Regulatory pause and robotaxi tests draw investors
A rally in Tesla shares has widened the gap at the top of global wealth rankings, with Elon Musk’s net worth reaching about $681 billion, more than double that of second-ranked Larry Page.
The Forbes Real-Time Billionaires List showed Musk’s fortune at roughly $681 billion as of Thursday afternoon, extending his lead over other individuals tracked by the index. Page, a Google co-founder, ranked second with $249 billion. Amazon founder Jeff Bezos followed with $239 billion, while Google co-founder Sergey Brin held $229.9 billion. Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison rounded out the top five at $229.6 billion.
Tesla’s share performance has been central to the shift in rankings. Earlier this week, the stock recorded its first new closing high since Dec. 17, 2024. CNBC reported that Tesla shares closed at $489.88 on Tuesday, up 3.1% on the day, surpassing the company’s prior all-time high reached nearly a year earlier. The stock is now up 21% for the year, after falling 36% in the first quarter, its weakest quarterly performance since 2022.
The recent rally followed comments from Musk on Monday that Tesla has been testing its robotaxis without safety monitors in the front passenger seat. The comments renewed investor attention on the company’s automated driving ambitions, which have long featured in Tesla’s market narrative.
Regulatory developments in California also factored into the market response. The California Department of Motor Vehicles said it would pause a 30-day sales suspension previously imposed after regulators determined that Tesla’s marketing of its self-driving technology under the names Autopilot and Full-Self Driving was misleading. The agency said the systems require human supervision and are not autonomous.
The DMV delayed the sales suspension by 90 days to allow Tesla time to address the issue. A separate 30-day suspension of the company’s manufacturing license was placed on hold indefinitely.
DMV Director Steve Gordon told reporters Tuesday that the regulator’s remaining concern is focused on Tesla’s use of the term Autopilot, after the company took steps to address issues tied to the term Full-Self Driving.
Tesla’s Autopilot feature assists vehicles with accelerating, braking and maintaining lanes on highways. Its Full-Self Driving system allows vehicles to change lanes and respond to traffic signals on city streets, with driver supervision required. The company now includes the term “Supervised” when describing Full-Self Driving in passenger vehicles.
Tesla also uses an unsupervised version of the software to move vehicles from assembly lines to delivery areas at some factories. In Austin, Texas, the company operates a robotaxi service using Full-Self Driving with human safety monitors seated in the front passenger seat and remote support.
The advance in Tesla shares has coincided with Musk’s widening lead in global wealth rankings, leaving a substantial gap between the top position and the rest of the list.
