SpaceX began trading on public markets Friday in the largest initial public offering in history, with shares jumping 25% in their debut, the Associated Press reported. The surge gave the rocket company a market capitalization of $2.21 trillion and pushed Musk’s net worth to an estimated $1.1 trillion, according to Forbes.
Musk, 54, has built a portfolio of businesses that span some of the most consequential industries in the global economy. The ventures are largely under his direct control as CEO, majority owner, or both.
SpaceX and xAI
Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, is the centerpiece of Musk’s aerospace ambitions. The company designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft, and has become a major contractor for NASA and the U.S. military. Earlier this year, Musk merged SpaceX with his artificial intelligence company xAI, bringing the two ventures under a common corporate structure, AP reported.
Tesla
Musk remains CEO of Tesla Inc., the electric-vehicle manufacturer that has made him a household name. Tesla, based in Austin, Texas, is the world’s most valuable automaker by market capitalization and has expanded into energy storage and solar power generation.
X (formerly Twitter)
Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, took the company private, and renamed it X. He serves as CEO of the social media platform, which he has repositioned as an “everything app” incorporating payments, video, and messaging.
Neuralink
Neuralink is a brain-computer interface company Musk co-founded in 2016. The company is developing implantable brain chips intended to help people with paralysis control digital devices and to treat neurological conditions. Neuralink began human clinical trials in 2024.
The Boring Company
Founded in 2016, the Boring Company focuses on underground tunnel construction for transportation. Its first operational project is a loop system beneath the Las Vegas Convention Center, and the company has proposed similar networks in other cities.
PayPal and earlier ventures
Musk was a co-founder of PayPal, the online payments company that eBay acquired in 2002 for $1.5 billion. His earlier ventures include Zip2, a web software company, and X.com, an online bank that eventually merged with the company that became PayPal.
Musk’s wealth and influence have made him a subject of debate among economists and policymakers. The concentration of control over multiple high-value enterprises in one individual has prompted questions about market competition and governance. The Associated Press contributed to this report.