Tesla Chief Executive Officer and billionaire Elon Musk has become the first person in history to cross the $500 billion net worth mark, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires rankings as of October 1, 2025. At 3:30 PM ET on Wednesday, Musk’s wealth surged to an estimated $500.1 billion, cementing his position as the richest person on the planet—a staggering $150 billion ahead of second-place billionaire Larry Ellison. His unprecedented financial milestone comes on the back of a near 4% rise in Tesla shares, adding approximately $9.3 billion to his fortune in a single day.
Musk, who previously made headlines in December 2024 for becoming the first individual to reach $400 billion, has nearly doubled his wealth in under a year. Tesla’s market cap is now within 10% of its all-time high, with Musk’s 12% stake in the company valued at $191 billion.
That figure doesn’t even include Musk’s 2018 CEO performance-based stock options, which were voided by a Delaware court in early 2024 but are still under appeal. If restored, those options could add $133 billion to his fortune.
In addition to Tesla, Musk’s vast fortune is spread across other ventures. SpaceX, valued at $400 billion following a recent private tender, adds $168 billion to Musk’s net worth through his 42% stake. xAI Holdings, a merger between his AI startup xAI and X (formerly Twitter), is worth $113 billion, giving Musk a 53% stake valued at $60 billion.
His meteoric rise from $24.6 billion in March 2020 to $500 billion in 2025 is unrivalled. He became the richest man in the world in January 2021, hit $200B in September 2021, $300B in November 2021, and $400B in December 2024.
Proposal by Tesla that could make Elon Musk first dollar trillionaire
Last month, Tesla’s board proposed a new, record-breaking pay package that could give Musk additional stock worth up to $1 trillion (before taxes and the cost of unlocking the restricted shares) if the company achieves “Mars-shot” performance milestones like growing its market cap more than eightfold over the 10-year life of the award.
Also Read: Tesla Proposes Pay Package That Could Make Elon Musk the First Trillionaire
This means that he could become the world’s first trillionaire before March 2033, when the first of two vesting dates for his $1 trillion Tesla pay package hits. However, the billionaire said that the award isn’t about the money anyway.
“It’s not about ‘compensation’, but about me having enough influence over Tesla to ensure safety if we build millions of robots,” Musk wrote in a September X post. “If I can just get kicked out in the future by activist shareholder advisory firms who don’t even own Tesla shares themselves, I’m not comfortable with that future.”
Top 10 richest people (as of October 2, 2025) based on Forbes’ real-time billionaires’ rankings
Elon Musk – $500.1B (Founder, Tesla, SpaceX, xAI)
Larry Ellison – $350.7B (Cofounder, Oracle)
Ellison, who relinquished his CEO role in 2014 after 37 years, still owns 40% of Oracle, which has experienced significant growth due to AI-driven demand. He also owns nearly 50% of media giant Paramount Skydance and a large portion of the Hawaiian island of Lanai. In September 2025, he briefly crossed the $400 billion mark, becoming only the second person to do so. The 81-year-old briefly became the richest person in the world for a day, overtaking Musk.
Ellison’s $100-billion jump was the biggest single-day gain ever, and the result of a promising Oracle growth forecast in which they advertised hundreds of billions of dollars in inbound revenue from AI companies using Oracle’s cloud computing capabilities.
Mark Zuckerberg – $245.8B (Cofounder, Meta Platforms (formerly Facebook)
Zuckerberg, who owns 13% of Meta, saw a sharp decline this week, despite long-term gains from his investments in the metaverse and AI. In 2015, he and his wife pledged to donate 99% of their Meta stake over their lifetimes.
Jeff Bezos – $233.5B (Founder & chairman, Amazon)
The Amazon founder continues to maintain a top spot despite stepping down as CEO. His net worth remains solid thanks to Amazon’s dominance in e-commerce and cloud computing.
Larry Page – $203.7B (Cofounder, Alphabet [Google])
Page retains his wealth through a significant stake in Alphabet and ongoing investments in tech and science ventures.
Sergey Brin – $189B (Cofounder, Alphabet)
Brin, like Page, benefits from Google’s dominance in AI and cloud services. His philanthropic and scientific ventures also continue to grow.
Bernard Arnault & Family – $166.1B (Chairman & CEO, LVMH)
Arnault oversees the world’s largest luxury goods company, LVMH, home to brands like Louis Vuitton and Moët & Chandon. A rebound in global luxury spending helped boost his fortune.
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Jensen Huang – $162.6B (CEO, NVIDIA)
Huang has witnessed explosive gains as NVIDIA’s chips have dominated the global AI and gaming markets.
Steve Ballmer – $156.4B (Former CEO, Microsoft; Owner, LA Clippers)
Ballmer’s wealth is closely tied to Microsoft stock, where he still holds a substantial stake. His net worth has soared in tandem with Microsoft’s AI and cloud expansions.
Warren Buffett – $148.5B (CEO, Berkshire Hathaway)
The 94-year-old investing legend remains in the top 10 despite market fluctuations. Berkshire Hathaway’s diversified holdings continue to generate strong returns over time.
Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires rankings track the daily ups and downs of the world’s wealthiest individuals, with updates every 5 minutes for publicly traded assets. Private company stakes, if comprising more than 20% of an individual’s net worth, are adjusted daily using industry-specific market indices from FactSet Research Systems. A rotating list of the top gainers and losers is featured throughout the day, ensuring transparency in tracking global wealth shifts.
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