Key Takeaways
- Elon Musk’s brief run as the world’s first trillionaire is over after a post-IPO crash in SpaceX shares, and a slide in Tesla stock wiped out more than $130 billion from his net worth, pulling him back under the trillion-dollar mark.
- SpaceX has dropped nearly 50% from its early surge as investors question its valuation, mounting losses, and setbacks with Starship, while Tesla is under pressure after weak earnings and heavy spending on robotics and AI.
- Musk, who joked on X with the post “(Former) Trillionaire,” is now facing Wall Street’s scrutiny of every SpaceX launch, Starlink move, and xAI bet.
Elon Musk's brief stint as a trillionaire has officially come to an end.
According to The Washington Post, just weeks after the SpaceX IPO briefly pushed his net worth to an estimated $1.45 trillion, declines in SpaceX and Tesla erased nearly $130 billion from his fortune in a single week, adding to a broader slide that dropped him below the trillion-dollar threshold. Despite the massive loss, Musk remains the richest person on the planet.
SpaceX burst onto Wall Street on June 12 with one of the biggest IPOs in history, opening at $135 per share before soaring above $225 within days. The rally sent Musk's wealth to unprecedented levels, largely fueled by his roughly 40% stake in the rocket company.
Six weeks later, that momentum has evaporated.
SpaceX stock has fallen nearly 50% from its post-IPO peak as investors reassess the company's valuation, digest billions in reported losses and scrutinize setbacks involving its Starship program.
Tesla has added to the pain, sliding more than 18% over the past week after disappointing quarterly earnings and continued questions about the company's expensive push into robotics and artificial intelligence.
Musk, never one to ignore the internet, acknowledged the reversal on X with a two-word post:
"(Former) Trillionaire."
The latest financial hit comes amid an eventful stretch for the billionaire. In recent weeks, Musk also drew headlines after criticizing ex-Amazon executive MacKenzie Scott's charitable giving.
After a viral post celebrated Scott's more than $26 billion in donations—including more than $1 billion to historically Black colleges and universities—Musk agreed with a user who claimed she was "making the world a worse place," replying, "Sadly, yes."
He later joked about Scott not using her fortune to "solve world hunger" and endorsed a meme depicting Jeff Bezos watching his ex-wife give away billions.
Now, attention has shifted back to Musk's own empire as Wall Street begins evaluating SpaceX the way it has long judged Tesla.
"Being publicly traded means everything will be evaluated and information transmitted through market prices," David Meier, senior investment analyst at The Motley Fool, told The Washington Post. "So every SpaceX launch, every Starlink decision and every xAI decision will be scrutinized by the market."
Those concerns intensified after SpaceX was forced to scrub a Starship launch because of engine issues. Although the company later completed a successful test flight, analysts say investors remain focused on whether Starship can ultimately deliver on Musk's long-term vision.
"The future of the company is riding on the ability to make Starship work," Clayton Swope of the Center for Strategic and International Studies told the Post. "They essentially have a very successful pickup truck... What they're trying to do is switch to a freight train."
Tesla is also under pressure. During the automaker's latest earnings call, Musk admitted the company is spending aggressively to fund its AI and robotics ambitions despite declining profits.
"We're investing a lot in growing the core business and really preparing for the future," Musk said. "This is a massive capex year, but I'm confident that all the things that we're investing in will yield incredible returns."
