Self-Made Billionaire Elon Musk: Elon Musk is one of our most influential and successful entrepreneurs. He founded and served as the CEO of Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company. He is known for his visionary approach, passion for innovation, and ability to make things happen. He has made a fortune through his ventures, such as Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company. He has a net worth of over $200 billion as of 2023, making him the second-richest person in the world after Amazon’s Jeff Bezos.
But how did Musk achieve such a staggering fortune? Did he inherit it from his family or build it from scratch? Is he a self-made billionaire or a silver Spooner?
Self-Made Billionaire Elon Musk Tweet
Musk responded to Deborah’s tweet, acknowledging that despite coming from a wealthy family, students can still face significant financial challenges.
In response, Musk wrote on May 7, 2023, “I came from a lower-income household, moved into an upper-income household, but had a difficult childhood.” Elon stated that he did not inherit anything from his family. He also denied the false rumours in the media about their father having an emerald mine and providing financial support to him.
I grew up in a lower, transitioning to upper, middle income situation, but did not have a happy childhood. Haven’t inherited anything ever from anyone, nor has anyone given me a large financial gift.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 6, 2023
My father created a small electrical/mechanical engineering company that was…
Musk was replyed to a tweet who asked him to “stop pretending” that he is self-made and should “acknowledge” his privilege. The user cited an article by The Guardian that alleged that Musk’s father, Errol Musk, owned an emerald mine in Zambia and that he bankrolled his son’s career.
Errol’s (Elon’s Ji Father) Statement
Despite having a relatively successful business, Errol Musk experienced financial difficulties. As Musk pointed out, his father founded a successful engineering firm that flourished for 20 to 30 years before falling on hard times.
Errol shared a Facebook post that the Zambian emerald mine he had a stake in “collapsed in 1989.” Errol further mentioned that he was active as National and their apartheid, and he was elected as a Pretoria city councillor to support in opposition.
Errol concluded his post by acknowledging the unjust and oppressive nature of apartheid and recognized the pain and suffering it caused many South Africans. However, he does not feel it is fair to associate any of that with what Elon has achieved through hard work since he left South Africa at 17.
In Elon’s Own Words
After finishing high school, he stated that he received no significant financial assistance from his father. Nevertheless, he believes that the knowledge gained from studying physics, engineering, and construction is more valuable than monetary support.
“However, he credited his father for giving the most valuable gift than money. Elon said, he is thankful that his father taught me the fundamentals of engimeering, and physics.”
On March 25, 2021, Musk tweeted about his college days and financial struggles. He mentioned that his father didn’t own an emerald mine, and he had to work through college, which resulted in around $100k in student debt. Additionally, he shared that he couldn’t afford a second PC at Zip2, so he had to work on programming at night, and the website only functioned during the day.
Musk also said that he arrived in Canada in 1989 with ~CA$2,500 and had no contact with his father for almost a decade.
Elon Musk Education and Early Career
Since a young age, Musk has been interested in science and technology. He taught himself computer programming and sold his first software, a video game called Blastar, when he was 12 years old. He attended Waterkloof House Preparatory School and Bryanston High School in South Africa. He was bullied at school and once suffered a severe beating that hospitalized him.
At 17, he moved to Canada to avoid mandatory military service in South Africa. He obtained Canadian citizenship through his mother, Maye Musk, who was born in Canada. After enrolling at Queen’s University in Kingston, Elon met his first wife.
To pursue a Ph.D., he moved to California. in applied physics at Stanford University. However, he dropped out after two days to start his first company Zip2, an online city guide service.
Self-Made Billionaire Elon Musk Start Ups
- He sold Zip2 to Compaq for $307 million in 1999 and used his share of $22 million to co-found X.com, an online banking and payment company. His first company X.com merged with another company named Confinity, which became Paypal.
- He became the CEO of PayPal and led its rapid growth. He sold PayPal to eBay for $1.5 billion in 2002 and received $165 million for his stake.
- He then founded SpaceX, a private aerospace company that aims to revolutionize space exploration and colonization. He invested $100 million of his own money into SpaceX and became its CEO and chief engineer.
- He also joined Tesla Motors as an investor and board member in 2004. He became its CEO and product architect in 2008.
Also Read This:
Beyond the Tourist Traps: Discovering Hidden Gems Around the World
Top Indian Politicians Who Lost Their Twitter ‘Blue Tick’ in 2023
IPL 2023: CSK captain Dhoni issues a FAREWELL statement following his team’s victory over KKR
Whatsapp Introduced A New Interface For Screen Lock View: Here’s Everything You Must Know
Final Words
Elon Musk rejected the theories and rumours about him that he owned the wealth from his family. And even his father mentioned in a Facebook post that he said it will not be correct to say that Elon gained his wealth from family after all through hard work his hardwork and get Succecced after so much failure.
