Musk Pledges 72 Million SpaceX Shares to U.S. Children, a $10.5 Billion Giveaway
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Oct 19
Musk Pledges 72 Million SpaceX Shares to U.S. Children, a $10.5 Billion Giveaway
3 articles · Updated · CNBC · Oct 19
Summary
Elon Musk said he will give every U.S. child one SpaceX share next year, implying roughly 72 million shares based on the latest census count of Americans under 18.
At Friday's $146.03 closing price, the pledge would be worth about $10.5 billion, a small slice of Musk's holdings of 4.8 billion SpaceX shares, or 6.4 billion including unvested awards and options.
Musk offered no details on how the distribution would work, saying only on X that "this will be the first of many" as CNBC sought comment from SpaceX.
The announcement followed Anthropic's plan to place 5% of its shares into a public benefit fund; Musk replied that shares should go directly to the public and said that is what he would do.
With SpaceX now public, is gifting 72 million shares to children a philanthropic revolution or a brilliant strategy to lock in retail loyalty?
Could a massive $10.5 billion stock giveaway accidentally burden millions of American families with surprise tax bills and lost financial aid?
How will the financial system handle the unprecedented logistical nightmare of opening millions of custodial brokerage accounts for every minor overnight?