Topline
Elon Musk’s fortune soared Thursday, rising above $785 billion to a new record high as Tesla’s stock rose after Musk said the company’s robotaxi fleet would be “widespread” by year’s end.
Musk is closing in on the $800 billion mark as his net worth sets a new record.
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Key Facts
Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires List put Musk’s estimated net worth at $787.2 billion as of 2:30 p.m. EST, as Tesla shares rallied around 4%.
Musk, who appeared Thursday at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said Tesla’s robotaxi service would be “very, very widespread” across the U.S. by the end of the year after first launching the fleet in Austin in June 2025.
Tesla’s shares rose about 4%, above $448, as of just after 2:30 p.m. EST on Thursday afternoon after Musk’s comments, adding to a 2.9% rally on Wednesday.
Forbes Valuation
Musk’s net worth added roughly $12 billion (1.5%) on Tesla’s stock surge, cementing his lead as the world’s richest person, ahead of Google cofounders Larry Page ($271.2 billion) and Sergey Brin ($250.2 billion), who rank as the second- and third-richest, respectively, according to Forbes’ estimates. Page and Brin have soared in recent months among the ranks of the world’s wealthiest, ranking ahead of No. 4 Jeff Bezos ($246.1 billion), No. 5 Larry Ellison ($227.6 billion) and No. 6 Mark Zuckerberg ($221.4 billion).
What To Watch For
Tesla will report fourth-quarter earnings after market close on Jan. 28. Earlier this month, Tesla reported it manufactured just over 434,000 vehicles and delivered roughly 418,000 in the quarter, a 16% decline compared to the same period in 2024. That pushed Tesla behind China’s BYD as the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, after BYD reported a 28% jump in annual sales to 2.26 million units.
Key Background
Musk has achieved numerous wealth milestones in the last year: In October, he became the first person to be worth $500 billion in October, he hit the $600 billion mark in December and then $700 billion just four days later. His wealth has accelerated on SpaceX being valued at $800 billion, well above the previous valuation of $400 billion in August 2025, and the Delaware Supreme Court overturning a ruling that voided Tesla stock options now worth about $126 billion. Forbes reported last week that another $62 billion was added to his fortune after his xAI Holdings raised $20 billion from investors at a $250 billion valuation earlier this month. Musk’s net worth may soon be the first to top $1 trillion: Tesla approved a compensation package for its CEO in November, which could be worth $1 trillion, should the company achieve several financial and production goals.
Further Reading
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2026/01/22/elon-musks-net-worth-tops-785-billion-in-record-setting-surge/
