Elon Musk is a South African entrepreneur, engineer, inventor and explorer. He became a multimillionaire in his late 20s when he sold his start-up company, Zip2, to a division of Compaq Computers. He achieved more success by founding X.com in 1999, SpaceX in 2002 and Tesla Motors in 2003.
Musk made headlines in May 2012, when SpaceX launched a rocket that would send the first commercial vehicle to the International Space Station. He bolstered his portfolio with the purchase of SolarCity in 2016, and cemented his standing as a leader of industry by taking on an advisory role in the early days of President Donald Trump's administration.
According to Forbes, Elon Musk has an estimated net worth of $14 billion. He made his first fortune as a cofounder of PayPal.
To learn more about Elon Musk, check out these 5 fast facts compiled by Heavy.com.
In latest buzz, for years, Elon Musk has been focused on building a colony on Mars. That's why he founded SpaceX in 2002, and it’s been the driving force behind the company ever since.
But during a speech in Adelaide, Australia, on Friday morning, Musk said he has dramatically expanded his already-outsize ambitions. In addition to helping create a city on the Red Planet, he said the next rocket he intends to build could be used to establish a base camp on the moon — and fly people across the globe. Catch more scoop at The Washington Post.