Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has once again overtaken Mark Zuckerberg, the owner of Meta, which encompasses Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Threads, in the race for the title of the world’s richest person.
Meta experienced a significant setback in its market value, with a staggering $132.2 billion decline in market capitalization on Thursday, despite posting better-than-expected first-quarter profitability. This decline was attributed to investor concerns surrounding the tech giant’s AI endeavors and subdued second-quarter projections, leading to a valuation drop to $1.11 trillion during Friday’s regular trade.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk’s net worth stood at $184 billion as of Thursday, according to Bloomberg’s Billionaire Index, surpassing Zuckerberg’s diminished net worth, which plummeted from $175 billion last week to $157 billion.
These developments unfolded shortly after Tesla announced disappointing earnings results, revealing a 9% year-over-year decrease in revenue growth — the largest decline since 2012. However, Musk’s reassurances regarding Tesla’s forthcoming electric vehicle offerings at lower prices helped maintain investor confidence.
Despite Meta’s 30% year-over-year revenue increase, investors showed skepticism, causing a 12% drop in Meta’s stock following the release of its earnings report. Concerns centered on Meta’s AI initiatives and a gloomy revenue forecast for the second quarter, estimated to range between $36.5 billion and $39 billion.
