Elon Musk, the world’s richest person, has made a new claim regarding his financial legacy. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) he said that he expects to pay more than $500 billion in taxes over his lifetime. The projection comes as Musk’s personal fortune reached a staggering $852 billion this month. This massive jump in wealth follows a merger between his rocket company, SpaceX, and his artificial intelligence firm, xAI, creating a combined giant valued at $1.25 trillion.Responding to a video in which he joked about his status as the “largest individual taxpayer in history”, Musk said that he has already paid over $10 billion in taxes.“I’m the largest individual taxpayer in history. I paid over $10 billion in tax. I thought, maybe the IRS would send me like a little trophy or something,” Musk said, drawing laughter from the audience. “Like one of those like doesn’t have to be expensive. It could be one of those things you get for when kids win a karate competition But I didn’t get anything,” he added.“I will probably end up paying over $500B in taxes, inclusive of death,” he said in a response to the video.

The $800 billion milestone from a $1.25 trillion company

Earlier this month, Musk’s net worth soared by $84 billion in a single day following the SpaceX-xAI deal. The merger restructured his holdings, giving him a 43% stake in the new entity, worth roughly $542 billion. Musk’s wealth could still skyrocket. Tesla shareholders recently approved a “Mars shot” pay package. If Tesla hits growth targets over the next decade, Musk could receive up to $1 trillion in additional stock – making him the first trillionaire.Elon Musk owns around 12% stake in Tesla, valued at $178 billion along with stock options worth another $124 billion.