Topline

With Donald Trump’s victory as president, the stage is set for one of his most prolific backers – the world’s richest person, Elon Musk – to exert his newfound political influence, and while it is a mystery what role he will play in the government can play, Musk has a number of priorities out.

Key facts

What has Musk said he would do in a Trump administration?

In a series of posts on Tuesday and Wednesday on his social media platform he. an image calling him America’s Chief Technology Officer, said the DOGE will be “so lit,” responded with fire emojis in a post calling for Lina Khan, head of the Federal Trade Commission, and Gary Gensler, head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, and responded affirmatively to a post calling to “dismantle Washington as we know it.” Musk often clashed with regulators in the Biden administration. The Khan-led FTC fined use of Twitter in the context of his role at Tesla, dating back to a controversial 2018 tweet in which Musk said he had secured the necessary financing to take Tesla private.

How can Musk benefit from a Trump administration?

There are a slew of open lawsuits and government investigations against Musk and his companies, meaning he would likely enjoy the lighter regulatory environment suggested by Trump. Among the legal and regulatory issues facing Musk include a call to reinstate his $50 billion Tesla stock bonus, which was rejected by a Delaware judge in January, an investigation into Tesla’s autonomous driving systems the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and a reported warning from the judge. Department on the America PAC’s $1 Million Award to Certain Swing State Voters. And Tesla, which is responsible for more of Musk’s wealth than any other company, could get a boost from Trump’s economic proposals, which would likely hurt its electric vehicle competitors, a benefit reflected in its stock’s massive rally on Wednesday (see below for more details). .

When did Musk become an ally of Trump?

Musk endorsed Hillary Clinton in 2016 and said he voted for Joe Biden in 2020. His shift to the right coincided with his purchase of Twitter in 2022, and he said he cast his first ever vote for a Republican candidate for former Texas Rep. in June of that year. . Mayra Flores. In November, Musk said he would support Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (right) in the presidential election, ultimately endorsing Trump in July after Trump’s failed assassination attempt and joining Trump on the campaign trail in the following months.

Chief critic

“I’m not sure how they got that number,” hedge fund manager Scott Bessent, a potential pick to become Trump’s treasury secretary, told Forbes before the election, highlighting Musk’s goal of saving $2 trillion in doubted. the annual budget of the federal government. “But I look at the way he runs his companies. He manages them quite well,” Bessent added.

Important background

Musk’s SpaceX and Tesla are both among the most valuable companies in the world, with aerospace giant SpaceX being the world’s second-largest private company with a reported valuation of $210 billion, and electric vehicle company Tesla the tenth-largest publicly traded company valued at over $900 billion. billion market capitalization. Musk has a 42% stake in SpaceX and 13% in Tesla, while he also has controlling stakes in X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, and generative AI startup xAI. South African-born Musk is by far the richest person in the world, with a net worth of about $280 billion, more than $60 billion more than the next richest man, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.

Tangent

The fruits of Musk’s potential personal benefit from a Trump administration were on display Wednesday, as Tesla shares rose 14% to their highest level since last July, adding $20 billion to Musk’s fortune. “Musk’s big bet on Trump is a home run for Tesla,” said Wedbush analyst Dan Ives. Trump’s proposal to end federal tax breaks for electric vehicles “could give Musk and Tesla a clear competitive advantage in a non-EV subsidy environment,” Ives wrote to clients, adding heavy tariffs on Chinese imports “would make cheaper Chinese EV continue to drive away players that will flood the US market in the coming years.”

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