Can Elon Musk lose trillionaire status if AI bubble bursts?:Know how rocket boy’s net worth depends on Tesla and SpaceX shares

Elon Musk has made history. With the historic Initial Public Offer (IPO) of his rocket company, SpaceX, making its debut at the US stock market on Friday, Musk became the world’s very first trillionaire. But watch out! Virtually all of Musk’s massive wealth is tied directly to how well the shares of his two flagship companies, Tesla and SpaceX, perform. Lets take your through Musk’s journey to a $1.1 trillion fortune: Elon Musk did not start at the top. His financial journey began in South Africa, followed by a move to the United States. He made his first major fortune in 2002 when PayPal was sold to eBay, giving him $175.8 million or ₹1,670 crore. Instead of retiring, he risked nearly all of it on two highly experimental businesses: The Initial Investment: In 2002, Musk invested $100 million or ₹950 crore of his own PayPal money to start SpaceX. In 2004, he invested $6.35 million into electric car manufacturing startup called Tesla. The Early Struggles: In 2008, after several of his early rockets blew up, both Tesla and SpaceX almost went completely bankrupt. What is the rocket boy’s investment worth today in SpaceX Tesla? Musk’s returns on those early investments are among the largest in human history. By turning roughly $106 million of initial cash into well over $1.1 trillion in total company value, Musk has generated a return of over 10,00,000% on his original bets. How richer has Musk become after the SpaceX IPO? Before this week, major wealth trackers like Forbes put Musk’s net worth at around $780 billion to $788 billion because SpaceX was still a private company. However, with SpaceX’s historic $75 billion IPO at $135 a share, the total value of SpaceX has reached $1.77 trillion. Because Musk owns nearly half of it, this single event has pushed his projected net worth past $1.1 trillion (over ₹104 lakh crore) His investments in other companies: While Tesla and SpaceX make up the giant pieces of his wealth, Musk also owns several other smaller companies: X (formerly Twitter): The social media network he bought for $44 billion or ₹4.18 lakh rore in 2022. xAI: An artificial intelligence company integrated into his tech ecosystem. The Boring Company: A tunnel-digging venture valued at around $7 billion (Musk has 75% stake worth $5.3 billion). Neuralink: A brain-chip startup valued at $9.65 billion (Musk owns 52% of the company worth $5 billion). Can Elon Musk lose trillionaire status if AI bubble bursts? Musk’s wealth is entirely on paper. He does not have $1.1 trillion in his bank account. His net worth is based almost entirely on value of his investment in his companies. If AI bubble bursts and investors suddenly get worried and sell off their Tesla or SpaceX shares, causing the stock prices to drop, Musk’s net worth will fall immediately. He could drop below the trillionaire mark just as fast as he reached it. SpaceX: A geopolitical power center SpaceX is no longer just a company; it has become a vital piece of global politics and military strategy. Strategic Importance: SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet system provides web access to the most remote places on Earth. It has become so powerful that during the war in Ukraine, the military reportedly relied heavily on Starlink to stay connected. A Geopolitical Power Center: Because SpaceX is currently the only entity capable of routinely launching vital satellites and astronauts for the US government, world leaders have to treat Musk almost like a separate country or political power center. The Mars Ambition: Musk’s ultimate goal has never changed. He wants to use the billions generated by his businesses to build Starship—a massive, fully reusable rocket designed to carry humans and supplies to build a permanent city on Mars. If Elon Musk’s wealth were a country, he would have a larger economy than major global financial and tech hubs like Taiwan, Ireland, and Singapore. He falls just slightly short of the entire economic output of Switzerland.