Elon Musk succession plan: World’s richest man won’t leave wealth to his 14 children, says it would be a ‘mistake’
Despite becoming the world’s richest individual and recently being described as a trillionaire following a spike in associated valuations space exploration technology corp.First public market appearance, Elon Musk has made it clear that he does not intend to pass the fortune directly to his children.
Musk said he doesn’t support the idea of children automatically inheriting control or shares in a company, according to a recent interview with The Wall Street Journal CEO Council. He emphasized wealth Or leadership should not be transferred purely through family ties.
“I would never automatically give my children some shares in a company, even if they have no interest, inclination or ability to run the company,” Musk said. He added: “I think it was a mistake.”
Merit outweighs inheritance
Musk has said in past interviews that leadership of his company should be awarded to individuals based on merit rather than pedigree.
As the US Mirror points out, Musk believes handing over control without ensuring capabilities could be damaging to the company he created. He has reportedly identified someone he trusts to run his business empire in his absence, but the names have not been publicly confirmed.
family background
Musk reportedly has 14 children with four different women, including six with first wife Justine Wilson, three with musician Grimes, four with Neuralink executive Shivon Zilis, and one with conservative influencer Ashley St Clair.
His best-known child, Vivian Jenna Wilson, has been estranged from him since legally changing her name and gender in 2022, and has said in court documents that she wants to sever ties with her biological father.
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Hypothetically, if divided equally among his 14 children, each of them could inherit tens of billions of dollars, although Musk has not indicated any such plans. It’s unclear how much, if any, of his estate will be put into trusts, donated or distributed to family members outside the company’s leadership structure.
