en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wealth_of_Elon_Musk
3 corrections found
US$1.23 trillion according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index
Bloomberg’s own billionaire profile does not show Musk at $1.23 trillion; it currently lists him at $722 billion.
Full reasoning
This claim attributes a specific $1.23 trillion estimate to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, but Bloomberg’s own published profile for Elon Musk contradicts that figure.
Bloomberg’s billionaire profile page currently displays Musk as “#1 Elon Musk $722B.” That is the figure Bloomberg is publicly showing for Musk on its index page, and it is hundreds of billions of dollars lower than $1.23 trillion.
Because the article explicitly says the Bloomberg Billionaires Index estimates Musk at US$1.23 trillion, while Bloomberg’s own index page shows $722B, the Bloomberg figure in the article is incorrect.
1 source
- Bloomberg Billionaires Index - Elon Musk
Bloomberg’s billionaire profile page shows: “# 1 Elon Musk $722B.”
with a net worth of $285bn
Musk was not worth $285 billion when he first overtook Jeff Bezos in January 2021; contemporaneous wealth trackers put him at roughly $188–190 billion.
Full reasoning
Contemporaneous reporting from major wealth trackers contradicts the $285bn figure.
- TechCrunch, citing the Bloomberg Billionaires Index on January 7, 2021, reported that Musk was worth more than $188 billion when he became the world’s richest person.
- Forbes reported on January 8, 2021 that Musk’s net worth was $189.7 billion when he officially surpassed Jeff Bezos by Forbes’ methodology.
Those reported figures are nearly $100 billion lower than the article’s $285bn claim, so the stated amount is incorrect.
2 sources
- Elon Musk has a new title: world's richest person | TechCrunch
“Musk is now worth more than $188 billion, per Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index.”
- Elon Musk Is Now The Richest Person In The World, Officially Surpassing Jeff Bezos
“Shares of Musk's electric-vehicle maker Tesla rose ... pushing Musk's net worth up by $12.5 billion, to $189.7 billion.”
At the end of 2024, the Musk Foundation had over $14 billion in assets.
IRS-based nonprofit filings show the Musk Foundation had about $462.97 million in assets at the end of 2024, not over $14 billion.
Full reasoning
IRS-derived nonprofit filing data contradicts this claim.
- ProPublica’s Nonprofit Explorer, which republishes IRS Form 990-PF data, lists the Musk Foundation’s fiscal year ending December 2024 with total assets of $462,970,680.
- Instrumentl, which also summarizes the foundation’s latest IRS 990 filing, likewise lists total assets of $462,970,680 based on the 2024 return.
That is well under $1 billion, not over $14 billion. The article’s asset figure is therefore incorrect by more than an order of magnitude.
2 sources
- Musk Foundation - Nonprofit Explorer - ProPublica
For fiscal year ending Dec. 2024, ProPublica’s IRS-based data lists: “Total Assets $462,970,680” and “Net Assets $462,970,680.”
- Musk Foundation | Austin, TX | 990 Report
Instrumentl says its data is “Based on most recent IRS 990 filing (2024)” and lists “Total assets $462,970,680.”