In 2021, Elon Musk made a landmark donation of Tesla stock worth $5.7 billion, marking a historic act of philanthropy for a car company owner. The recipient of this massive contribution was the Musk Foundation, significantly increasing its financial resources and making it one of the largest charitable organizations in the U.S.
Bloomberg News confirmed that Musk’s own foundation received the donation, bringing its total assets to $9.4 billion by the end of 2021. Tax records reveal that $160 million was distributed to various nonprofit organizations, including $55 million to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and $54 million to the XPrize Foundation. Additionally, Musk fulfilled public pledges by donating funds to schools and nonprofits in Brownsville, Texas, home to his SpaceX launch site.
With a personal fortune estimated at $167.6 billion, Musk became one of the biggest philanthropists of the year. The Chronicle of Philanthropy ranked him as the second-largest donor in 2021, following Bill Gates and Melinda French Gates, who contributed $15 billion.
