Zuckerberg Overtakes Elon Musk as Third Richest Billionaire for the First Time Since 2020
Meta Platforms Inc.’s Founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, surpassed Tesla owner Elon Musk on Friday to become the third richest billionaire globally, a position he hadn’t held since 2020.
Musk, who was the richest person on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index as recently as early March, dropped to fourth place due to challenges faced by Tesla.
This year, Musk’s wealth has decreased by $48.4 billion, while Zuckerberg’s fortune has increased by $58.9 billion as Meta Platforms Inc. reached new heights, including a fresh record on Friday.
According to Bloomberg, Zuckerberg’s rise on Friday marked the first time he had entered the top three on Bloomberg’s list of the richest individuals since November 16, 2020. During that period, Zuckerberg was worth $105.6 billion, while Musk’s fortune was valued at $102.1 billion.
As of now, Musk’s net worth is $180.6 billion, while Zuckerberg’s stands at $186.9 billion.
The shift in wealth between Musk and Zuckerberg, which had reached as high as $215 billion in November 2021, illustrates how the once-prominent electric vehicle stocks have been overshadowed by big tech, particularly anything related to artificial intelligence.
Tesla shares have dropped by 34% this year, making it the worst performer in the S&P 500 Index. It has faced challenges due to a global slowdown in demand for electric vehicles, increasing competition in China, and production issues in Germany.
Meanwhile, Meta has surged by 49% due to strong quarterly earnings and excitement about the company’s AI projects. It ranks as the fifth-best performer on the S&P 500.
The rivalry between the two billionaires goes beyond their wealth, as Musk and Zuckerberg have been involved in a public feud, especially when Meta launched Threads, a social media platform that competes with Musk’s ventures. Last year, they even bantered about a possible cage fight. Musk, 52, recently brought up the idea on Twitter, saying he would fight Zuckerberg, 39, “anywhere, anytime.”
In other billionaire news, Bernard Arnault, the chairman of luxury giant LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos hold the first and second spots on Bloomberg’s list of the richest billionaires, with fortunes of $223.4 billion and $207.3 billion, respectively.
