Elon Musk set to become the world’s first trillionaire by 2024 but could his purchase of Twitter prevent this?

A new study from Approve has predicted the world’s first trillionaires by comparing the annual net worths of the top 30 richest people and their annual growth rate to estimate how soon each of them will reach one trillion dollars. The study found that Elon Musk is set to be the world’s first trillionaire by 2024.

The world’s first trillionaires

Rank	Name	Industry	Current age	Average annual net worth growth	Estimated year of trillion-dollar valuation	Estimated age at trillion-dollar valuation
1	Elon Musk	Automotive & Aerospace	50	129%	2024	52
2	Gautam Adani & Family	Diversified	59	121%	2025	62
3	Zhang Yiming	Technology	38	123%	2026	42
4	Mukesh Ambani	Diversified	64	43%	2029	71
4	Bernard Arnault	Fashion & Retail	72	27%	2029	79
6	Jeff Bezos	Technology	57	24%	2030	65
7	Steve Ballmer	Technology	65	28%	2032	75
7	Larry Page	Technology	48	27%	2032	58
7	Sergey Brin	Technology	48	27%	2032	58
10	Michael Dell	Technology	56	32%	2033	67

 

The world’s richest person, Elon Musk, currently has an estimated net worth of $263 billion with an average annual net growth of 129%, which could potentially mean his net worth can hit a trillion dollars in as little as two years, at the age of 52.

Gautam Adani & family own the commodity trading business Adani Group (one of India’s most profitable companies). Adani would be a year behind Musk, reaching trillionaire status in 2025, at the age of 62 at his current rate of 121% growth.

At just 38 years old, Zhang Yiming is the Founder and Chairman of Beijing ByteDance Technology Co, which is considered to be one of the world’s most valuable start-ups. The business is predicted to make Zhang Yiming a trillionaire in 2026, at the age of 42.

Zhang Yiming is set to be the youngest trillionaire, potentially reaching trillionaire status by 2026 when he is just 42, with a 123% average annual net growth.

The technology sector is set to produce the most trillionaires, with six of the top ten trillionaires working in the sector. For example, Amazon’s Founder, Jeff Bezos ranks in sixth place, potentially reaching trillionaire status by 2030.

Bernard Arnault, Chairman and Chief Executive of luxury goods company Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), is the only trillionaire in the top ten from the fashion industry, predicted to reach trillionaire status in 2029.

Could Musk’s purchase of Twitter derail his trillionaire status?

Back in April, Musk agreed to purchase social media platform Twitter for $44 billion. However, he announced in May that the purchase would not move forward until he had more information about the number of fake accounts on the service.

Yesterday, the Tesla tycoon accused Twitter of “resisting and thwarting” his right to information about fake accounts on the platform. In a letter addressed to the company, he said there was a “clear material breach” of the terms of their merger agreement.

“Mr. Musk reserves all rights resulting therefrom, including his right not to consummate the transaction and his right to terminate the merger agreement,” the letter, signed by Skadden Arps attorney Mike Ringler, says.

This has put his purchase of the platform in doubt, particularly as Musk has complained about scams, bots and fake accounts on Twitter for years.

Statista predicts that 329 million people will be using Twitter by the end of 2022, whilst the platform is estimated to be worth more than $30 billion. Therefore, Musk’s purchase of Twitter has the potential to accelerate the speed at which he gains trillionaire status, although this will largely depend on what changes are made to the platform.

Acquisitions have also played an important role in the growth of Musk’s wealth. For example, in the past six years alone, Tesla has acquired several companies, including SolarCity Corp., Maxwell Technologies Inc., Grohmann Engineering GmbH, Perbix Machine Co. Inc., and Hibar Systems Ltd. These are all large companies that contribute significant revenue figures.

So, with acquisitions appearing to constitute a part of Musk’s growth strategy, it will be interesting to see what effect pulling the plug on the Twitter deal could have on his journey to trillionairehood.