Musk becomes first to touch half a trillion dollars in valuation on back of soaring Tesla shares

Elon Musk became the first person in history to reach a net worth of nearly $500 billion on Wednesday. His wealth was $500.1 billion at 4:15 p.m. E.T., according to Forbe's billionaires index. Most of Musk’s money comes from Tesla. He owned more than 12.4% of Tesla as of September 15

Tesla shares went up more than 14% in 2025. On Wednesday, the stock went up 3.3%, which added over $6 billion to Musk’s net worth. Tesla had a rough start to the year, but its stock improved because investors saw Musk paying more attention to the company, as reported by Reuters.

Tesla stock and Musk’s wealth

Tesla board chair Robyn Denholm said Musk was back “front and center” at the company after spending several months at the White House. Musk bought about $1 billion worth of Tesla shares. This showed he had strong confidence in Tesla’s future.

Looking to now disrupt the A.I. market, after being a pioneer in EV vehicles sector for more than a decade, Tesla is now making strides in the direction via its self- driven cars. However, lowly profits and plummeting sales continue to be a hindrance.

This made it one of the worst performers in the “Magnificent Seven” group of big tech stocks. The Tesla board proposed a $1 trillion compensation plan for Musk last month. This plan includes big financial and operational goals and also considers Musk’s wish to own more of the company, as per the report by Reuters.

Musk’s other companies grow

Musk’s other companies, like AI startup xAI and rocket company SpaceX, also became more valuable this year. xAI was valued at $75 billion in July, according to Pitchbook. CNBC reported it might reach $200 billion after a fundraise, but Musk said the company was not raising money then.

Bloomberg reported in July that SpaceX was planning to raise money and sell insider shares, valuing the company at about $400 billion. Oracle founder Larry Ellison is the second-richest person in the world, with a net worth of around $350.7 billion.

FAQs

Q1. How did Elon Musk reach $500 billion?

Elon Musk reached $500 billion mainly because Tesla shares rose and his other companies, like SpaceX and xAI, became more valuable.

Q2. Who is the second-richest person after Elon Musk?

Oracle founder Larry Ellison is the second-richest person with a net worth of around $350.7 billion.