Elon Musk’s wealth experiences most significant drop
According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index on Thursday, Elon Musk‘s wealth plummeted by $12.6 billion, his most significant drop in wealth this year. Under Musk’s leadership, SpaceX, Tesla, and Twitter have all recently tumultuous 24 hours.
On Thursday morning, Tesla announced disappointing first-quarter earnings, reporting a decline of nearly 20 percent in gross margins. Since early 2017, the electric vehicle manufacturer has made several aggressive price cuts, increasing sales despite the struggling EV market and affecting its overall profit margins.
The share price of Tesla fell 9.8 percent to $162.99 after markets closed on Thursday. Musk’s 13 percent stake in Tesla makes up most of his (now) $163.9 billion net worth.
Four minutes into SpaceX’s first test flight, the Starship spacecraft experienced a “rapid unscheduled disassembly” over the Gulf of Mexico, which is just a fancy way of saying it exploded. Despite clearing the launchpad, Starship spun uncontrollably and burst into flames just before stage separation. Musk owns 42 percent of SpaceX and plans to try again in a few months.
Musk followed through on his promise to remove blue checkmarks from legacy accounts on Thursday. It takes a few reloads for the verification logos to flash in and out with the technical prowess we’ve come to expect from the platform before they are gone for good.
As a result, Twitter Blue, the company’s subscription service, has replaced legacy verification, such as the “lords & peasants” system he once called unfair.
It might not work unless you’re a wealthy celebrity. When The Verge reported that LeBron James had been offered a complimentary subscription by Musk, he confirmed he was paying for Stephen King and William Shatner to be verified.
My Twitter account says I’ve subscribed to Twitter Blue. I haven’t.
— Stephen King (@StephenKing) April 20, 2023
My Twitter account says I’ve given a phone number. I haven’t.
In light of concerns that the removal of legacy verified checkmarks may lead to a rise in misinformation, advertisers and media organizations are watching with bated breath.
The purchase of Twitter Blue has already caused issues from accounts impersonating notable individuals, brands, and government agencies — The share price of Eli Lilly dropped almost 5 percent in November after a fake account falsely claimed “insulin is now free.” Impersonating companies will likely become easier now that so many have lost their verified status.
Although Musk has lost a considerable amount of wealth over the past few months, he continues to rank as the second-richest person in the world, behind French tycoon Bernard Arnault. As a matter of fact, this latest loss hasn’t even eclipsed Tesla’s earlier 33 percent share price rebound in January, which boosted the billionaire’s wealth by $26.8 billion this year.
