Following SpaceX’s historic IPO, Elon Musk has officially become the first trillionaire in human history. The milestone has sparked a viral wave across social media, with headlines jokingly proclaiming that “Musk is no longer a billionaire” and has been “dropped from the Forbes Billionaires List.”
On June 12, SpaceX shares made their highly anticipated debut on the Nasdaq at $150 per share. Momentum built rapidly during the trading session, driving the company’s market capitalization past the $2 trillion threshold and cementing SpaceX’s position among the most valuable publicly traded companies in the United States.
The blockbuster public offering raised $75 billion in capital, marking it as the largest IPO not only for SpaceX but in stock market history.
Driven by his massive stakes in SpaceX and Tesla, Musk’s total net worth soared to $1.1 trillion, securing his place in history as the world’s first trillionaire. At the time of the IPO, his holdings in SpaceX were valued at approximately $690 billion, complemented by a Tesla stake worth nearly $279 billion.
The financial windfall extended far beyond the CEO. The SpaceX IPO minted more than 4,400 new millionaires among current and former employees, with several hundred now holding liquid assets exceeding $100 million.
Intriguingly, SpaceX remains technically unprofitable despite booking $18.7 revenue last year. Nevertheless, investors looked past current losses, assigning a record-breaking valuation to the company based on Musk’s long-term vision for artificial intelligence, deep-space technologies, and the Starlink satellite constellation.
To be clear, Forbes has not officially removed Musk from its rankings. Instead, the phrase “Musk left the billionaires list” is being used symbolically. Having shattered the ten-figure ceiling, he has transcended ordinary billionaires to occupy a category entirely of his own: the world’s sole trillionaire.
While internet commentators amuse themselves with claims of his “removal” from billionaire status, the reality is far more striking. Elon Musk hasn’t been downgraded; he has simply outgrown the list.
