Elon Musk has been surpassed as the world’s third-richest person by Mark Zuckerberg, with a fortune of $175 billion. This shift in wealth has been driven by Meta Platforms stock soaring while Tesla shares have plunged. As of Wednesday, Zuckerberg’s net worth slightly exceeded Musk’s by $1 billion, with a gap that is expected to widen further as Tesla’s shares continue to decline.
Year-to-date, Zuckerberg has gained $47.3 billion in wealth while Musk has seen a decline of $55.2 billion. This decline has moved Musk from the position of the world’s richest person to the fourth world’s richest person. Musk’s fortune remains ahead of Bill Gates, while Zuckerberg trails behind Jeff Bezos and Bernard Arnault in terms of wealth.
The performance of their respective stocks has been the primary driver of the shift in fortunes for Musk and Zuckerberg. Meta Platforms stock has surged 43% year-to-date, while Tesla shares are down nearly 40%. Zuckerberg’s wealth is heavily concentrated in Meta Platforms stock, as he owns about 13% of the company. In contrast, Musk’s fortune is supported by multiple business ventures including Tesla, SpaceX, and X.
Despite their past conflicts, Musk and Zuckerberg have not followed through on their agreement to fight in a cage match last year. However, their ongoing competition in the business world remains apparent as their fortunes continue to fluctuate.