Elon Musk on Friday became the world's first trillionaire after shares in his SpaceX rocket company soared during the biggest-ever stock market debut.
The Tesla and SpaceX founder comfortably cemented his status as the world's richest man, with his total net worth standing at just over $1tn (£750bn).
It came as his artificial intelligence (AI) and reusable rocket company listed on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York with a value of $2.2tn.
The company said its shares would be offered at $135 each, but trading opened at $150 and briefly reached $176.50 in a sign of the enthusiasm over space, AI and companies associated with Musk.
SpaceX shares closed on Friday at $160.95. The initial public offering (IPO) raised $75bn from investors that will be used to fund SpaceX's investments in AI and reusable rocket technology.
Musk's 42% ownership stake in the company ended the day worth around $884bn, with his 12% stake in Tesla worth another $183bn.
Musk's status as the world's first trillionaire immediately sparked debate about wealth inequality. The stock market listing leaves him with a net worth similar to the entire economic output of Poland or Switzerland.
Left wing US senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren were among a slew of politicians to condemn the milestone. Warren said it should be a "wake up call" and argued it underlines the need for wealth taxes.
Musk is a trillionaire on paper, meaning his net worth is tied to the value of his stocks and other investments rather than cash on hand, and he is unable to sell any of his SpaceX stock for at least a year.
But Musk is not the only winner from Friday's sale. SpaceX's IPO is expected to have made millionaires of more than 4,400 of its current and former staff, who are offered stock in the company with their salary and benefits.
The listing also came with renewed scrutiny of Musk's recent forays into politics, which have seen him increasingly criticise the governments of the UK, US and other countries over topics such as immigration.
He has repeatedly clashed with UK Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, including over the murder of 18-year-old British student Henry Nowak.
While heading US President Donald Trump's Department for Government Efficiency (Doge), Musk was responsible for the closure of the US Agency for International Development (USAID).
The cuts could cause more than 14 million additional deaths by 2030, according to a warning published by researchers in the Lancet medical journal.
SpaceX's valuation is largely based on optimism about its potential future earnings, as opposed to financial results it has demonstrated so far.
The company lost more than $9bn in 2025 and 2026 so far, according to its financial filings, due to its huge spending on AI and other infrastructure investment.
t currently makes and launches rockets into space, including its own Starlink satellites, and owns the xAI artificial intelligence company, which includes controversial chatbot Grok.
But its ambition is more lofty, as stated in its IPO prospectus: "To build the systems and technologies necessary to make life multiplanetary, to understand the true nature of the universe and to extend the light of consciousness to the stars."
Musk has long discussed goals of colonising Mars and has also talked about plans of putting data centres in space.
In its filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) before going public, it was not able to predict when it will become profitable. But after initially offering shares for $135, bumper demand in the company drove them significantly higher.
Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at asset manager Wealth Club said the share price jump was "indicative of huge interest in Elon Musk's vision".
"He has long been reaching for the stars with his extra-terrestrial ambitions, and it appears plenty of investors share his enthusiasm for the future," she said.
But she warned Friday's rally was "being driven as much by hype and scarcity as fundamentals".
While many individual investors were eager to be a part of SpaceX's listing and snap up stock, many had expressed concerns about the number of investors who will be exposed to the company perhaps unintentionally.
Pension pots and savings accounts often invest in index-linked funds, which buy into the biggest firms and will be affected by expected fluctuations in the company's share price.
Where the price of SpaceX goes from here will be the biggest concern for such investors.
"The question on SpaceX is less about the immediate trading after IPO," said Samel Kerr, who leads equity capital markets research for Mergermarket. "It's more about how the price holds over the longer term."
