Elon Musk breaks Guinness World Record; here's why

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has broken a Guinness world record for the largest loss of personal wealth in history, losing up to USD 200 billion since 2021, the publication said on Friday.

The automotive company has lost USD 182 billion since November 2021, as per Forbes, although other sources have estimated his losses as high as USD 200 billion. Tesla’s poor market performance was the primary cause of Elon Musk’s fiscal misfortunes, as the billionaire has most of his wealth invested in the auto company.

The record was held by Korean-Japanese billionaire technology entrepreneur Masayoshi Son who had lost USD 56 billion. “Although the exact figure is almost impossible to ascertain, Musk’s total losses far surpass the previous record of USD 58.6 billion, set by Japanese tech investor Masayoshi Son in 2000,” says the press release.

Tesla stock has lost 65 per cent of its value over the course of the past year, with the billionaire contributing to the loss himself after selling off Tesla shares to pay for his USD 44 billion purchase of Twitter and triggering the largest sell-off since the company went public in 2010.

Regardless of these terrible numbers, however, Elon Musk’s public statements suggest he is optimistic about his car company’s future – even as investors accuse him of getting distracted by Twitter. Tesla is “executing better than ever,” he said last month, reassuring investors that “long-term fundamentals are extremely strong” even if “short-term market madness is unpredictable.”

Also Read: Elon Musk reveals US demanded suspension of 250k Twitter accounts, including journalists