his companies rather than political matters.

Ambitious Future Targets

Tesla’s board has set highly ambitious goals that could see Musk earn a $1 trillion compensation package over the next decade. The targets include:

1. Increasing Tesla’s market value eightfold.
2. Selling 12 million more vehicles.
3. Delivering one million AI-powered robots.

Musk also recently purchased $1 billion worth of Tesla shares himself, signaling strong personal confidence in the company’s future.

Shifting to AI and Robotics

Despite strong growth, Tesla faces stiff competition, particularly from Chinese EV giant BYD. At the same time, the company is gradually positioning itself as more than just an electric carmaker, with plans to expand into artificial intelligence and robotics.