His wealth is what enabled SpaceX to exist.
Musk's Neuralink now has enabled a paralized man who could not communicate to operate a computer with his mind and thereby communicate with the world.
Neuralink existed for years before Musk. If it weren't him, the researchers would have continued with other investors or govt grants (Trump gutting the NIH recently notwithstanding).
Compare this paltry evidence of benefit with the massive damage being done by the Musk-directed DOGE group, and it's clear billionaires being able to use their money to buy influence over govt is a net negative for US citizens.
Starlink. The one that connected the N Carolina hurricane victims when FEMA failed, and then again in Los Angeles.
NASA can now launch missions at 10% of the cost, due to SpaceX.
> Neuralink existed for years before Musk.
According to Google: "Neuralink, an invasive BCI company with a short-term goal of treating various neurological disorders such as quadriplegia, was founded by Elon Musk in 2016 with the intention of creating another “layer” to the brain to complement the functions of existing layers like the limbic system and the cortex."
It's now working on restoring sight to the blind. What a monster Musk is!
BTW, the value of his companies is what investors value it at. Surely they think they are worth it.
The US will shortly be in a doom loop of spending, which will have far worse effects.
A funny thing about SpaceX: I used to work around the space coast in Florida, and the scuttlebutt there was how often the employees had to work around Musk.
Apparently he would breeze in, make uninformed suggestions, and the employees developed processes to limit his damage.
Go outside, touch some grass, and contemplate that Musk is just a dude with a lot of money, not some singular genius or the savior of humanity. Once you do that, you can ask yourself if he's even the best billionaire to be running these companies.