Musk says he plans to give one SpaceX share to each child in the US

Musk’s pledge on X

According to ynetnews, Elon Musk wrote on X on Monday that next year he will give one of his SpaceX shares to every child in America. He added, “This will be the first of many.” The article identifies Musk as an entrepreneur and the world’s richest man.

Response to Anthropic’s announcement

The source says Musk’s statement came after a similar move by Anthropic, which had announced 12 hours earlier that it would donate 5% of its shares to a new fund for public welfare. Anthropic, which makes the Claude AI chatbot, said the plan could support large donations to nonprofit groups or direct payments to certain groups of people. Musk responded by arguing that shares should go straight to the public and then announced his own plan.

Estimated value and unanswered details

According to U.S. Census Bureau data cited in the article, there are about 73 million children under 18 in the United States. Using SpaceX’s closing share price of about $146.03, ynetnews reports that the proposed giveaway would be worth roughly $10.6 billion to $11 billion. The article says Musk, whose net worth is estimated by Bloomberg at about $904 billion, did not explain how he would move the shares to millions of children, who would be included, or whether the shares would be placed in savings accounts.

Questions about ownership and timing

The source says Musk’s wording, “my SpaceX shares,” indicates the stock would come from his personal holdings rather than newly issued shares. It adds that Musk is SpaceX’s biggest shareholder, with more than 6.4 billion shares, and that he is barred from selling or trading most of them until June 2027, after the company’s June initial public offering.

Possible link to Trump Accounts and past giving

Ynetnews reports that it is not clear whether Musk’s pledge is connected to Trump Accounts, a savings and investment vehicle for American children created through the administration’s tax and economic plans. The article says children born during President Donald Trump’s second term receive a $1,000 grant in an account in their name, and that private donors and foundations may contribute. It also says the Treasury Department recently allowed donations of individual company stock. Separately, the article notes that SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell and her husband, Robert, earlier pledged more than $320 million in SpaceX shares for Trump Accounts benefiting more than 2 million children in low-income parts of Texas. The source adds that Musk signed the Giving Pledge in 2012, has questioned traditional philanthropy, and that the Musk Foundation held more than $14 billion in assets at the end of last year. It also recalls that in 2021 Musk said he would give $6 billion to the U.N. World Food Programme if it could show how the money would “solve world hunger,” but the donation never happened.