Elon Musk

Elon Musk
Born	Elon Reeve Musk 28 6, 1971
Birthplace	Pretoria, South Africa
Nationality	South African, Canadian, American
Occupation	Template:Ubil
Known for	CEO of Tesla and SpaceX; owner of X; founder of xAI
Education	University of Pennsylvania (BA, BS)
Spouse(s)	Template:Ubl
Children	14 (publicly known)

Elon Reeve Musk (born June 28, 1971) is a South African-born businessman and entrepreneur who serves as the chief executive officer and chief engineer of the aerospace manufacturer SpaceX, the chief executive officer and product architect of the electric vehicle maker Tesla, and the owner of the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). Born in Pretoria, South Africa, Musk emigrated to Canada in 1989 and later moved to the United States, where he became a citizen in 2002. He first gained prominence after co-founding the web software company Zip2 in 1995 and later co-founding X.com, an online payments company that merged with Confinity to form PayPal. The proceeds from these early ventures funded his subsequent enterprises in space exploration, electric vehicles, and artificial intelligence. Musk has also co-founded or founded several other companies, including the neurotechnology firm Neuralink, the tunneling company The Boring Company, and the artificial intelligence company xAI. In 2022, he acquired Twitter and rebranded it as X the following year. He was the largest donor in the 2024 United States presidential election, supporting Donald Trump, and subsequently served briefly as Senior Advisor to the President and de facto head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) from January to May 2025. As of February 2026, Forbes estimates his net worth at approximately US$852 billion, making him the wealthiest person in the world, a position he has held since 2025.

Early Life

Elon Reeve Musk was born on June 28, 1971, in Pretoria, South Africa, to Errol Musk, a South African electromechanical engineer, and Maye Musk (née Haldeman), a Canadian-born model and dietitian. He grew up in Pretoria alongside his younger brother, Kimbal, and younger sister, Tosca. Musk's parents divorced when he was young, and he spent much of his childhood living with his father in South Africa.

Musk showed an early interest in computing and technology. At the age of twelve, he created a video game called Blastar, a BASIC-coded space shooter, and sold the source code to a computer magazine for approximately $500. This early foray into software development signaled the entrepreneurial tendencies that would define his later career.

At the age of seventeen, in 1989, Musk left South Africa and emigrated to Canada, where he was able to obtain citizenship through his Canadian-born mother. He initially attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, before transferring to the University of Pennsylvania in the United States. Musk has said that leaving South Africa was motivated in part by a desire to avoid mandatory service in the South African Defence Force during the apartheid era and by the greater economic opportunities available in North America.

During his time in Canada and his early years in the United States, Musk held a series of internships that helped shape his understanding of business and technology. He worked at a bank and at a technology company, experiences he later credited with helping him chart his professional course.

Education

Musk attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, Canada, for approximately two years before transferring to the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. At Penn, he pursued a dual degree program, earning a Bachelor of Arts in economics from the Wharton School and a Bachelor of Science in physics from the College of Arts and Sciences. He graduated in 1997.

After completing his undergraduate studies, Musk was accepted to a doctoral program in energy physics at Stanford University in California. However, he left the program after only two days, deciding instead to pursue entrepreneurial opportunities during the early growth of the commercial internet. This decision placed him in Silicon Valley at a pivotal moment in the development of the technology industry.

Career

Zip2 (1995–1999)

In 1995, while still in the early stages of what would have been his graduate studies, Musk co-founded Zip2, a web software company that provided business directories and maps for newspapers. The company developed an internet-based city guide platform and secured contracts with major newspaper publishers, including The New York Times and the Chicago Tribune. In February 1999, Compaq acquired Zip2 for approximately $307 million. Musk, who owned a seven percent stake in the company, received $22 million from the sale. The success of Zip2 provided him with the capital and credibility to pursue further ventures in the technology sector.

X.com and PayPal (1999–2002)

In March 1999, Musk used a portion of the proceeds from the Zip2 sale to co-found X.com, an online financial services and payment company. The company was one of the first federally insured online banks in the United States. In 2000, X.com merged with Confinity, a company that had developed a money transfer service called PayPal. The merged entity initially retained the X.com name, but internal disputes over the company's direction led to Musk's replacement as CEO by Peter Thiel. The company was subsequently renamed PayPal. In July 2002, eBay acquired PayPal for $1.5 billion in stock. Musk, as the company's largest shareholder, received approximately $165 million from the acquisition.

Musk retained an attachment to the X.com brand and in 2017 repurchased the domain name x.com from PayPal. The domain would later become central to the rebranding of Twitter.

SpaceX (2002–present)

In May 2002, Musk founded Space Exploration Technologies Corp., known as SpaceX, with the stated goal of reducing the cost of space transportation and enabling the colonization of Mars. He invested approximately $100 million of his own funds into the company, serving as both its CEO and chief engineer. SpaceX developed the Falcon 1, which in 2008 became the first privately funded liquid-fueled rocket to reach orbit. The company subsequently developed the Falcon 9 rocket and the Dragon spacecraft, both of which secured contracts with NASA for cargo resupply missions to the International Space Station.

SpaceX achieved a significant technical breakthrough with the development of reusable rocket technology. The first stage of the Falcon 9 rocket was designed to return to Earth and land vertically after launch, a capability first demonstrated successfully in December 2015. This innovation reduced launch costs and became a central element of the company's commercial model. SpaceX later developed the Falcon Heavy, which became the most powerful operational rocket in the world at the time of its first flight in February 2018, and began development of the Starship launch system, intended for deep-space missions.

In 2020, SpaceX became the first private company to send astronauts to the International Space Station through the Crew Dragon Demo-2 mission, conducted in partnership with NASA. The company also developed its Starlink satellite internet constellation, deploying thousands of satellites into low Earth orbit to provide broadband internet access globally.

In February 2026, xAI, the artificial intelligence company Musk founded in 2023, signed an agreement with the United States Department of Defense to allow the military to use its Grok model in classified systems, further expanding the relationship between Musk's companies and the U.S. government. Earlier, xAI had become a subsidiary of SpaceX in 2026.

Tesla (2004–present)

Musk became involved with Tesla Motors (later Tesla, Inc.) in 2004, when he participated in the company's Series A funding round as its largest investor. Tesla had been incorporated in 2003 by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning. Musk assumed an increasingly prominent role in the company's operations, eventually becoming chairman of the board. In October 2008, he became CEO of Tesla, a position he has held continuously since.

Under Musk's leadership, Tesla launched a series of electric vehicles beginning with the Roadster in 2008, followed by the Model S sedan in 2012, the Model X SUV in 2015, the Model 3 sedan in 2017, and the Model Y crossover in 2020. The company expanded from a niche manufacturer of luxury electric sports cars into a mass-market producer of electric vehicles with global manufacturing operations.

In September 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed a lawsuit against Musk, alleging securities fraud related to tweets in which he claimed to have "funding secured" to take Tesla private at $420 per share. The SEC alleged that the statements were "false and misleading." Musk and Tesla each agreed to pay $20 million in fines to settle the charges, and Musk was required to step down as Tesla's chairman for at least three years, though he remained CEO.

In November 2025, Tesla shareholders approved a pay package for Musk worth an estimated $1 trillion, to be disbursed over ten years contingent upon the achievement of specific performance milestones related to Tesla's market capitalization and operational targets.

Twitter / X (2022–present)

In October 2022, Musk completed his acquisition of Twitter for approximately $44 billion. The acquisition followed months of legal disputes after Musk initially attempted to withdraw from the deal, citing concerns over the number of bot accounts on the platform. After Twitter sued to enforce the agreement, Musk proceeded with the purchase.

Following the acquisition, Musk implemented significant changes to Twitter's operations. He conducted large-scale layoffs, reducing the company's workforce substantially. He restructured the platform's content moderation policies, stating that he intended to decrease censorship and promote free speech. In July 2023, Musk rebranded Twitter as "X," replacing the platform's blue bird logo. The changes drew both support and criticism.

As of February 2026, Musk faces a lawsuit brought by a group of investors who allege that he made misleading statements about bot accounts during the acquisition process. During jury selection for the trial in San Francisco, more than a third of prospective jurors were dismissed due to expressed bias against Musk, prompting the judge to significantly reduce the jury pool. Critics, including television host John Oliver, have described X under Musk's ownership as contributing to the spread of misinformation and hate speech.

Other ventures

In 2015, Musk co-founded OpenAI, a nonprofit artificial intelligence research organization. He later departed from its board, and growing disagreements over the organization's direction led him to found xAI in 2023 as a separate AI venture. xAI developed the Grok chatbot and became a subsidiary of SpaceX in 2026.

Musk co-founded Neuralink in 2016, a neurotechnology company developing brain–computer interface devices aimed at treating neurological conditions. In 2017, he founded The Boring Company, which focuses on tunnel construction and infrastructure projects intended to alleviate urban traffic congestion.

Political activities and DOGE

Musk was the largest individual donor in the 2024 United States presidential election, contributing to the campaign of Donald Trump. He founded America PAC, a political action committee supporting Trump's candidacy. In February 2026, the Georgia State Election Board issued a letter of reprimand to America PAC for sending pre-filled absentee ballot applications during the 2024 election cycle.

After Trump's inauguration in January 2025, Musk was appointed Senior Advisor to the President and assumed a role as the de facto head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative aimed at reducing federal government spending. In this capacity, Musk promoted significant cuts to government agencies and programs. His involvement in DOGE attracted considerable public attention and criticism. Experts have noted that the full effects of the cuts initiated during his tenure may never be fully quantified.

Following a public dispute with Trump, Musk departed from his advisory role on May 28, 2025, and returned to managing his private-sector companies.

Musk has also been noted for his support of various right-wing political figures and causes internationally. His political statements and activities—including the promotion of conspiracy theories and comments that critics have described as antisemitic, racist, and transphobic—have made him a polarizing public figure.

Personal Life

Musk married Canadian author Justine Wilson in 2000. The couple had six children together (their first child, Nevada, died of sudden infant death syndrome at ten weeks of age). They divorced in 2008.

In 2010, Musk married British actress Talulah Riley. They divorced in 2012, remarried in 2013, and divorced again in 2016.

Musk was in a relationship with Canadian musician Grimes (Claire Boucher) beginning around 2018. As of publicly available information, Musk has fourteen publicly known children from multiple relationships, including his daughter Vivian Jenna Wilson, who legally changed her name and gender marker in 2022, publicly distancing herself from her father.

In 2019, Musk was sued by British cave diver Vernon Unsworth after Musk referred to Unsworth as "pedo guy" in a tweet during the Tham Luang cave rescue in 2018. A jury found Musk not liable for defamation in December 2019.

Musk's emails with Jeffrey Epstein were included in the Epstein files, published between 2025 and 2026, and became a subject of public discussion.

Musk has maintained residences in several locations, and tracking of his private jet travel has revealed frequent flights between Austin, Texas, and various domestic and international destinations.

Recognition

Musk has received numerous awards and honors throughout his career for his contributions to the technology, automotive, and aerospace industries. He has been named to Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people on multiple occasions and was named TimeTemplate:'s Person of the Year in 2021.

His companies have received significant recognition as well. SpaceX's development of reusable rocket technology has been cited as a transformative achievement in the space industry. Tesla's role in popularizing electric vehicles has been credited with accelerating the global transition away from fossil-fuel-powered automobiles.

At the same time, Musk's public conduct has generated substantial controversy. The SEC lawsuit and settlement in 2018 raised questions about corporate governance at Tesla. His acquisition of Twitter and subsequent policy changes prompted criticism from media watchdog organizations, civil rights groups, and advertisers. His role in the Trump administration as head of DOGE drew protests and legal challenges from government employees' unions and advocacy organizations. As of 2026, his status as the world's wealthiest person and his involvement in both commerce and government have made him one of the most scrutinized individuals in public life.

Legacy

Musk's career spans multiple industries—internet services, financial technology, electric vehicles, space exploration, artificial intelligence, and neurotechnology—making him one of the most commercially diversified entrepreneurs in modern history. His work at SpaceX contributed to the revitalization of the American commercial space sector and introduced reusable rocket technology that altered the economics of launch services. At Tesla, his leadership coincided with a period in which electric vehicles transitioned from a niche category to a mainstream segment of the global automotive market.

His influence, however, extends beyond business. Musk's political activities, particularly his involvement in the 2024 U.S. presidential election and his subsequent role in the Trump administration, placed him at the intersection of technology, government, and political power in a manner that prompted debate about the role of private wealth in democratic governance. His management of X (formerly Twitter) became a focal point in broader discussions about content moderation, free speech, and the spread of misinformation on social media platforms.

Musk remains a divisive figure. Supporters credit him with advancing the adoption of sustainable energy, expanding access to space, and challenging the status quo in multiple industries. Critics point to his promotion of conspiracy theories, controversial public statements, the labor practices at his companies, and the consolidation of significant economic and political influence under a single individual. The long-term assessment of his legacy will likely depend on the outcomes of the many enterprises and political engagements with which he has been involved.