X owner Elon Musk’s estimated $839 billion net worth has made him the wealthiest individual ever recorded.
Forbes announced this on Tuesday, March 10, 2026, as billionaires worldwide saw their combined fortunes surge in the past year to an all-time high of $20.1 trillion.
Musk topped the Forbes World’s Billionaires list for the second consecutive year after his fortune swelled by roughly $500 billion over the past 12 months, driven by rising valuations at Tesla and SpaceX, which is targeting a public offering in 2026.
He is the first person ever to surpass the $800 billion mark and is on course to become the world’s first trillionaire.
Musk’s monumental jump in wealth reflects a rollercoaster 2025 for Tesla that saw the electric vehicle maker’s stock price tumble through the spring amid consumer boycotts over the billionaire’s backing of United States President Donald Trump and other far-right politicians.
However, Tesla shares rebounded in the second half of 2025 after Musk exited his Trump administration role and have remained lofty.
The Forbes list is based on valuations as of March 1, 2026.
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Tesla champions believe the company is poised for stratospheric growth because of Musk’s access to cutting-edge technology in autonomous driving and artificial intelligence.
While Musk remains a polarising figure with the general public, Tesla shareholders have consistently backed the billionaire.
Musk’s fortune amounts to more than three times that of the next names on Forbes’ billionaire list, which has grown to a record 3,428 individuals and is heavily populated at the top by other tech titans.
The cofounders of Google, Larry Page ($257 billion) and Sergey Brin ($237 billion) ranked second and third, respectively.
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ranked fourth with $224 billion, while Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg was fifth at $222 billion.
The current list has around 400 more billionaires than the 2025 Forbes compilation, a bounty propelled by a stock market surge due partly to bullishness about AI.
Trump moved up to 645th place from 700 a year ago. Forbes estimated Trump’s fortune at $6.5 billion, up $1.4 billion.
Major drivers of the president’s rising wealth include hundreds of millions in wealth tied to cryptocurrencies he has promoted. Trump also benefited after a New York appeals court threw out a civil penalty of $518 million in a fraud case.
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