Wealth of Elon Musk
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Elon Musk is the wealthiest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of US$381 billion as of May 2025, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index,{{cite news |title=Bloomberg Billionaires Index |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/elon-r-musk/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250329142838/https://www.bloomberg.com/billionaires/profiles/elon-r-musk/ |archive-date=March 29, 2025 |access-date=May 16, 2025 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}} and $424.7 billion according to Forbes,{{cite web |title=The Top 10 Richest People In The World |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/the-top-ten-richest-people-in-the-world/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250321205526/https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeswealthteam/article/the-top-ten-richest-people-in-the-world/ |archive-date=March 21, 2025 |access-date=May 16, 2025 |website=Forbes |language=en}} primarily from his ownership stakes in Tesla and SpaceX.{{cite magazine|title=Real Time Billionaires |url=https://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/ |magazine=Forbes |access-date=August 27, 2017 |archive-date=February 10, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140210112624/http://www.forbes.com/profile/elon-musk/ |url-status=live }}
Having been first listed on the Forbes Billionaires List in 2012, around 75% of Musk's wealth was derived from Tesla stock in November 2020. Describing himself as "cash poor", he became the first person in the world to have a net worth above $300 billion a year later. By December 2024, he became the first person to reach a net worth of $400 billion.
History
Elon Musk made $175.8 million when PayPal was sold to eBay in October 2002.{{Cite news |last=Klebnikov |first=Sergei |date=August 8, 2017 |title=8 Innovative Ways Elon Musk Made Money Before He Was a Billionaire |work=Money |url=https://money.com/8-innovative-ways-elon-musk-made-money-before-he-was-a-billionaire/ |url-status=live |access-date=April 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200809053228/https://money.com/8-innovative-ways-elon-musk-made-money-before-he-was-a-billionaire/ |archive-date=August 9, 2020}} He was first listed on the Forbes Billionaires List in 2012, with a net worth of $2 billion.{{cite news |last=Melby |first=Caleb |date=March 12, 2012 |title=How Elon Musk Became A Billionaire Twice Over |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/calebmelby/2012/03/12/how-elon-musk-became-a-billionaire-twice-over/?sh=360739d01c88 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220711120028/https://www.forbes.com/sites/calebmelby/2012/03/12/how-elon-musk-became-a-billionaire-twice-over/?sh=360739d01c88 |archive-date=July 11, 2022 |access-date=February 17, 2021 |work=Forbes}}
Musk paid $455 million in taxes on $1.52 billion of income between 2014 and 2018.{{cite news |last1=Browne |first1=Ryan |date=December 20, 2021 |title=Elon Musk says he will pay over $11 billion in taxes this year |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/20/elon-musk-says-he-will-pay-over-11-billion-in-taxes-this-year.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221103145815/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/12/20/elon-musk-says-he-will-pay-over-11-billion-in-taxes-this-year.html |archive-date=November 3, 2022 |access-date=March 3, 2022 |work=CNBC}} According to ProPublica, Musk paid no federal income taxes in 2018.{{cite news |last=Mangan |first=Dan |date=June 8, 2021 |title=Bezos, Buffett, Bloomberg L.P., Musk, Icahn and Soros pay tiny fraction of wealth in income taxes, report reveals |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/08/bezos-musk-buffett-bloomberg-icahn-and-soros-pay-little-in-taxes.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221005013150/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/08/bezos-musk-buffett-bloomberg-icahn-and-soros-pay-little-in-taxes.html |archive-date=October 5, 2022 |access-date=June 8, 2021 |work=CNBC}} He stated his 2021 tax bill was estimated at $12 billion based on his sale of $14 billion worth of Tesla stock.
Musk has repeatedly described himself as "cash poor",{{cite news |last=Pendeleton |first=Devon |date=January 6, 2021 |title=Elon Musk Surpasses Jeff Bezos to Become World's Richest Person |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-06/musk-close-to-surpassing-bezos-as-world-s-richest-person |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106191553/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-06/musk-close-to-surpassing-bezos-as-world-s-richest-person |archive-date=January 6, 2021 |access-date=February 17, 2021 |publisher=Bloomberg L.P.}}{{cite news |last=Higgins |first=Tim |date=May 8, 2020 |title=Elon Musk, Tech's Cash-Poor Billionaire |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musk-techs-cash-poor-billionaire-11588967043 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210216200534/https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musk-techs-cash-poor-billionaire-11588967043 |archive-date=February 16, 2021 |access-date=February 17, 2021 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} and has "professed to have little interest in the material trappings of wealth". In May 2020, he pledged to sell almost all physical possessions. Musk has defended his wealth by saying he is accumulating resources for humanity's outward expansion to space.{{Cite news |last=Woodward |first=Alex |date=March 22, 2021 |title=Bernie Sanders responds to Elon Musk's space travel plans with call for progressive taxes |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/bernie-sanders-elon-musk-space-b1820744.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210413233021/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/bernie-sanders-elon-musk-space-b1820744.html |archive-date=April 13, 2021 |access-date=April 13, 2021 |work=The Independent}}
At the start of 2020, Elon Musk had a net worth of $27 billion.{{Cite news |last=Frank |first=Robert |date=January 7, 2021 |title=Elon Musk is now the richest person in the world, passing Jeff Bezos |work=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/07/elon-musk-is-now-the-richest-person-in-the-world-passing-jeff-bezos-.html |url-status=live |access-date=April 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210406160534/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/01/07/elon-musk-is-now-the-richest-person-in-the-world-passing-jeff-bezos-.html |archive-date=April 6, 2021}} By the end of the year his net worth had increased by $150 billion, mostly driven by his ownership of around 20% of Tesla stock.{{cite news|last=O'Kane|first=Sean|date=January 7, 2021|title=Elon Musk passes Jeff Bezos to become the richest person on Earth |work=The Verge|url=https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/7/22163361/elon-musk-billionaire-richest-world-jeff-bezos-tesla-stock-spacex |access-date=February 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221009075740/https://www.theverge.com/2021/1/7/22163361/elon-musk-billionaire-richest-world-jeff-bezos-tesla-stock-spacex|archive-date=October 9, 2022|url-status=live}} During this period, Musk's net worth was often volatile. For example, it dropped $16.3 billion on September 8, the largest single-day plunge in Bloomberg Billionaires Index{{'}}s history at the time.{{cite news |last=Pitcher |first=Jack |date=September 8, 2020 |title=Elon Musk Loses Record $16.3 Billion With Wild Wealth Swings |work=Bloomberg|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-08/elon-musk-loses-record-16-3-billion-with-wild-wealth-swings |url-status=live |access-date=February 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200927063219/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-09-08/elon-musk-loses-record-16-3-billion-with-wild-wealth-swings |archive-date=September 27, 2020}} In November of that year, Musk passed Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg to become the third-richest person in the world; a week later he passed Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates to become the second-richest.{{cite news |last=Neate |first=Rupert |date=November 14, 2020 |title=Elon Musk overtakes Bill Gates to become world's second-richest person |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/nov/24/elon-musk-bill-gates-tesla-share-price-microsoft |url-status=live |access-date=February 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210114031157/https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/nov/24/elon-musk-bill-gates-tesla-share-price-microsoft |archive-date=January 14, 2021}}
In January 2021, Musk, with a net worth of $185 billion, surpassed Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to become the richest person in the world.{{cite news |date=January 7, 2021 |title=Elon Musk becomes world's richest person as wealth tops $185bn |work=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55578403 |url-status=live |access-date=February 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210108023023/https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-55578403 |archive-date=January 8, 2021}} Bezos reclaimed the top spot the following month.{{cite news |last=Palmer |first=Annie |date=February 16, 2021 |title=Jeff Bezos overtakes Elon Musk to reclaim spot as world's richest person |work=CNBC |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/16/jeff-bezos-reclaims-spot-as-worlds-richest-person-from-elon-musk.html |url-status=live |access-date=February 17, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210216231812/https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/16/jeff-bezos-reclaims-spot-as-worlds-richest-person-from-elon-musk.html |archive-date=February 16, 2021}} On September 27, 2021, after Tesla stock surged, Forbes announced that Musk had a net worth of over $200 billion,{{Cite news |last=Cai |first=Kenrick |date=September 27, 2021 |title=Elon Musk Eclipses $200 Billion To Become Richest Person in the World Again |work=Forbes |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrickcai/2021/09/27/elon-musk-200-billion-richest-person-in-the-world/ |access-date=September 28, 2021 |archive-date=September 28, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210928023801/https://www.forbes.com/sites/kenrickcai/2021/09/27/elon-musk-200-billion-richest-person-in-the-world/ |url-status=live }} and was the richest person in the world. In November 2021, Musk became the first person to have a net worth of more than $300 billion.{{cite news |last=Haverstock |first=Eliza |date=November 2, 2021 |title=Elon Musk Is The First Person Worth More Than $300 Billion |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/elizahaverstock/2021/11/02/elon-musk-is-the-first-person-worth-more-than-300-billion-but-hertz-uncertainty-threatens-tesla-stock-tear/?sh=289580b521f4 |access-date=November 4, 2021 |work=Forbes|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220531073421/https://www.forbes.com/sites/elizahaverstock/2021/11/02/elon-musk-is-the-first-person-worth-more-than-300-billion-but-hertz-uncertainty-threatens-tesla-stock-tear/?sh=289580b521f4|archive-date=May 31, 2022|url-status=live}}
On December 30, 2022, due to declining stock values in Tesla, Musk had lost $200 billion from his net worth, the first person in history to do so,{{cite news|last=Chappatta|first=Brian|date=December 30, 2022|title=Elon Musk Becomes First Person Ever to Lose $200 Billion|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-30/elon-musk-becomes-first-person-ever-to-lose-200-billion|work=Bloomberg|access-date=September 19, 2023|archive-date=September 19, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230919020703/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-30/elon-musk-becomes-first-person-ever-to-lose-200-billion|url-status=live}}{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/elon-musk-net-worth-tesla-twitter-200-billion-b2254493.html |title=Elon Musk is the first person in history to lose $200 billion |last=Woodward |first=Alex |date=January 1, 2023 |work=The Independent |access-date=January 11, 2023 |archive-date=January 4, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230104193845/https://www.independent.co.uk/tech/elon-musk-net-worth-tesla-twitter-200-billion-b2254493.html|url-status=live}} which was recognized by Guinness World Records in January 2023.{{Cite web|last=Gans|first=Jared |date=January 7, 2023 |title=Elon Musk secures world record for largest-ever loss of personal fortune |url=https://thehill.com/policy/finance/3803661-elon-musk-secures-world-record-for-largest-ever-loss-of-personal-fortune/|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109121749/https://thehill.com/policy/finance/3803661-elon-musk-secures-world-record-for-largest-ever-loss-of-personal-fortune/ |archive-date=January 9, 2023 |access-date=January 10, 2023 |work=The Hill}}
Musk's net worth surged after the 2024 United States presidential election, and in December 2024, he became the first person to have a net worth of more than $400 billion.{{cite news |last=Maruf |first=Ramishah |date=December 11, 2024 |title=Elon Musk becomes the first person to reach a net worth of $400 billion |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2024/12/11/business/elon-musk-400-billion-net-worth/index.html |access-date=December 12, 2024 |work=CNN |archive-date=December 11, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241211232907/https://edition.cnn.com/2024/12/11/business/elon-musk-400-billion-net-worth/index.html |url-status=live }}
A primary customer, the federal government of the United States has signed contracts worth $20 billion with SpaceX {{As of|2024|November|lc=y}}.{{Cite web |last=Isidore |first=Chris |date=2024-11-20 |title=How much of Musk's wealth comes from tax dollars and government help? {{!}} CNN Business |url=https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/20/business/elon-musk-wealth-government-help/index.html |access-date=2025-01-05 |website=CNN |language=en |archive-date=2025-01-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250101095646/https://www.cnn.com/2024/11/20/business/elon-musk-wealth-government-help/index.html |url-status=live }}
Musk's association with the Trump administration received backlash, resulting in his net worth dropping by $126 billion between December 2024 and March 2025.{{cite news |title=Here's why Elon Musk has lost billions (and is still the richest person in the world) |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/business/elon-musk-wealth-tesla-1.7480542|work=CBC|first=Mark|last=Gollom|date=March 12, 2025|access-date=March 23, 2025}}
= Sources of wealth =
Around 75% of Musk's wealth was derived from Tesla stock in November 2020, a proportion that fell to about 37% as of December 2022,{{efn|According to The Wall Street Journal, he was worth $140 billion, with $52 billion of that attributable to his ownership of Tesla stock.}} after selling nearly $40 billion in company shares since late 2021.{{cite news|last=Higgins|first=Tim|date=December 23, 2022|title=Elon Musk's Finances Complicated by Declining Wealth, Twitter Pressures|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-finances-complicated-by-declining-wealth-twitter-pressures-11671834066 |work=The Wall Street Journal}} Musk does not receive a salary from Tesla; he agreed with the board in 2018 to a compensation plan that ties his personal earnings to Tesla's valuation and revenue. The deal stipulated that Musk only received the compensation if Tesla reached certain market values.{{cite news|last=Sorkin|first=Andrew Ross|date=January 23, 2018|title=Tesla's Elon Musk May Have Boldest Pay Plan in Corporate History|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/23/business/dealbook/tesla-elon-musk-pay.html|work=The New York Times| access-date=February 17, 2021|archive-date=February 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210211195909/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/01/23/business/dealbook/tesla-elon-musk-pay.html|url-status=live}} It was the largest such deal ever done between a CEO and a company board. In the first award, given in May 2020, he was eligible to purchase 1.69 million Tesla shares (about 1% of the company) at below-market prices, which was worth about $800 million.{{cite news|last=O'Kane|first=Sean|date=May 28, 2020|title=Elon Musk reaches first Tesla compensation award worth nearly $800 million|url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/28/21273882/elon-musk-tesla-compensation-plan-stock-award-dollars|work=The Verge| access-date=February 17, 2021|archive-date=February 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210202011557/https://www.theverge.com/2020/5/28/21273882/elon-musk-tesla-compensation-plan-stock-award-dollars|url-status=live}}
In January 2024, Delaware Judge Kathaleen McCormick ruled in a 2018 lawsuit that Musk's $55 billion pay package from Tesla be rescinded.{{Cite web |last1=Mangan |first1=Dan |author2=Lora Kolodny |author-link2=Lora Kolodny |date=January 30, 2024 |title=Elon Musk's $56 billion Tesla compensation voided by judge, shares slide |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/30/tesla-shares-slide-after-judge-voids-elon-musks-56-billion-compensation.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240131002140/https://www.cnbc.com/2024/01/30/tesla-shares-slide-after-judge-voids-elon-musks-56-billion-compensation.html |archive-date=January 31, 2024 |access-date=January 31, 2024 |publisher=CNBC |language=en}} McCormick called the compensation granted by the company's board "an unfathomable sum" that was unfair to shareholders. In response to the ruling, Musk posted on X: "Never incorporate your company in the state of Delaware."{{Cite web |last1=Kharpal |first1=Arjun |author2=Lora Kolodny |author-link2=Lora Kolodny |date=February 1, 2024 |title=Elon Musk says Tesla will hold a shareholder vote to incorporate in Texas after Delaware pay snub |url=https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/01/elon-musk-tesla-will-hold-a-shareholder-vote-to-incorporate-in-texas.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240206032239/https://www.cnbc.com/2024/02/01/elon-musk-tesla-will-hold-a-shareholder-vote-to-incorporate-in-texas.html |archive-date=February 6, 2024 |access-date=February 6, 2024 |publisher=CNBC |language=en}} A re-ratification shareholders' vote passed in mid-June 2024, although much follow-up litigation is expected, including a lawsuit filed by a Tesla investor beforehand that alleged Musk employed "coercive tactics" to move the vote in his favor.{{Cite web |last=Hals |first=Tom |title=Elon Musk convinced Tesla investors to back his pay. Now he must persuade a judge. |url=https://www.reuters.com/legal/musk-convincing-tesla-investors-back-his-pay-now-he-must-persuade-judge-2024-06-13/ |access-date=June 19, 2024 |website=Reuters}}
Management
Musk's wealth is managed by his family office called Excession LLC, formed in 2016 and run by Jared Birchall.{{cite news|last1=Jin |first1=Hyunjoo |last2=Marshall |first2=Elizabeth Dilts |date=April 26, 2022 |title=Funding obscured: The family office behind Musk's $44 billion Twitter buyout |url=https://www.reuters.com/technology/funding-obscured-family-office-behind-musks-44-bln-twitter-buyout-2022-04-26/ |publisher=Reuters |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230721100159/https://www.reuters.com/article/twitter-ma-musk-office/update-1-funding-obscured-the-family-office-behind-musks-44-bln-twitter-buyout-idUKL2N2WO1UY |archive-date=July 21, 2023 |url-status=live}}
= Musk Foundation =
{{Excerpt|Musk Foundation}}
Giving
According to the biographer Walter Isaacson, Musk has little interest in philanthropy. He believes that he can do more for humanity by leaving his money in his companies and pursuing the goals of sustainable energy, space exploration and AI safety with them.{{Cite book |last=Isaacson |first=Walter |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wUGvEAAAQBAJ |title=Elon Musk |date=2023-09-12 |publisher=Simon and Schuster |isbn=978-1-9821-8130-7 |pages=439}} The Musk Foundation has been criticized for both its selection of recipients of donations and a relatively low payout ratio. In 2021 and 2022, the Musk Foundation awarded less than 5% of its assets in donations, after its assets grew to several billion dollars. This means that it fell short of the legal minimum donation required to maintain its tax-exempt status. The Guardian criticized the fact that the foundation financed various projects of Musk and his family members, although this is not unusual for billionaires and wealthy donors. The New York Times concluded that through 2022, about half of the Musk Foundation's grants went to organizations "tied" to Musk, one of his employees, or one of his companies. Musk's philanthropy would be "largely self-serving." In one instance, after Musk challenged World Food Programme director David Beasley to draft a plan to use money of Musk's that Beasley said could contribute to ending world hunger, Musk instead donated the $6 billion in question to his own foundation even after Beasley's plan showed that the money could feed 42 million people for a year.{{Cite web |last=Zhang |first=Sharon |date=2022-12-13 |title=Musk Pledged $6B to Solve World Hunger But Gave It to His Own Foundation Instead |url=https://truthout.org/articles/musk-pledged-6b-to-solve-world-hunger-but-gave-it-to-his-own-foundation-instead/ |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=Truthout}}
= Education =
Musk has asserted that declining birth rates pose an existential threat to humanity and in 2021 donated $10 million to the University of Texas at Austin to research the potential risks.{{Cite news |date=2023-08-14 |title=Musk Is Funding Fertility, Population Research in Texas Project |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-08-14/elon-musk-s-10m-texas-donation-funds-a-favorite-topic-of-his-fertility?embedded-checkout=true |access-date=2025-01-18 |work=Bloomberg.com |language=en}}{{cite magazine |last1=Becker |first1=Andrea |date=October 16, 2023 |title=Elon Musk's Feud With Grimes Is a Warning |url=https://slate.com/technology/2023/10/elon-musk-grimes-babies-pronatalism-research.html |access-date=13 October 2024 |website=slate.com |publisher=Slate |archive-date=13 September 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240913090430/https://slate.com/technology/2023/10/elon-musk-grimes-babies-pronatalism-research.html |url-status=live }}
In December 2023, tax records revealed that Musk had donated $100 million to a new foundation, "The Foundation", set up to create a primary and secondary school focused on teaching science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) subjects.{{Cite web |last=Kay |first=Grace |title=Elon Musk plans to launch his own university in Texas, report says |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-new-university-texas-report-2023-12 |access-date=2023-12-14 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US |archive-date=2023-12-13 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231213195605/https://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-new-university-texas-report-2023-12 |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |url=https://assets.bwbx.io/documents/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/rUU_RDpkhmuQ/v0 |title=Tax Filing |access-date=2024-11-23 |archive-date=2025-01-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250104093027/https://assets.bwbx.io/documents/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/rUU_RDpkhmuQ/v0 |url-status=live }} The foundation included plans to expand the project to the university level accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. In 2022, Musk allocated Tesla, Inc. stock valued at $2.2 billion to The Foundation.{{cn|date=February 2025}}
= Technology =
In January 2015 Musk donated $10 million to the nonprofit Future of Life Institute, an organization focused on challenges posed by advanced technologies.{{cite web |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-donates-10-million-to-the-future-of-life-institute-2015-1 |title=Elon Musk Is Donating Million To Keep Killer Robots From Taking Over The World |first1=Maya |last1=Kosoff |date=January 15, 2015 |website=Business Insider |access-date=December 15, 2015 |archive-date=October 10, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010004448/http://www.businessinsider.com/elon-musk-donates-10-million-to-the-future-of-life-institute-2015-1 |url-status=live }}
= Politics =
According to the Wall Street Journal, Musk donated $50 million in the fall of 2022 to Citizens for Sanity, a political action committee (PAC) aligned with the policies of Donald Trump.{{cite news |last1=Mattioli |first1=Dana |last2=Palazzolo |first2=Joe |last3=Safdar |first3=Khadeeja |date=2024-10-02 |title=Elon Musk Gave Tens of Millions to Republican Causes Far Earlier Than Previously Known |url=https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/elon-musk-political-donations-stephen-miller-desantis-39464294 |access-date=2024-12-12 |work=The Wall Street Journal |archive-date=2024-10-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002235549/https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/elon-musk-political-donations-stephen-miller-desantis-39464294 |url-status=live }}
Musk donated $10 million in 2023 to support the Ron DeSantis 2024 presidential campaign.{{cite web |last1=Shapiro |first1=Julia |title=Musk donated millions to GOP causes as early as 2022: Reports |url=https://thehill.com/policy/technology/4912754-musk-donated-millions-to-gop-causes-as-early-as-2022-reports/ |website=thehill.com |date=3 October 2024 |publisher=The Hill |access-date=1 November 2024}}
In 2024, Musk supported the Donald Trump 2024 presidential campaign, creating America PAC{{cite web |last1=Sullivan |first1=Helen |title=Elon Musk denies report he will donate $45m a month to Trump Super Pac |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/article/2024/jul/24/elon-musk-donald-trump-donations-denial-super-pac-america |access-date=3 August 2024 |website=theguardian.com|date=24 July 2024 }} and donating $270 million to it.{{cite news |last1=Ulmer |first1=Alexandra |last2=Levy |first2=Rachael |title=Musk gave $75 million to pro-Trump group, becoming a Republican mega donor |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/us/musk-gave-75-million-pro-trump-group-becoming-republican-mega-donor-2024-10-16/ |publisher=Reuters |date=October 16, 2024}}{{cite news |last1=Durkee |first1=Alison |title=Elon Musk Is Now Trump's 2nd-Biggest Financial Backer: Donates more than $270 Million To Super PAC |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2024/10/24/elon-musk-donates-another-436-million-to-pro-trump-america-pac/ |work=Forbes |date=October 24, 2024 |archive-date=November 13, 2024 |access-date=November 1, 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241113232937/https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisondurkee/2024/10/24/elon-musk-donates-another-436-million-to-pro-trump-america-pac/ |url-status=live }} He also gave $20.5 million to pro-Trump RBG PAC.{{cite web |last1=PIPER |first1=JESSICA |title=Elon Musk was behind mysterious pro-Trump super PAC that invoked Ruth Bader Ginsburg |url=https://www.politico.com/elon-musk-trump-donations-super-pac |website=politico.com |date=5 December 2024 |publisher=Politico |access-date=9 December 2024 |archive-date=6 December 2024 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20241206121237/https://www.politico.com/elon-musk-trump-donations-super-pac |url-status=live }} His donations in the 2024 election cycle totaled more than $291 million, the most of any donor.{{cite web |last1=Meyers |first1=David |title=Elon Musk tops list of 2024 political donors, but five others gave more than $100 million |url=https://www.opensecrets.org/news/2025/03/elon-musk-tops-list-of-2024-political-donors-but-six-others-gave-more-than-100-million |website=opensecrets.org/news/2025/03/elon-musk-tops-list-of-2024-political-donors-but-six-others-gave-more-than-100-million |publisher=Open Secrets |access-date=27 March 2025}}
See also
Notes
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