Techcentral's Global Newsmakers Of 2024
From backing Donald Trump to win the US presidency to becoming the co-head of the US department of government efficiency Doge, the South African-born Musk is now, without doubt, the world's most powerful and influential businessman.
Among his many achievements in 2024, these were among the standouts
SpaceX's valuation topped 350-billion for the first time, making it the world's most valuable start-up. And did you see the successful catch of the Starship rocket booster on its launch pad? Remarkable stuff, and a key step in Musk achieving his burning desire to get to Mars and make humans a multiplanetary species.
xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence start-up, achieved a valuation of 50-billion. He's determined to win the AI race, even though he's chasing well-funded rivals like OpenAI/Microsoft and Google for the crown. Could he abuse his newfound political power to gain an unfair advantage - and stick it to OpenAI's Sam Altman, with whom he feuded for much of the year?
Tesla's valuation hit a new record high above 1.5-trillion, making all other car makers look like minnows in comparison. Whether that kind of valuation is in any way warranted is open to much debate.
Musks personal wealth exceeded 400-billion and nearly topped 500-billion, making him the first person in history to amass a personal fortune that large. Of course, much of it is on paper only, tied up in Tesla stock.
Whatever you think of Musk - and views are sharply divided - he really is the only choice for the top spot in TechCentral's Global Newsmakers of 2024. Will he top the list again next year? We won't bet against it. c 2024 NewsCentral Media