Elon Musk vows to give a share of SpaceX stock to every US child
Elon Musk, the world's wealthiest person, on Monday vowed to give every child in the United States a share of stock in aerospace giant SpaceX.
The company, which Musk leads as founder and CEO, boasts a valuation of nearly $2 trillion, with Musk the largest individual shareholder. A share of SpaceX was worth about $150 as of Monday morning.
"Next year, I will give one of my SpaceX shares to every kid in America. This will be the first of many," Musk said in a post on X.
Musk did not provide additional details about how or when the shares would be distributed or what the recipient age cutoff may be.
The latest U.S. Census data estimated about 73 million people in the U.S. under age 18. Using that figure and given the company's share price on the day of Musk's announcement, the giveaway would total nearly $11 billion.
Musk's net worth stands at $908.5 billion, the most recent Fortune data shows, meaning the donation would amount to about 1.2% of his wealth.
SpaceX builds and operates spacecraft, including thousands of satellites deployed in support of its Starlink satellite internet service. The company also oversees xAI, which offers a chatbot in competition with the likes of OpenAI's ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude.
The pledge from Musk arrived amid scrutiny from some policymakers, investors and the general public about the potential impact of AI on the labor market and wider economy.
Musk's announcement is not the only stated public benefit outreach from a business leader or firm in the AI sector.
On Sunday, Anthropic announced the formation of what they said was a "Public Benefit Fund" made up of 5% of the company's shares. The portion of the company's shares held by the fund will grow in the event of an increase in the company's value, Anthropic said.
An additional 2% of shares will be added at the board’s discretion for every 50% increase in the company’s value above a set baseline, Anthropic said. The fund is subject to shareholder approval, according to the announcement.
While stating that Anthropic is a "public benefit corporation" with "most of our work in pursuit of our mission [taking] place inside the company," the announcement said the Public Benefit Fund "will have increased flexibility and scale, enabling us to pursue our mission in new ways: for example, we might explore large donations to traditional nonprofits or direct distributions to specific populations."
"AI may generate enormous economic value, but it could also cause instability for many workers," the company's announcement further said. "Anthropic has already committed $200 million to studying and addressing this issue, but given the pace of AI progress, bolder approaches may be needed. The Fund will have the versatility to pursue them."
For its part, rival firm OpenAI operates what it describes as a philanthropic organization, called the OpenAI Foundation.
Over a year-long period, the group plans to invest $1 billion in "life sciences and curing diseases, jobs and economic impact, AI resilience, and community programs," Bret Taylor, chair of the board of directors of the OpenAI Foundation, said in March.
A surge in AI spending has helped boost the U.S. economy in recent quarters, but some economists have warned the industry may increase inflation and harm job prospects for some workers.
A series of autonomous AI hacks in recent months, meanwhile, has elicited concern from some industry insiders and public figures about severe risks the technology could pose for key institutions with digital systems, including commandeering vital infrastructure and even potentially threatening humanity itself.
Analysts who previously spoke to ABC News disagreed sharply about the likelihood of an AI-induced calamity. Some said such an outcome is likely if the industry fails to impose adequate safeguards, while others characterized it as vague and far-fetched.
