Musk pledges one SpaceX share to every child in the US next year
In short
Elon Musk said in a post on X on Monday that next year he will give one of his SpaceX shares to "every kid in America" and that this "will be the first of many". Outlets put the value at about $10.5 billion to $10.7 billion, depending on the child count used, and noted that Musk gave no details on how it would work.
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Elon Musk said in a post on X early on Monday that he will give one of his SpaceX shares to "every kid in America" next year. "This will be the first of many," he wrote. Axios said the post came just before 4 a.m. ET. [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 ]
Musk did not say how the plan would work. Axios said he did not specify whether "kid" meant all minors under 18 or some other status, nor what "first of many" meant. Business Insider said he gave no eligibility criteria or timing. CNN described the proposal as thin on detail. CNBC said it had reached out to SpaceX and Musk's family office for details. [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]
Outlets calculated the value from Census Bureau data. Newsweek, Axios and CNBC used about 72 million children under 18 and SpaceX's Friday closing price of $146.03, giving about $10.5 billion. CNN, ABC News and PBS NewsHour used about 73 million children and put the value at about $10.7 billion and $10.66 billion. Business Insider said the giveaway would cut Musk's SpaceX shares by 1.5%. Estimates of his stake differ: Business Insider cited 4.77 billion shares, about 36%, while CNBC cited about 4.8 billion shares, or 6.4 billion with unvested awards and options, a 48.4% stake. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 13 , 15 ]
The pledge followed an announcement by Anthropic on Sunday that it will commit at least 5% of its shares to a new "public benefit" fund. CNN said the stake was worth $48 billion at Anthropic's latest valuation and described Musk's offer as a response to it. ABC News, PBS NewsHour and the New York Post reported that Musk replied to Anthropic's post on Sunday: "I recommend giving the shares directly to the public." [ 5 , 6 , 9 , 13 , 15 ]
Several outlets linked the pledge to Trump Accounts, tax-advantaged investment accounts for children. Gerstner, founder of Invest America and Trump Accounts, praised Musk's move on X and suggested the shares could be distributed through them. CNN said that in July SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and her husband pledged to donate one SpaceX share to each of roughly 2 million children already signed up to an account. The Verge later reported that President Donald Trump announced the shares will be given through Trump Accounts; only a summary of that report was available. [ 2 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 20 ]
On Monday, the New York Post said SpaceX shares rose 1% to $147.52, while CBS News said they rose 2.7% to $149.49 in morning trading. CBS News and ABC News said SpaceX will report quarterly earnings on Tuesday. CNBC noted that Musk's giving had recently been in the news mainly for political contributions, saying he has spent more than $276 million on donations to Republican groups since July. [ 4 , 6 , 9 , 13 ]
Why it matters
The pledge would be a very large share giveaway, though outlets note it is a small part of Musk's holdings and wealth. Coverage links it to Anthropic's announcement a day earlier and to the Trump Accounts investment program for children.
Key facts
- Musk wrote on X: "Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many." [ 2 , 3 , 5 , 6 ]
- SpaceX closed at $146.03 on Friday; with about 72 million children under 18 per Census Bureau data, the giveaway would be worth about $10.5 billion. [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
- CNN, CBS News, ABC News and PBS NewsHour used about 73 million children; ABC and PBS put the value at about $10.66 billion and CNN at about $10.7 billion. [ 5 , 9 , 13 , 15 ]
- Musk did not say how the shares would be distributed or give other details of how the pledge would be carried out. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 9 , 13 ]
- The pledge came a day after Anthropic announced it will commit 5% of its shares to a new "public benefit" fund. [ 5 , 6 , 9 , 13 , 15 ]
- Brad Gerstner of Altimeter Capital, founder of Invest America and Trump Accounts, praised the move and suggested the shares could be distributed via Trump accounts. [ 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Musk said on X on Monday that he will give one of his SpaceX shares to every child in America next year, adding that this "will be the first of many". [ 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 9 , 13 ]
- Musk did not provide details on how the giveaway would be carried out. [ 1 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 9 , 13 ]
- SpaceX shares closed at $146.03 on Friday, and the giveaway would be worth about $10.5 billion on the roughly 72 million children count. [ 1 , 3 , 4 ]
- Anthropic announced on Sunday that it will commit 5% of its shares to a new public benefit fund, and Musk's pledge came a day later. [ 5 , 6 , 9 , 13 , 15 ]
- Musk replied to Anthropic's post on Sunday: "I recommend giving the shares directly to the public." [ 6 , 13 , 15 ]
Still unclear
- How the shares would be distributed and who would be eligible Musk gave no details; CNN said it is not clear how shares would reach the children or whether all would be eligible, and Business Insider said he did not give eligibility criteria or timing.
- Whether "kid" means everyone under 18 Axios said Musk did not specify whether "kid" meant all minors under 18 or some other status.
- What "first of many" means Axios said Musk did not elaborate on it, and Newsweek said he did not detail additional giveaways.
- Whether the shares will go through Trump Accounts Business Insider said Musk did not say whether shares would be transferred to Trump Accounts, and the New York Post said it appeared he plans to. The Verge reported that President Donald Trump announced the shares will be given through Trump Accounts; only a summary of that report was available.
- Number of children and size of Musk's SpaceX stake Outlets cite about 72 million or 73 million children. Business Insider gives 4.77 billion shares and about 36%, CNBC gives 4.8 billion shares or 6.4 billion with unvested awards and options (48.4%), Newsweek says 6.4 billion, and CBS News cites FactSet for a 10.5% stake.