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Elon Musk’s estimated fortune fell to $994.1 billion after a new devaluation linked to SpaceX, just days after the businessman reached the symbolic mark of $1 trillion. The case shows how the wealth of the owner of Tesla, SpaceX, and Starlink can change in a few hours when the value attributed to his companies undergoes a correction.
Elon Musk lost his trillionaire status again on Wednesday, July 1st, after a drop linked to SpaceX reduced his estimated fortune by $59 billion, about R$ 306.8 billion.
According to Forbes, the businessman’s net worth fell to $994.1 billion, or approximately R$ 5.17 trillion, still enough to keep him as the richest person in the world.
The change occurred after a devaluation of 6.2% in assets associated with SpaceX, which erased part of the gains recorded in the previous three trading sessions. The company had advanced nearly 12% in that period, which helps explain why Musk’s fortune fluctuated so strongly in just a few days.
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The number is striking due to its size, but it does not mean that Musk lost this amount in available cash. Most of his fortune is composed of stakes in companies, options, and market estimates. When the value attributed to these assets changes, the net worth calculation follows the movement.
The drop came when analysts were trying to reinforce optimism with SpaceX
The new drop linked to SpaceX occurred on the same day that Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities known for following Tesla, initiated coverage of the company with a positive outlook. The brokerage set a target price of $190 for the company’s assets, supported by three growth fronts.
The first is the space launch business, an area where SpaceX has consolidated commercial and governmental contracts in recent years. The second is Starlink, a satellite internet network that already appears as one of the main engines of recurring revenue within the group.
The third front cited by analysts is the infrastructure for artificial intelligence. The assessment is that satellites, rockets, connectivity, and data centers can bring SpaceX closer to a market that today involves some of the largest technology companies in the world.
The contrast was the most curious point of the day. While part of the market saw SpaceX as a company capable of growing in launches, connectivity, and AI, the drop in the company’s attributed value was enough to remove tens of billions of dollars from Musk’s estimated fortune.
The title of trillionaire lasted briefly because the fortune is not in cash
Musk had crossed the US$ 1 trillion mark after the recent strong appreciation of SpaceX, but staying at this level depended on new market variations. This is the main difference between an estimated fortune and actual available cash.
The entrepreneur did not receive US$ 1 trillion in a bank account. The value appears in estimates because his stakes in high-value companies became worth more within the calculations used by billionaire rankings.
When SpaceX appreciates, Musk’s estimated wealth rises. When the company loses value, the account goes the opposite way. It was this movement that dropped the estimated fortune to US$ 994.1 billion and again removed the entrepreneur from the trillionaire range.
There is also the weight of Tesla in this account. Musk’s fortune had already been affected the previous week by a revision linked to US$ 116 billion in restricted shares of the automaker, related to a compensation plan conditioned on his remaining in a leadership position until January 2028.
In practice, the market does not only evaluate companies. It also evaluates expectations about Musk, his positions, his plans, and the ability of businesses like SpaceX, Starlink, and Tesla to deliver enough growth to sustain such high valuations.
Even after losing billions, Musk remains far ahead of other names at the top
Despite the drop, Musk remained far ahead of other billionaires in the global ranking. Larry Page, co-founder of Google, appears with an estimated wealth of US$ 292.7 billion, while Sergey Brin, also a co-founder of the company, appears with US$ 270 billion.
The difference shows the size of the advantage built by Musk after the appreciation of SpaceX. Even with a daily loss of more than $50 billion, he remained with a fortune more than three times greater than that of Page.
This movement also reveals a shift in the businessman’s wealth axis. For years, Tesla was the main driver of his fortune. Now, SpaceX has gained more weight in the account, especially by bringing together rockets, satellites, global internet, and plans related to heavy computing.
The concentration also increases the risk. When a company starts to represent a very large portion of a billionaire’s estimated wealth, any significant correction in the value attributed to it appears immediately in the ranking.
While Musk retreated, Zuckerberg gained almost $20 billion with Meta
The same day that reduced Musk’s estimated fortune brought the opposite movement for Mark Zuckerberg. Meta’s shares rose more than 10%, and the Facebook founder’s wealth advanced $19.1 billion, reaching $212.6 billion.
The rise was linked to the expectation that Meta is preparing a cloud infrastructure business to sell access to computational capacity and artificial intelligence models. Reuters reported that the initiative was revealed by Bloomberg and could put the company in competition with Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet in the AI-focused cloud market.
This contrast helps explain the current mood in the technology sector. Companies with clear monetization plans in artificial intelligence tend to be rewarded by the market. Meanwhile, companies with very high valuations may suffer sharp declines when investors start questioning price, delivery time, or the ability to turn infrastructure into revenue.
Meta also faces pressure due to the size of the spending on AI. In April, the company raised its annual investment projection to $125 billion to $145 billion, largely due to data centers, chips, and computational infrastructure.
The question now is how much of Musk’s fortune will withstand the next correction
Musk’s case shows that the first trillionaire in history can leave this level in a matter of hours. The mark depends on the value attributed to SpaceX, Tesla’s performance, confidence in his satellite businesses, and investors’ perception of artificial intelligence.
For the reader, the central difference is between estimated wealth and liquidity. Musk remains the richest man in the world, but much of this value is concentrated in business holdings and future rights. To turn a significant portion of this into cash, he would have to sell assets, which could pressure prices and reduce his calculated fortune.
The drop also shows the risk of very high valuations. If SpaceX does not deliver sufficient growth in launches, Starlink, or AI infrastructure, the same mechanism that elevated Musk to the trillionaire level could remove hundreds of billions from the estimate.
Do you believe that Elon Musk will surpass $1 trillion again in the coming days, or does the drop related to SpaceX show that the market overestimated the company’s value? Leave your opinion in the comments and tell us if this mark represents real wealth or just a momentary snapshot of market valuations.
